Friday 30 January 2015

Delta State And Its Home-Grown Billionaires

By Oghene Omonisa



Nigerians from every nook and cranny have found Lagos an irresistible land of dreams. It is the nation’s number one destination for commerce, manufacturing, finance, and the media, and even the movie industry, which is clearly evident in the pace and pulse of the city’s activities.



Apart from being Nigeria’s commercial nerve centre and its major port city, Lagos is Nigeria’s former capital city, which was responsible for the attraction of the largest percent of federal presence and attention. Living in Lagos is exciting and opportunities and possibilities for the ambitious are almost limitless – sometimes elusively so.



The city also enjoys the presence of the administrative and operational head offices of the multi-national oil companies operating in the Niger Delta Region, a system which started during the Nigerian Civil War, because, according to erudite scholar, Prof. G.G. Darah, ‘the military government ordered them to relocate their administrative and operational head offices from the Niger Delta to Lagos, then Federal Capital.



In compliance, Shell, Gulf Oil (now Chevron), Mobil and others moved their head offices to Lagos. This movement also shifted most businesses associated with the petroleum industry from the Niger Delta.’



And this decision has not been reversed more than four decades after the civil war.Like the multi-national oil companies and associated businesses, every aspiring federal government contractor sought a space in Lagos, the then seat of power; manufacturers had to be there too for easy access to imported raw materials, abundant skilled manpower, cheap labour and the city’s large market; importers and exporters found base in the city, just as banks and other financial institutions sprang up to finance projects and manage the city’s funds. Lagos became the nation’s melting pot.







Like many other Nigerians, the City of Lagos therefore came to have early attraction for ambitions Deltans. Nearly every super-rich Deltan was known to have made the bulk of his wealth in Lagos. Leading the pack were the Okotie-Ebohs, the Ibru brothers, the Dafinones, the Odogwus and the Rewanes. Surely, that is not to say every super-rich Deltan had always been Lagos-based.



Even as these Deltans migrated to Lagos and other major Nigerian cities for greener pastures, some remained behind. In the home-based category could be found super-rich Deltans like Chief James Ogboko Edewor, Evang. J.O.C. Mosheshe, Chief WT Odibo, Chief TJ Sokoh and Chief Edward Akponovwe Esiso in Warri; from Sapele came big names like Prince KB Omatseye; while in Ughelli were money-bags like Chief Morrison Obaseki Olori; in Asaba could be seen moneyed Deltans like Chief Ubaka Apoh; and from Agbor rose money giants like Chief Vincent West-Egbarin.



Nevertheless, it is not difficult to admit that most of these home-based guys were not in the league of the Lagos ‘boys’ as the biggest investments all over the state were being attributed to the Lagos moneyed men. It was frequent and very easy to hear the most modern and splendid houses, the best hotels, the super shopping malls, the sophisticated and elegant office blocks and the latest luxury cars all being attributed to some Deltans based in Lagos. This was until recently.



Many changes came with the advent of civilian rule in 1999. Not anymore the era of military governors taking orders from Abuja powers in running a state, especially the process and whom to award state contracts. The present civilian governors run their states themselves. Local contractors and consultants are patronised without having Abuja god-fathers breathing down the neck of the state chief executives; and the oil-producing states insisted on the constitutional 13 percent derivation policy, whose implementation started in 2000.



Then the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) also came into being as an intervention agency for the oil-producing states. It is in this civilian dispensation that oil commissions were established in oil-producing states to administer funds on oil-producing communities; Delta State has its Delta State Oil-Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC). In all of these, local contractors and consultants are being patronised.



Unlike in the past, when the oil companies discriminated against local contractors, these contractors insisted on being patronised on the basis of the local-content law, and this is yielding some positive results. Presently, there are home-based contractors who execute major oil contracts.



While many Deltans are missing in action in the highly lucrative but capital-intensive upstream section of the oil industry, it is interesting to mention that many young home-based Deltans are now actively involved in the highly capital-intensive oil sector as independent marketers, especially with the establishment of a fuel depot in Oghara for independent marketers.



The multi-billion dollar Escravos Gas To Liquid (EGTL) Project of Chevron is a major source of the emergence of a new entrepreneurial elite in the state. This group is mainly peopled by the Itsekiris and the Ijaws of the riverine oil-producing communities, where Chevron has most of its oil wells. Deltans of other ethnic groups all over the state are not left out in patronages being benefited as local-content contractors.



Interestingly, as Chevron wraps up the construction phase to start the operational phase, a similar project is expected to begin soon, the $16bn Gas City Project at Ogidigben, another reverine community. Educated, sophisticated, highly intelligent and mostly young, these Deltans are being financially empowered by these projects to take the lead as Delta State home-based entrepreneurs.



These guys are in the oil and gas sector as well as being major state and federal government contractors. Their business acumen and managerial style can equate, even surpass, major entrepreneurs anywhere in the world. With their investments in the state, more Deltans are being employed outside the public service.



Time it was when one had to exhaust the list of moneyed Deltans based in Lagos before coming to the home-based in considering big investments and promotion of business in the state. These nouveaux riches are diverting into other sectors of the state’s economy, taking the lead in changing the state’s economic landscape, perhaps answering to calls from various quarters that Delta should look beyond oil.



And looking beyond oil certainly requires huge capital to make much impact, be it manufacturing, agro-allied, properties, tourism, hospitality, or financing. The state government realises this, with the establishment of the Warri Industrial and Business Park, the Asaba ICT Park and the Koko Industrial Park, which will be best achieved with big money.



And obviously believing that it will be pipe dream to expect every of this big money to come from Deltans outside the state, or from non-Deltan investors outside the state, these home-based investors are also being empowered by the state government by regular patronages, which are clearly the government’s role in encouraging them. Deltans expect more from the government as these home-based investors have exhibited profound and dedicated interests in immensely contributing to the economic growth of the state.



This growth has led many Deltans, who had come to Lagos in search of the proverbial greener pastures but who have not made a success of it, to consider relocating, or actually relocating. Relocating is not a tough decision for many. Mr. Reuben Akpode, a Deltan of Isoko ethnicity, is a newspaper vendor at Ikeja.



Now in his late 30s, he had moved down to Lagos after his secondary school in 1994, with the hope of working with his secondary school certificate, thereafter securing a part-time degree programme in order to school while working. But things did not quite work out according to his plans. According to Mr. Akpode, he only got a factory job, whose salary was not enough to cater for himself let alone save to go to school.



After many years with no better job, and considering that age was no longer on his side, Mr. Akpode returned home a few years ago, to get married, and brought his wife to Lagos. The wife, also a school certificate-holder, started trade.



