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Anxiety Mounts in Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi ● PDP Tipped to Win in Bayelsa ● Imo May Likely Go APC, LP Seeks Upset as PDP Crisis Hurts Party's Bid ● Too Close to Call in Kogi as APC, SDP Split Voters ● INEC Looks to Restore People's Faith in Polls After Controversial 2023 Elections

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

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Onah Nwachukwu Editor, THEWILL DOWNTOWN

F

rom Lagos Fashion Week, we move on to GTCO Fashion Weekend. Next weekend, GTBank will place African designers in the limelight worldwide, and fashion enthusiasts look forward to it. So far, they have hosted 410 small business owners and 69 leaders from 13 different countries in the fashion industry over the years. It will be interesting to see what additions they will have this year.

Anyone who watched the Big Brother show in 2019 is bound to remember one person, Tacha. Natacha “Tacha” Akide made her mark in the house; she always stood her ground. Tacha didn’t let anyone intimidate her, and when she was disqualified from the show, she turned a slogan she came up with into a name for her activewear brand. Fast-forward four years, and Tacha, our cover personality this week, is a serial entrepreneur; she runs a couple of businesses and has recently become an On-Air Personality with CoolFM. When asked why she wasn’t in the house for the recently concluded Big Brother show, she said: “I’ve always said my price went up. The Tacha of 2019 and the Tacha of 2023 are not the same. I’m a serial entrepreneur with many businesses, and I’m an ambassador to certain brands.

Some specific deliverables and obligations must come through for me, plus I am constantly getting back-to-back bookings from brands. To leave all of this and then go on a show where I’m going to get paid peanuts isn’t worth it.”

Read her interview on pages 8 through 10.

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Don’t forget that our content page is now interactive; click on any page title to take you to that page straight away. Also, click on the instructions underneath the QR code to access the music playlist on page 16.

Until next week, enjoy your read.

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COVER

NOVEMBER 11 GOVERNORSHIP POLLS:

Anxiety Mounts in Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi •PDP Tipped to Win in Bayelsa • Imo May Likely Go APC, LP Seeks Upset as PDP Crisis Hurts Party's Bid • Too Close to Call in Kogi as APC, SDP Split Voters •INEC Looks to Restore People's Faith in Polls After Controversial 2023 Elections

BY AMOS ESELE, WITH DAVID OWEI AND CHUKS OHUEGBU

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echnically, about 16 or 18 political parties are fielding candidates in the forthcoming off-cycle Governorship Elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi States on November 11, 2023, but only three are actively campaigning.

THEWILL investigation, however, shows that for Bayelsa’s Creek House, the race is between the governing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), with Labour Party (LP) waiting in the wings.

In Imo state, the battle for Douglas House is a threehorse race between the APC, PDP and LP, with the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) making an appearance.

The race for Lugard House in Kogi is between the governing APC, the main opposition PDP and the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Of these political parties, the APC, PDP and LP are the frontrunners. LP is making its strongest showing in Imo state, less so in Bayelsa. Nevertheless, the APC/PDP dominate. The SDP is solidly on the ground in Kogi.

In the states where they are making appearances, these parties have the political structure, the foot soldiers and the money to burn, all of which will enable each of them to lay claim to the governorship of THEWILLNEWS

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the states through the determining factors of zoning, incumbency and fitness of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

In all three states, the four major parties involved in this election, the APC, PDP, LP and SDP have managed to grab national news headlines through violence, which dimension is hard to guess. Already, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has threatened to declare a nationwide strike on Wednesday, November 8, in solidarity with its president, Mr Joe Ajaero, who was brutalised by thugs and security personnel during a workers’ planned protest over a 22-month pension arrears owed by the Imo State Government.

While the bloody NLC strike was a culmination of violence by “unknown gunmen” in Imo over several months, the thuggery in Bayelsa and Kogi peaked with the entrance of formidable rivals in the election.

In Kogi, Senator Dino Melaye of the PDP and Murtala Ajaka of the SDP, as well as the recent Appeal Court victory of PDP’s Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan have significantly posed a serious threat to the governing APC in the state.