It was through their combined efforts that he did a part-time Ordinary National Diploma (OND) programme at the Lagos State Polytechnic, Ikeja Campus. He hopes to return for his HND soon. Thereafter, he will relocate, with his wife and two kids, to Delta State, where an uncle has promised him a job with an oil contracting company.



Not every Deltan who is not doing well in Lagos wishes to return home, though. A clerk with a private transport company, who does not want his name in print, says he has never considered relocating home..





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Nigerian Army gets new Director of Public relations (photos)


The Nigerian army has a new director of Public relations. He is Col SK Usman. He takes over from Gen Olajide OLaleye who is on transfer to the 4th Brigade of the Nigeria Army in Benin, Edo state where he will serve as the Commander. Until his appointment, Col. Usman was the Spokesman of the 7th Division of the Nigerian Army, Maiduguri in Borno state..









Obanikoro insist Buhari was stoned at Lagos Rally


He released a statement through his Special Adviser (Media Strategy) Ohimai Amaize


Immediate past Minister of State for Defence and former PDP Lagos gubernatorial aspirant, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro on Friday chided the All Progressives Congress (APC) over denials that its presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari was stoned in Lagos while making his way to the APC Lagos presidential rally.


Senator Obanikoro had condemned the stoning of General Muhammadu Buhari in Lagos on Friday after the news of his stoning broke via online news media platforms and went viral across the social media.




The APC on Friday through its spokesperson, Lai Mohammed denied the report stating that General Buhari was not stoned but rather received cheers from bystanders.



However, Senator Obanikoro in a statement on Friday issued by Ohimai Amaize, his Special Adviser on Media Strategy, noted that the APC’s denial of Buhari’s stoning in Lagos was not only pointless and futile but also does not give the APC any advantage.



“When things go wrong, we must acknowledge and condemn it in order to forestall any future occurrences.

“Senator Obanikoro, based on eyewitness accounts is aware of the stoning incident at Idumagbo area of Isale-Eko, Lagos State and the fact that a woman was injured in the ensuing fracas after General Buhari's security detail had to shoot into the air to dispel the irate mob”, the statement noted.



Signed

Ohimai Amaize

Special Adviser (Media Strategy) to Senator Musiliu Obanikoro

30/01/2015





PDP Warns Clark, Tompolo And Dokubo Over War Threat

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, yesterday asked the former federal Commissioner for Information and Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark, leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force, NDPVF, Alhaji Mujahid Asari- Dokubo, High Chief Government Ekpemupolo, aka Tompolo and other Niger Delta militants to be mindful of what they say at this period of the nation’s political history.



The PDP also warned other support groups, organisations, professional bodies and associations rooting for President Goodluck Jonathan to be careful with their utterances to ensure decency in the polity.



This was even as ex- MEND Commanders in the Niger Delta, gave General Theophilus Danjuma seven days ultimatum to apologize over his call for the arrest of Asari Dokubo,Tompolo for threatening that Nigeria would break up if President Jonathan lost the February Presidential election. The ex-militants said that war would follow in Nigeria if Jonathan lost the election. Chief Clark and the ex-militants blasted General Danjuma in their reaction, saying that his remarks were disappo-inting. At a meeting in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital yesterday, the former militant commanders in the region condemned the call for the arrest of front line freedom fighters in the region, Alhaji Mujahideen Asari Dokubo and Government Ekpemupolo a.k.a Tompolo, saying that the call amounted to a declaration of war against the Niger Delta region.



Former MEND Commander, Victor Ebikabowei Ben, alias General Boyloaf, also asked General Danjuma to apologise and hide his head in shame or face humiliation.



However, speaking with newsmen in Abuja, PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh noted that although the party appreciated the support of all Nigerians, it was disturbed over the provocative statements of some people which could provoke other parts of the country, warning that Jonathan was not an Ijaw President or that of the South South geo- political zone of the country alone but the president of all Nigerians.



Metuh said, “we want to stress and state publicly, that whilst we have noted the interest, zeal and enthusiasms of individuals, various groups, support groups and organisations, that are supporting the president with statements, adverts, documentaries and TV programmes; we appeal to them to be guided by the noble ideals and the visions of the founding fathers of our party.



“We are not in agreement with their statements and we are cautioning them to mind what they say. No individuals own the party. The President could be more loved in Anambra than Ijaw area. He has support in Adamawa than in Bayelsa States…



“Well, we have noted that whilst we are not responsible for the utterances, statements of some of our support individuals, groups and organizations; we are cautioning them to be mindful of what they say.



“Ours is a national party. We cover all zones, all local governments. No individual owns our party, no group, no people, no zone owns our party. And being a national party, we caution some of our people, some of our supporters to be mindful of the zeal that they exhibit. Let the wrong impression not be given.



“President Jonathan could even be more loved in Anambra than in the Ijaw area. He could even be more loved in Zamfara than in the Ijaw area. He could even have more support and more votes from Adamawa than in Ijaw. And to buttress this, yesterday in the campaign, Mr President informed all that the Adamawa people gave him twice the number of votes that he got from Bayelsa. So the president is not the president of Ijaw, he is not president of Bayelsa; he is not president of South South, he is the president of the entire Nigeria and he has the support of the entire country.” On PDP’s anticipated victory, Metuh said, “We are rounding up next week. So we have done over 70 percent of our campaign.



Alhaji Asari- Dokubo had threatened that “ ex- militants would return to their old ways should President Jonathan lose the election,” at a meeting last week in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital,



Reacting to the issue, the former Minister of Defence, General Theophilous Danjuma called for the arrest of Dokubo and other former Niger Delta Militants for threatening to rock the boat should President Jonathan lose the February 14 election.



Danjuma who described the statements as reckless, had said, “those are very reckless statements made by irresponsible individuals and they should be condemned. In fact, they should be arrested.’’



But responding to Danjuma, Chief Edwin Clark, Tompolo, Dokubo, others tongue lashed the former Minister, accusing him of sponsoring attacks on Jonathan and that the government should arrest him rather than the ex- militants. Clark who said he was disappointed at the call by Danjuma for the arrest of the Ex- Militants, stressed that he (Danjuma) ought to have condemned the attacks on Jonathan in several states in the North.



Meanwhile, ex militant Commanders in the Niger Delta region have asked General Danjuma to apologise over his call for the arrest of front line freedom fighters in the region or face problems.



‘General’ Reuben Wilson aka Pastor who handed the ultimatum on behalf of other commanders of Defunct Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, MEND in Port Harcourt said Danjuma had by his call for arrest of Niger delta crusaders called for war against the region. Wilson who is now president Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative said Danjuma was among northern leaders that had richly benefited from the oil resource in the region.



“Our attention has been drawn to publications credited to T.Y.Danjuma, a former defence minister, calling for the arrest of former Niger Delta freedom fighters, including our frontline selfless leader and hero, Alhaji Mujahid Asari Dokubo.



“As much as he has the right to free speech, Danjuma ought to know that the oil money he is enjoying today, through his ownership of oil blocs, came from our sacrifices and blood. We staked our life to fight for the development of our country. We fought for freedom for our land and it pains us that people like Danjuma who have reaped bountifully from the Niger Delta, can wake up to insult our sensibilities.



“For Danjuma to call for the arrest of Asari Dokubo, then he has walked on the tail of the serpent. The much we know is that we the ex militants who decided to drop our guns to join forces with the federal government to develop the country, especially the Niger Delta have never said anything or taken any action that would warrant such explosives from Danjuma,’’ he said and reaffirmed the support of ex militant commanders for the second term bid of Jonathan. “All we have said overtime is that our brother, President Jonathan, is a true son of the Niger Delta, and deserves to enjoy the two terms in office provided for in the constitution. We stand by this right and we will do everything legal and legitimate to make sure that he is not denied that right, not by a thousand Danjumas.





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Jonathan Nominates Obanikoro, Six Others As Ministers

President Goodluck Jonathan has forwarded the names of seven new ministers to the Senate for confirmation, African Independent Television [AIT] is reporting.



Among the nominees are a former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, Kenneth Kobani, a former National Treasurer of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria [ACN], who recently defected to the Peoples Democratic Party, and a former Senator, Patricia Akwashiki.



More to come…



Mr. Obanikoro was one of the biggest casualties of the gubernatorial primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party [PDP], after resigning his ministerial position on October 15 to vie for the party’s ticket in Lagos for the 2015 election.



He lost to Jimi Agbaje, a relatively less known candidate, who had the backing of the party’s most powerful leaders in Lagos.



Alongside Mr. Obanikoro, former ministers Emeka Wogu, Labaran Maku, Onyebuchi Chukwu, and Samuel Ortom, also lost their bids after leaving their posts to contest in their respective states.



Mr. Obanikoro rejected the Lagos results and filed a legal challenge against the declaration of Mr. Agbaje as winner, kicking off a row that has the potential to ruin any chances the party may have in snatching Lagos from All Progressives Congress, APC in 2015.



The logjam was finally been resolved amicably after President Goodluck Jonathan assured Mr. Obanikoro he would reappoint him to cabinet as part of a deal personally brokered by the President to get him to discontinue his legal challenge of the PDP governorship primary result for Lagos State.



Mr. Obanikoro later withdrew his court case, at the same time promising to fully support Mr. Agbaje as the PDP candidate.







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Secondary School Students Found Floating On Osun River

The residents of the Ijetu area of Osogbo have been thrown into mourning following the discovery of the corpses of

two pupils on the Osun River.



It was gathered that a woman had gone to the river to fetch water when she found the corpses of the two pupils

floating on the river.A resident of the area told our correspondent on Thursday that the woman dropped her bucket and ran

back to the community where she raised the alarm.



It was learnt that the matter was later reported to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence

Corps and a rescue team from the agency was deployed in the scene.



It was gathered that the pupils had gone missing on Monday, while their parents and other relatives had been looking for

them.The parents were said to have broken down in tears on seeing the corpses of their children on Wednesday when their bodies were recovered.



The pupils were identified as Samson Obasanjo and Kabiru, pupils of Junior Secondary School 2 at Ife-Oluwa Middle

School, Osogbo.Some persons said one of the two victims was going to a bakery where he

normally worked after school hours when the incident happened.But our correspondent, who visited the school gathered that seven pupils had gone to the area where the incident

happened to pluck some fruits.

One of the victims was said to have jumped inside the river to swim to the other side of the river where a cherry tree was, but did not come out.



It was learnt that after a while,the second victim reportedly jumped inside

the river to see why the first had not come out and he too disappeared.The remaining five pupils were said to have waited for the two victims to come

out, but after the duo did not come out,they were said to have sworn to an oath that they would not disclose what happened to their colleagues to anybody.



A resident of the area told our

correspondent that students of the school and other public schools around the area were known for truancy.



The Head, Disaster Rescue Team of the NSCDC in Osun State, Mr. Olufemi Awofade, who confirmed the incident to our correspondent, said the team had removed the corpses of the pupils.He said after recovering the corpses of the pupils, their parents took charge and called the worshipers of Osun goddess to perform some rites on them before burial at the riverbank.



Awofade said, “We got a call that a certain woman went to fetch water at the Osun River on Wednesday and she saw corpses on the water.”



The principals of School 2 and School 3 at Ife-Oluwa Middle School declined comment.The two principals told our correspondent, who visited the school,that “we don’t grant press interviews.”



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Du’as For Seeking Knowledge And Taking Exams

Seeking knowledge:

1. Du’as from the Qur’an for seeking and

mastering knowledge:

These ayats from the Qur’an are from:

(i) Surah Taha (Chapter 20), verses 25-28,

(excerpted)

ﺭَﺏِّ ﺍﺷْﺮَﺡْ ﻟِﻲ ﺻَﺪْﺭِﻱ

ﻭَﻳَﺴِّﺮْ ﻟِﻲ ﺃَﻣْﺮِﻱ

ﻭَﺍﺣْﻠُﻞْ ﻋُﻘْﺪَﺓً ﻣِّﻦ ﻟِّﺴَﺎﻧِﻲ

ﻳَﻔْﻘَﻬُﻮﺍ ﻗَﻮْﻟِﻲ

Rabbishrah lee s adree Wayassir lee amree Wah lul

‘uqdatan min lisa nee Yafqahoo qawlee

“O my Sustainer! Open up my heart and make my

task easy for me, and loosen the knot from my

tongue so that they might fully understand my

speech.”

(ii) Surah Taha (Chapter 20), verse:114

(excerpted)

ﺭَّﺏِّ ﺯِﺩْﻧِﻲ ﻋِﻠْﻤًﺎ

Rabbi zidnee ‘ilma n

“O my Lord, increase me in knowledge!”

(iii) Surah Ash-Shu’ara (Chapter 26),

verses:83-85.