In Bayelsa, the candidacy of former Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipreye Sylva, especially after the Appeal Court affirmed his suitability for the election

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has drawn the battle line between the ruling PDP and APC. ADDRESSING SECURITY ISSUES “The governorship elections in Imo, Kogi and Bayelsa States are three out of the eight off-cycle elections to be held in the country. None of these states' offcycle elections is easy,” the National Chairman of INEC, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, said last week in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, during a tour of the state to address issues of security, terrain and negative mobilisation by politicians, adding that the essence of his meeting was to exchange ideas with security agencies towards the conduct of a peaceful election.

THEWILL has learnt that the National Chairman is worried about the negative impact of insecurity on the November polls. That is why he is touring each of the three states to get assurances from security personnel for the security of electoral materials, staff and voters.

The Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Rotimi Oyekanmi told THEWILL that after the Bayelsa meeting on Thursday, Professor Yakubu would go to Imo. He had already visited Kogi.

On the issue of insecurity tour, Oyekanmi said, “With regard to your question, the INEC Chairman

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COVER

...Anxiety Mounts in Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi has already visited Kogi State. We were in Bayelsa yesterday, (Thursday) and we are currently in Imo State.”

Yakubu, who is also the National Chairman of InterAgency Consultative Committee on Election Security (ICCES) and had previously held an expanded security meeting with security chiefs and other agencies in Abuja, deemed it necessary to take the security message down to the states to ensure that electoral materials and personnel are given adequate protection during and after the elections.

Addressing the potential threat posed by insecurity to the conduct of the polls, against the backdrop of Wednesday’s strike by NLC, the Chief of Defence Staff, Maj-Gen. Christopher Musa and the InspectorGeneral of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, have warned those planning to disrupt the Nov.11 governorship elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi to keep off the states.

The CDS gave the assurance that the Armed Forces would collaborate with the police to ensure that the elections are free and fair.

He said, “The Armed Forces, the police and other security agencies will be on the ground. Every Nigerian, we are sure, is tired of elections with violence and this will make a difference.

of the state, Ikedi Ohakim (from Okigwe Zone), the opportunity of a second term.

APC's Uzodimma Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State is not really loved by the masses. Perhaps, this is because of the circumstances surrounding his emergence as governor on January 14, 2020. THEWILL recalls that the Supreme Court controversially sacked PDP's Emeka Ihedioha whom INEC had declared winner of the 2019 governorship election in the state and gave victory to Uzodimma who finished a distant fourth in that election.

In view of this, the majority of Imo citizens coined the derogatory name, 'supreme court governor' for Uzodimma to hammer home their misgivings with the apex court verdict.

Meantime, PDP was engulfed in a leadership crisis, following supremacy battle between Ihedioha and the National Secretary of the party, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, otherwise known as Samdaddy. The crisis lingered, forcing many supporters of the party to defect to the APC. In an unprecedented move, seven members of the PDP's State Working Committee, SWC, resigned from the party and joined Uzodimma's APC.

“At the end of the day, we want every Nigerian to be proud of, first, being a Nigerian and to understand that elections are now free and fair.

Also, the entire Imo PDP Elders Council and National Assembly members, 2019-2023, resigned and also headed for the governing APC.

“We want everybody who wins our elections to be happy that he won very well without intimidation.’’

This scenario has given the APC and Uzodimma a huge advantage, no doubt, going into the November 11 elections. Again, the disputed APC victory in the February 25 presidential election and March 18, 2023 House of Assembly election, is another factor that counts in favour of the APC. This is so because many voters registered regrets about what they described as "electoral fraud" in the last election.

Also, Egbetokun said that those planning any form of violence in the states would only have themselves to blame. ''We are aware of negative mobilisations by supporters of some candidates and we are already monitoring them. We are ready for them in these elections. I appeal to them to stay away from this election.

“I also appeal to the electorate to come out en masse to cast their votes during this election. We are committed to peaceful elections and there is no going back.