ﺭَﺏِّ ﻫَﺐْ ﻟِﻲ ﺣُﻜْﻤًﺎ ﻭَﺃَﻟْﺤِﻘْﻨِﻲ

ﺑِﺎﻟﺼَّﺎﻟِﺤِﻴﻦَ

ﻭَﺍﺟْﻌَﻞ ﻟِّﻲ ﻟِﺴَﺎﻥَ ﺻِﺪْﻕٍ ﻓِﻲ

ﺍﻟْﺂﺧِﺮِﻳﻦَ ‏( 26

ﻭَﺍﺟْﻌَﻠْﻨِﻲ ﻣِﻦ ﻭَﺭَﺛَﺔِ ﺟَﻨَّﺔِ ﺍﻟﻨَّﻌِﻴﻢِ

Rabbi hab lee hukman waalh iqnee bial ssa lih een a

Waj’al lee lisa na s idqin fee alakhireena Waj’alnee

min warathati jannati anna’eem

“My Lord, grant me wisdom, join me with the

righteous; give me a good name among later

generations,; make me one of those given the

Garden of Bliss.”

The above three du’as from the Qur’aan which

are helpful in seeking knowledge, are recited very

beautifully in the following video by Sheikh

Mishary Rashid Al-afasy.

2. The Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) used

to say: “O Allah, I seek refuge in you from four

things: Knowledge which does not profit, a heart

which is not submissive, a soul which has an

insatiable appetite, and a supplication which is

not heard. ”

Source: Narrated Abu Hurayrah in Sunan Abu

Dawud, hadith 614.

Du’a for studying (and taking exams)

Recite: Allaahumma laa sahla ‘illaa maa ja’altahu

sahlan wa ‘Anta taj’alul-hazna ‘ithaa shi’ta

sahlan

Same du’a, but easier to memorize because the

Arabic script is provided:

Dua before your revision:

ﺍﻟﻠﻬﻢ ﺇﻧﻲ ﺃﺳﺄﻟﻚ ﻓﻬﻢ ﺍﻟﻨﺒﻴﻴﻦ، ﻭ ﺣﻔﻆ ﺍﻟﻤﺮﺳﻠﻴﻦ، ﻭ

ﺍﻟﻤﻼﺋﻜﺔ ﺍﻟﻤﻘﺮﺑﻴﻦ، ﺍﻟﻠﻬﻢ ﺍﺟﻌﻞ ﺃﻟﺴﻨﺘﻨﺎ ﻋﺎﻣﺮﺓ

ﺑﺬﻛﺮﻙ، ﻭ ﻗﻠﻮﺑﻨﺎ ﺑﺨﺸﻴﺘﻚ، ﻭ ﺃﺳﺮﺍﺭﻧﺎ ﺑﻄﺎﻋﺘﻚ، ﺇﻧﻚ ﻋﻠﻰ

ﻛﻞ ﺷﻲﺀ ﻗﺪﻳﺮ، ﺣﺴﺒﻨﺎ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻭ ﻧﻌﻢ ﺍﻟﻮﻛﻴﻞ

–

Allahumma inii asaluka fahmal-nabiyyen wa

hifthal mursaleen wal malaaika al-muqarrabeen.

O Allah! I ask You for the understanding of the

prophets and the memory of the messengers, and

those nearest to You.

Allahumma ijal alsinatana amiran bi thikrika wa

qulubana bi khashyatika, wa asraarana bita’atik

O Allah! Make our tongue full of Your

remembrance, and our heart full of your

consciousness, our secrets full of your obedience

Innaka ala kuli shayin qadeer wa anta hasbun-

allahu wa namal wakeel.

(Oh Allah!) You do whatever You wish, and You

are my Availer and best of aid. Protector and the

best of aid.

Dua after your revision:

-

ﺍﻟﻠﻬﻢ ﺇﻧﻲ ﺃﺳﺘﻮﺩﻋﻚ ﻣﺎ ﻗﺮﺃﺕ ﻭﻣﺎ ﺣﻔﻈﺖ ﻭﻣﺎ ﺗﻌﻠﻤﺖ،

ﻓﺮﺩﻩ ﻋﻨﺪ ﺣﺎﺟﺘﻲ ﺇﻟﻴﻪ، ﺇﻧﻚ ﻋﻠﻰ ﻛﻞ ﺷﻲﺀ ﻗﺪﻳﺮ،

ﺣﺴﺒﻨﺎ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻭﻧﻌﻢ ﺍﻟﻮﻛﻴﻞ

Allahhumma inni astaodeeuka ma qaratu wama

hafaz-tu. Faradduhu ‘inda hagati elayhi. Innaka

ala kuli shayin qadeer wa anta hasbuna Allaha

wa ma ma ta’alamt wa namal wakeel.

Oh Allah! I entrust You with what I have read and

what I have memorized and I have studied. (Oh

Allah!) Bring it back to me when I am in need of

it. (Oh Allah!) You are able to do anything, and

You are my Availer and Protector and the best of

aid.

Dua when entering the exam hall:

-

ﺭﺏ ﺃﺩﺧﻠﻨﻲ ﻣﺪﺧﻞ ﺻﺪﻕ، ﻭ ﺃﺧﺮﺟﻨﻲ ﻣﺨﺮﺝ ﺻﺪﻕ،

ﻭﺍﺟﻌﻞ ﻟﻲ ﻣﻦ ﻟﺪﻧﻚ ﺳﻠﻄﺎﻧﺎ ﻧﺼﻴﺮﺍ ..

–

O Allah, grant me an entry with truthful intentions

and an exit with truthful intentions, and grant me

power from you that gives me success.

Dua on the day of the exam:

-

ﺍﻟﻠﻬﻢ ﺇﻧﻲ ﺗﻮﻛﻠﺖ ﻋﻠﻴﻚ، ﻭ ﺳﻠﻤﺖ ﺃﻣﺮﻱ ﺇﻟﻴﻚ ,

ﻻﻣﻠﺠﺄ ﻭﻻ ﻣﻨﺠﺎ ﻣﻨﻚ ﺇﻻ ﺇﻟﻴﻚ ..

–

O Allah, I have relied on you, and I have

submitted my matters to you. There is no

protection or saving from you except by returning

to you.

Dua For Anxiety:

Allahumma inni aoodhoo bika minal-hammi-

walhazan. Waa oodhoo bika minal-ajzi-wal-

kasal. Waa oodhoo bika minal jubni wal bukhl.

Waa oodhoo bikal min ghalabatid-dayni-waqahrir

rijal.

Oh Allah, I seek refuge in You from worry and

grief, from helplessness and laziness, from

cowardice and stinginess, and from overpowering

of debt and from oppression of men.

Dua For Distress:

Allahumma rahmataka arjoo falaa takilnee ilaa

nafsee tarfata aynin wa aslih-lee shanee kullahu,

laa ilaha illa anta.

O Allah! It is Your mercy that I hope for so do not

leave me in charge of my affairs even for a blink

of an eye and rectify for me all of my affairs.

None has the right to be worshipped except You.


An Appeal To Arabic And IRS Teachers In Our Children's Schools

Assalam alaikum wa rahmatullah wa barakatuhu.



I put my children in a school that provides secular education to enable them to take care of their dunya and give them a profession.

I made sure that the school is also offering an Islamic curriculum, mode of dressing and background so as to take care of their akhira.

But Islam is NOT a religion of rote recitation of the Qur'an or blind memorisation of hadith. Islam is a way of life; that enshrines Justice, Mercy, Empathy and good manners to every member of the community... young and old. And of course, the best way to impart those attributes to our children is for you, their respected ustadhis and ustadhas, to show them by example; because you are their first contact with Islam outside the home.

Please stop teaching our children that might is right. That Muslims are unjust and arbitrary in punishment.

Why would a whole class of 4year olds go home with stripes on their backs because one or two of them made noise and you were unable to identify the culprits? How do I tell my child that the punishment was justified? Or should I have told my son to snitch on his muslim classmates? Or was it my son's fault that you could not control your class?

How should I feel when my 8year old child says that her worst subject is Qur'an memorisation, because Ustadh insists on using the cane as his favored memory aid? I wonder how many children can memorise the Qur'an with a cane hovering over their heads. Or what permanent feelings they associate with the memorisation of the Qur'an.

What should I tell my children was the cause of the stray stroke of the cane given at random during Jumat service, presumably done to prevent noisemaking before the child thinks of making noise?

I did not send my children to a Muslim oriented school to be turned to craven slaves cowering at the next stroke of the cane. I sent them to learn that Islam hates injustice, cruelty and inflicting pain. I want them to be proud to be Muslims.

Please. If any of you are out there, correct your approach. Cane them by all means; if they break the rules; but learn to use the option of mercy, then justice. Many have said that they left Islam because of its association with 'alfa' and his cane. For many who still remain muslim, the cane hovering over their heads is the only memory they have of their 'ile kewun' days.

I do not want my children to be any of those.



I humbly apologise if I have offended anyone. It was not my intention.


Dear men, please come and explain this me. How do you guys reason?


So according to reports, Johnny Depp, 51, is getting ready to marry his girlfriend, Amber Heard, 28, next weekend on his private Bahamian Island. According to Page Six, the wedding will hold over the weekend of February 7-8 and about 50 guests have been invited to the wedding.


Johnny began officially dating Amber Heard in 2012, a few weeks after he announced his separation from French actress and singer Vanessa Paradis, the mother of his two children.



Johnny was with Vanessa for 14 years and they had two children together but he never gave her a ring. During an interview in 2009, Vanessa said she'd never been married, that it was something she was looking forward to one day...hopefully with the father of her children. Johnny later did an interview saying he'd been married once and now understands you don't need a paper to define your relationship with someone you love, so it wasn't something he was eager to do again.



So two years after dating Amber, he's now ready to try marriage for a second time, but not with a woman who was with him for 14 years. Men biko, oya explain how you people reason...:-)


A Nairalander's Distasteful Experience With Nyesom Wike (PDP Rivers Gov. Candidate)

While I do respect and believe democracy is all bout campaigning and canvassing for Votes from d electorates, I do resect that... What I fail to understand is how some persons tthat claim to be democrat, n vying for a position will be so insensitive to other road users...



My ordeal...

I went to Ikokwu, to do a little repair on my vehicle (about a 1min. Repair), unluckily for me, I was directly behind of the motorcade, of the PDP guber candidate (Ezenwo Wike)...

In an unruly manner, the motorcade, stopped on the middle of the road, n all his dignitaries disembarked,himself inclusive n they went to their campaign office, campaigning to traders....

While the road was on stand still, and we the commuters stock there for over 1hr,30mins... Desite repeated plea from my humble self n otther commuters, to see any means of allowing, us to scale tru...





In my opinion, I belive this is the height of high handedness, oppression, contempt and disdain , that could be metterd on fellow citizens, without due recourse to morals n conscience... And to thinkhe isnkt yet the governor , n could act lousily... I wonder what he will do, when he becomes governor... Please let us all be wise.... Thank you.


Reasons Why Most Nigerian Girls Claim They Lost Their Virginity Through Rape

It has come to my notice that every nigerian girl you ask if she's a virgin or not they all claim to have been raped by either their ex boy friend,uncle,house boy or street boys with a popular tag "he threatened me not to tell anyone else he'll kill me" now let's look some of the reason why they always use the word rape when asked about their virginity status.



1 she wants to be seen as a saint: no nigerian girl will ever agree that she succumb to sex willingly rather she will always make the current guy project the scenario like she was actually been molested so the guy can begin to feel pity for her sometimes they go as far as shading tears once a guy asks "are you still a virgin" so as to create an atmosphere of been seen as a saint. guys beware of such ladies cos same way the cry in your present same way they do with another guy.



2 she doesn't want to be seen as a cheap girl: even if she use her two legs waka go the guy house she go still say he raped me, why? so that the present guy won't say she as been sampling with every dick and harry. Note am saying girls are not been raped but most of them make rape sure bail out not to be seen as cheap.



3 she wants to be loved: a girl can lie about her virginity status once she's emotionally into a guy so as to avoid been dumped by the guy. Telling the truth might make the guy change his mind so she lies to still have his attention.



4. she doesn't want to feel ashamed: if a girl finds a great guy and the guy kinda shows interest she does everything quiet right to keep getting more of his attention,if the guy asks about her virginity she go tell am say my uncle raped me one day when my mummy went to the market, it a horrible scenario for her to say it to his face that am not a virgin she go feel the guy go dey see her differently as perceived before.



5 Ego: girls generally are portrayed as the weaker vessel when it comes sex affair and a woman's pride is her womanhood and it is seen in most settings that men tend to respect and value a woman who's still a virgin. A woman can lie sometimes about her virginity to protect her ego for the to hold her in high esteem. Ooopsy am lost of words guys please add your own and let the bashing begin.




Corpses of Two Students Found in Osun River





Corpses of two students of Ifeolu Secondary School, Osogbo, were yesterday found floating on River Osun by a woman who had gone to fetch water.



The incident threw the people of Ijetu area of the town into confusion.



Though what led to the death of the students could not be ascertained at press time, a resident of the area told Vanguard the woman, on discovering the corpses, dropped her bucket and ran to the street, where she raised an alarm.





Based on her action, the case was reported to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and a rescue team from the agency was immediately deployed to the scene.



A source told Vanguard that the students had gone missing since Monday and their parents had been looking for them, adding that the parents were said to have broken down in tears on seeing the corpses of their children.



The pupils were identified as Samson Obasanjo, a student of Junior Secondary School 2, while the second boy, who was identified simply as Kabiru, was also in the same class as Obasanjo.






Exclusive pics from workers protest at Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos


I told y'all a few days ago that workers of the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos, are currently protesting against the management of the hotel. Here are exclusive pics from their protest right in front of their hotel. The workers are alleging maltreatment, poor salaries and sacking of staff without any genuine reason as part of the reasons for the protest.



A staff told LIB that what angered them even more was the recent deduction of N7,500 from their salary due to a claim from management that workers have been overpaid for 5 years. They said there is disregard for their rights and unjust exploitation of their services hence disregard for their effort and hard work. The workers said they've had enough and are demanding change from management. They are now insisting on an association to help them fight for their rights. More pics after the cut..














Shakira Gives Birth to Second Baby...and It's a Boy!





Shakira has welcomed her second son with partner Gerard Pique.



The Colombian singer gave birth to her baby boy at the same clinic, Quiron Teknon Hospital in Barcelona, where she gave birth to fist son Milan two years ago.



According to reports, the star had a planned cesarean and welcomed her baby boy at around 11pm last night.



The newborn's name is yet to be revealed, but the couple are expected to release a statement later today.



Fellow footballer Lionel Messi was among the first to congratulate the couple, writing on Twitter: "Congratulations @shakira and @3gerardpique on the birth of your son.."






Buhari And Team Pictured Enjoying Breakfast As They Prepare For Lagos Rally



The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Muhammadu Buhari and Team are in Lagos for the presidential campaign rallies. Pictured this morning is the General and his team eating breakfast.



The rally in Lagos was earlier scheduled to hold on January 13 but was shifted due to other commitments of Buhari.



The rally which will begin at 10 a.m will hold at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, the same venue where Buhari was crowned presidential candidate on 11 December 2014.



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Power Blocs Backing Buhari – Pastor Tunde Bakare

The Serving Overseer of the Latter Rain Assembly, Pastor Tunde Bakare, has said a majority of those that constitute the power blocs in the country are in support of All Progressives Congress pres‎idential candidate, Muhammad Buhari.



He said this while speaking on the theme, ‘Nigeria beyond 2015′, at a public lecture organised by Angola Hall of Obafemi Awolowo University, Osun State, on Wednesday.



According to him, power blocs in any country influence and determine winners during elections.



The Nigerian power blocs, he said, were peoples vote, council of state, clerics, governors, traditional rulers, top entrepreneurs and retired generals.



The cleric said, “Peoples vote determines electoral victory anywhere in the world, the entrenched power blocs determine electoral victory more than anything. There are six or seven political blocs entrenched in Nigeria. The incumbent president and former head of states – council of state. From the council of states, we have two candidates – one former head of state and one incumbent president. There are six others that I want you to consider on whose side they are.



“Traditional rulers, retired generals, who have tasted power, who can you say clearly is the person they are supporting? The governors and let us consider the corporate boys, who are the men of commerce. Where is Aliko Dangote, Otedola,Tony Elumelu and others?



“Look at those who control the large constituents of people on Sunday. Tell me who is Pastor Adeboye, Oyedepo, Oritsejafor backing? Those who influence voting are doing so behind the scene and when the results come, we say ‘they have cheated us’.



“Don’t be deceived by what they say in the paper, a lot happens behind the scene. I agree with you, I have said earlier that my loyalty lies with Buhari and maybe because I am an insider, I know better than you.”



If Buhari emerges victorious, the pastor noted that 100 days would be too much to hand over power to the APC candidate.



He said, “If we don’t run it (Nigeria) properly, we will be running into a major storm that can consume us. The February 2015 election further provides the incubator for the hatching of the dreaded scenarios.



“Nigeria has a way of throwing up anti-climax. If Buhari wins, what will happen between March and May. It is too long a time.”



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Buhari and Team Pictured Enjoying Breakfast as they Prepare for Lagos Rally Today







The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Muhammadu Buhari and Team are in Lagos for the presidential campaign rallies. Pictured this morning is the General and his team eating breakfast.



The rally in Lagos was earlier scheduled to hold on January 13 but was shifted due to other commitments of Buhari.



The rally which will begin at 10 a.m will hold at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Surulere, the same venue where Buhari was crowned presidential candidate on 11 December 2014.







"Those Accusing Me Of Sponsoring Boko Haram Are Mad" - Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday said those accusing him of backing Boko Haram are insane.

The President said this during his campaign rally in Yola, the Adamawa State capital.

Jonathan said that he had no reason to sponsor the killing of children, women and the aged as he had nothing to benefit from such deleterious actions.

“In 2011, I had two times the number of votes I had in Bayelsa State. Why should I want to reduce that number of votes?” Jonathan quipped. “Only a mad person can insinuate that the president is supporting Boko Haram.”

Condoling the people following over the persistent Boko Haram attacks, Jonathan promised that Adamawa would be the first among the three states that would be completely liberated from the insurgents.

Jonathan informed the gathering that Michika, one of the remaining two local governments in the hands of the insurgents, has been liberated.

“We are totally committed to the liberation of Adamawa state,” he said. “Adamawa will be the first state that will be freed. As we are talking to you Michika Local Government area has been recaptured by our gallant soldiers. The remaining local government, Madagali will, insha Allah, be recaptured very soon.

“We are totally committed to Adamawa and it will be the first state that will be liberated. I feel so burdened about the excesses of Boko Haram.”

Jonathan, who promised to make massive investment in Agriculture and other key sectors for the rapid development of the state, urged the people to massively vote their gubernatorial candidate, Nuhu Ribadu, for development to be solidly rooted in the state.

“I knew him when I was a deputy governor and as a governor I monitored him till today. He has unique attributes. I believe he will join us to fight insecurity in Adamawa state,” Jonathan said.

The president added that Ribadu has the energy, intellectual capacity and wide range of network across the globe to rout Boko Haram insurgency.



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President Goodluck Jonathan has described those accusing him as the sponsor of Boko Haram as mad people, saying only “a mad man” will level such accusation against him.



He said this while speaking in Yola during the continuation of his presidential campaign, insisting that the Federal Government was determined to fight insurgency and root out Boko Haram from the country.

The president also announced the recovery of Michika Local Government Area from insurgents today.



He said Federal troops liberated Michika Local Government, adding that soldiers would proceed to capture Madagali and other areas still under insurgency.



He called on the people of Adamawa State to vote him into office, promising to liberate the country from insurgency.



Amid shouts of “sai Buhari” at the Muhammadu Ribadu Square, the President vowed to do more, if re-elected on February 14.



The National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Adamu Muazu, announced the lifting of the suspension placed on Alhaji Bamanga Tukur and Chief Joel Madaki.



He called on the two men to work hard for the unity of the PDP in Adamawa State.





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The Nigerian Nation Against General Buhari, By Wole Soyinka

THE NIGERIAN NATION AGAINST GENERAL BUHARI BY WOLE SOYINKA



This intervention has been provoked, not so much by the ambitions of General Buhari to return to power at the head of a democratic Nigeria, as by declarations of support from directions that leave one totally dumbfounded. It would appear that some, myself among them, had been overcomplacent about the magnitude of an ambition that seemed as preposterous as the late effort of General Ibrahim Babangida to aspire yet again to the honour of presiding over a society that truly seeks a democratic future. What one had dismissed was a rash of illusions, brought about by other political improbabilities that surround us, however, is being given an air of plausibility by individuals and groupings to which one had earlier attributed a sense of relevance of historic actualities. Recently, I published an article in the media, invoking the possible recourse to psychiatric explanation for some of the incongruities in conduct within national leadership. Now, to tell the truth, I have begun to seriously address the issue of which section of society requires the services of a psychiatrist. The contest for a seizure of rationality is now so polarized that I am quite reconciled to the fact it could be those of us on this side, not the opposing school of thought that ought to declare ourselves candidates for a lunatic asylum. So be it. While that decision hangs in the balance however, the forum is open. Let both sides continue to address our cases to the electorate, but also prepare to submit ourselves for psychiatric examination.



The time being so close to electoral decision, we can understand the haste of some to resort to shortcuts. In the process however, we should not commit the error of opening the political space to any alternative whose curative touch to national afflictions have proven more deadly than the disease. In order to reduce the clutter in our options towards the forthcoming elections, we urge a beginning from what we do know, what we have undergone, what millions can verify, what can be sustained by evidence accessible even to the school pupil, the street hawker or a just-come visitor from outer space. Leaving Buhari aside for now, I propose a commencing exercise that should guide us along the path of elimination as we examine the existing register of would-be president. That initial exercise can be summed up in the following speculation: “If it were possible for Olusegun Obasanjo, the actual incumbent, to stand again for election, would you vote for him?”



If the answer is “yes”, then of course all discussion is at an end. If the answer is ‘No’ however, then it follows that a choice of a successor made by Obasanjo should be assessed as hovering between extremely dangerous and an outright kiss of death. The degree of acceptability of such a candidate should also be inversely proportionate to the passion with which he or she is promoted by the would-be ‘godfather’. We do not lack for open evidence about Obasanjo’s passion in this respect. From Lagos to the USA, he has taken great pains to assure the nation and the world that the anointed NPN presidential flag bearer is guaranteed, in his judgment, to carry out his policies. Such an endorsement/anointment is more than sufficient, in my view, for public acceptance or rejection. Yar’Adua’s candidature amounts to a terminal kiss from a moribund regime. Nothing against the person of this – I am informed – personable governor, but let him understand that in addition to the direct source of his emergence, the PDP, on whose platform he stands, represents the most harrowing of this nation’s nightmares over and beyond even the horrors of the Abacha regime.



If he wishes to be considered on his own merit, now is time for him, as well as others similarly enmeshed, to exercise the moral courage that goes with his repudiation of that party, a dissociation from its past, and a pledge to reverse its menacing future. We shall find him an alternative platform on which to stand, and then have him present his credentials along those of other candidates engaged in forging a credible opposition alliance. Until then, let us bury this particular proposition and move on to a far graver, looming danger, personified in the history of General Buhari.



The grounds on which General Buhari is being promoted as the alternative choice are not only shaky, but pitifully naive. History matters. Records are not kept simply to assist the weakness of memory, but to operate as guides to the future. Of course, we know that human beings change. What the claims of personality change or transformation impose on us is a rigorous inspection of the evidence, not wishful speculation or behind-the-scenes assurances. Public offence, crimes against a polity, must be answered in the public space, not in caucuses of bargaining. In Buhari, we have been offered no evidence of the sheerest prospect of change. On the contrary, all evident suggests that this is one individual who remains convinced that this is one ex-ruler that the nation cannot call to order.



Buhari – need one remind anyone – was one of the generals who treated a Commission of Enquiry, the Oputa Panel, with unconcealed disdain. Like Babangida and Abdusalami, he refused to put in appearance even though complaints that were tabled against him involved a career of gross abuses of power and blatant assault on the fundamental human rights of the Nigerian citizenry.



Prominent against these charges was an act that amounted to nothing less than judicial murder, the execution of a citizen under a retroactive decree. Does Decree 20 ring a bell? If not, then, perhaps the names of three youths – Lawal Ojuolape (30), Bernard Ogedengbe (29) and Bartholomew Owoh (26) do. To put it quite plainly, one of those three – Ogedengbe – was executed for a crime that did not carry a capital forfeit at the time it was committed. This was an unconscionable crime, carried out in defiance of the pleas and protests of nearly every sector of the Nigerian and international community – religious, civil rights, political, trade unions etc. Buhari and his sidekick and his partner-in-crime, Tunde Idiagbon persisted in this inhuman act for one reason and one reason only: to place Nigerians on notice that they were now under an iron, inflexible rule, under governance by fear.



The execution of that youthful innocent – for so he was, since the punishment did not exist at the time of commission – was nothing short of premeditated murder, for which the perpetrators should normally stand trial upon their loss of immunity. Are we truly expected to forget this violation of our entitlement to security as provided under existing laws? And even if our sensibilities have become blunted by succeeding seasons of cruelty and brutality, if power itself had so coarsened the sensibilities also of rulers and corrupted their judgment, what should one rightly expect after they have been rescued from the snare of power” At the very least, a revaluation, leading hopefully to remorse, and its expression to a wronged society. At the very least, such a revaluation should engender reticence, silence. In the case of Buhari, it was the opposite. Since leaving office he has declared in the most categorical terms that he had no regrets over this murder and would do so again.



Human life is inviolate. The right to life is the uniquely fundamental right on which all other rights are based. The crime that General Buhari committed against the entire nation went further however, inconceivable as it might first appear. That crime is one of the most profound negations of civic being. Not content with hammering down the freedom of expression in general terms, Buhari specifically forbade all public discussion of a return to civilian, democratic rule. Let us constantly applaud our media – those battle scarred professionals did not completely knuckle down. They resorted to cartoons and oblique, elliptical references to sustain the people’s campaign for a time-table to democratic rule. Overt agitation for a democratic time table however remained rigorously suppressed – military dictatorship, and a specifically incorporated in Buhari and Idiagbon was here to stay. To deprive a people of volition in their own political direction is to turn a nation into a colony of slaves. Buhari enslaved the nation. He gloated and gloried in a master-slave relation to the millions of its inhabitants. It is astonishing to find that the same former slaves, now free of their chains, should clamour to be ruled by one who not only turned their nation into a slave plantation, but forbade them any discussion of their condition.


So Tai Solarin is already forgotten? Tai who stood at street corners, fearlessly distributing leaflets that took up the gauntlet where the media had dropped it. Tai who was incarcerated by that regime and denied even the medication for his asthmatic condition? Tai did not ask to be sent for treatment overseas; all he asked was his traditional medicine that had proved so effective after years of struggle with asthma!



Nor must we omit the manner of Buhari coming to power and the pattern of his ‘corrective’ rule. Shagari’s NPN had already run out of steam and was near universally detested – except of course by the handful that still benefited from that regime of profligacy and rabid fascism. Responsibility for the national condition lay squarely at the door of the ruling party, obviously, but against whom was Buhari’s coup staged? Judging by the conduct of that regime, it was not against Shagari’s government but against the opposition. The head of government, on whom primary responsibility lay, was Shehu Shagari. Yet that individual was kept in cozy house detention in Ikoyi while his powerless deputy, Alex Ekwueme, was locked up in Kiri-kiri prisons. Such was the Buhari notion of equitable apportionment of guilt and/or responsibility.



And then the cascade of escapes of the wanted, and culpable politicians. Manhunts across the length and breadth of the nation, roadblocks everywhere and borders tight as steel zip locks. Lo and behold, the chairman of the party, Chief Akinloye, strolled out coolly across the border. Richard Akinjide, Legal Protector of the ruling party, slipped out with equal ease. The Rice Minister, Umaru Dikko, who declared that Nigerians were yet to eat from dustbins – escaped through the same airtight dragnet. The clumsy attempt to crate him home was punishment for his ingratitude, since he went berserk when, after waiting in vain, he concluded that the coup had not been staged, after all, for the immediate consolidation of the party of extreme right-wing vultures, but for the military hyenas.



The case of the overbearing Secretary-General of the party, Uba Ahmed, was even more noxious. Uba Ahmed was out of the country at the time. Despite the closure of the Nigerian airspace, he compelled the pilot of his plane to demand special landing permission, since his passenger load included the almighty Uba Ahmed. Of course, he had not known of the change in his status since he was airborne. The delighted airport commandant, realizing that he had a much valued fish swimming willingly into a waiting net, approved the request. Uba Ahmed disembarked into the arms of a military guard and was promptly clamped in detention. Incredibly, he vanished a few days after and reappeared in safety overseas. Those whose memories have become calcified should explore the media coverage of that saga. Buhari was asked to explain the vanished act of this much prized quarry and his response was one of the most arrogant levity. Coming from one who had shot his way into power on the slogan of ‘dis’pline’, it was nothing short of impudent.



Shall we revisit the tragicomic series of trials that landed several politicians several lifetimes in prison? Recall, if you please, the ‘judicial’ processes undergone by the septuagenarian Chief Adekunle Ajasin. He was arraigned and tried before Buhari’s punitive tribunal but acquitted. Dissatisfied, Buhari ordered his re-trial. Again, the Tribunal could not find this man guilty of a single crime, so once again he was returned for trial, only to be acquitted of all charges of corruption or abuse of office. Was Chief Ajasin thereby released? No! He was ordered detained indefinitely, simply for the crime of winning an election and refusing to knuckle under Shagari’s reign of terror.



The conduct of the Buhari regime after his coup was not merely one of double, triple, multiple standards but a cynical travesty of justice. Audu Ogbeh, currently chairman of the Action Congress was one of the few figures of rectitude within the NPN. Just as he has done in recent times with the PDP, he played the role of an internal critic and reformer, warning, dissenting, and setting an example of probity within his ministry. For that crime he spent months in unjust incarceration. Guilty by association? Well, if that was the motivating yardstick of the administration of the Buhari justice, then it was most selectively applied. The utmost severity of the Buhari-Idiagbon justice was especially reserved either for the opposition in general, or for those within the ruling party who had showed the sheerest sense of responsibility and patriotism.



Shall I remind this nation of Buhari’s deliberate humiliating treatment of the Emir of Kano and the Oni of Ife over their visit to the state of Israel? I hold no brief for traditional rulers and their relationship with governments, but insist on regarding them as entitled to all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of any Nigerian citizen. This royal duo went to Israel on their private steam and private business. Simply because the Buhari regime was pursuing some antagonistic foreign policy towards Israel, a policy of which these traditional rulers were not a part, they were subjected on their return to a treatment that could only be described as a head masterly chastisement of errant pupils. Since when, may one ask, did a free citizen of the Nigerian nation require the permission of a head of state to visit a foreign nation that was willing to offer that tourist a visa.?



One is only too aware that some Nigerians love to point to Buhari’s agenda of discipline as the shining jewel in his scrap-iron crown. To inculcate discipline however, one must lead by example, obeying laws set down as guides to public probity. Example speaks louder than declarations, and rulers cannot exempt themselves from the disciplinary strictures imposed on the overall polity, especially on any issue that seeks to establish a policy for public well-being.



The story of the thirty something suitcases – it would appear that they were even closer to fifty – found unavoidable mention in my recent memoirs, YOU MUST SET FORTH AT DOWN, written long before Buhari became spoken of as a credible candidate. For the exercise of a changeover of the national currency, the Nigerian borders – air, sea and land – had been shut tight. Nothing was supposed to move in or out, not even cattle egrets.Yet a prominent camel was allowed through that needle’s eye. Not only did Buhari dispatch his aide-de-camp, Jokolo – later to become an emir – to facilitate the entry of those cases, he ordered the redeployment – as I later discovered – of the Customs Officer who stood firmly against the entry of the contravening baggage. That officer, the incumbent Vice-president is now a rival candidate to Buhari, but has somehow, in the meantime, earned a reputation that totally contradicts his conduct at the time.



Wherever the truth lies, it does not redound to the credibility of the dictator of that time, General Buhari whose word was law, but whose allegiances were clearly negotiable.



Professor Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian playwright and poet. He is the first African to be awarded a Nobel Prize in Literature (1986).



This article was first published in January 2007 on Sahara Reporters with the title, The Nigerian Nation Against General Buhari.



The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.





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Photo: Hospital in search of accident victim's relative



The young man pictured above was involved in a ghastly car accident and was rushed to St Nicholas hospital in Lagos where he is currently in a coma and no relative has come to the hospital to check on him. The hospital took to their twitter handle to call on the public to help locate his relatives..