“We have received all necessary information from INEC, which told us where to deploy security personnel during these elections.

“We have carried out a threat assessment and that has informed us, in respect of the allocation of our resources and the deployment of our men,” he said.

HOW THE MAJOR PARTIES STAND IN THE STATES IMO STATE There are 18 candidates representing 18 political parties in the November 11 governorship election in Imo, but in reality, there are five contenders, although surprises are usually common in all forms of election, particularly in the southeastern heartland.

One contending issue that has remained very central in the build-up to the governorship election is zoning.

There are three zones in Imo, namely Orlu, Okigwe and Owerri. For the past 24 years since the birth of democratic rule in 1999, Orlu Zone has ruled for almost 20 years, while Okigwe and Owerri Zones have reigned for four years and seven months, respectively.

This made the Owerri Zone to start claiming that it is its “turn” to govern the state. To tackle this challenge, Governor Hope Uzodinma promised to work it out in 2027, thus setting the stage for a second term in office.

The Okigwe Zone believes that its tenure was forcefully terminated in 2011 when the combined forces of Owerri and Orlu Zones denied then Governor

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There are other factors, such as the issue of "two strong opposition parties and one weak contender".

This theory is that in an election where you have two strong oppositions and one weak contender, the former will certainly divide the voters into two factions, consequent upon which each of the opposition parties will secure 30 or 35 percent of the vote cast. This represents about 65/ 70 percent of the registered votes. On the other hand, the weak candidate will eventually garner 40 percent of the votes and will be declared winner.

“

We are aware of negative mobilisations by supporters of some candidates and we are already monitoring them. We are ready for them in these elections ... We are committed to peaceful elections and there is no going back... We have carried out a threat assessment and that has informed us, in respect of the allocation of our resources and the deployment of our men

The opposition here are the LP and PDP who ought to have worked together to oust the APC. The combined forces of LP and PDP would have been strong enough to sack the APC and Uzodimma-led administration.

But a situation where both opposition parties are working at cross purposes will only ensure victory for the APC that looks like the weaker party.

What actually counts against the APC and Uzodimma is the worsening insecurity in the state. Before now, the insecurity only raged in the Orlu Zone (Imo West Senatorial District) area. Now there is insecurity in all the nooks and crannies of Imo State. It is now worse in Okigwe Zone (Imo North). Insecurity has caused severe damage to the Imo economy and all the blame is laid at Uzodimma’s doorstep.

Besides insecurity, joblessness and poverty, lack of pension payment and extreme lack of governance in the state have combined to make Uzodimma's re election bid a difficult task. Still, it appears he will win a re - election.

To this end, the governor's media aides led by the Commissioner of Information, Declean Emelunba, claim that the APC and Uzodimma have been doing marvellously well, leading to the party's election victories in re-run elections into Okigwe Zone Senatorial and Ngor Okpala LGA House of Assembly.

They also pointed out some of the road projects the governor had completed in less than four years.

PDP's Sam Anyanwu The PDP has been the party to beat in virtually all the governorship elections held in the state since 1999. Even in two instances of 2007 and 2011 when the opposition parties, Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) and APGA, won the governorship elections, respectively, it was PDP's structure (in 2007) and the party's estranged supporters (in 2011) that ensured victory in both instances.

However, the PDP is currently a shadow of itself. The party is in tatters. The deplorable condition of the party is shown by the tussle for power between Ihedioha and the just sacked national secretary of PDP who also doubles as the party's governorship candidate, Senator Sam Anyanwu.

It is alleged that Anyanwu, otherwise known as Samdaddy, was used by the ruling APC and Uzodimma to destroy PDP in the state. The idea of Samddady taking the party up to the Supreme Court in order to dissolve the executive did not go down well with party stakeholders, who saw the move as anti -party activity.

Samddady is accused of using his position as the National Secretary of PDP to cause trouble for the party as he controversially picked the governorship ticket for the November 11 election.

Based on the foregoing, Ihedioha withdrew from the governorship primary election. The result was the division of the party into two factions led by Ihedioha and Samdaddy, with the former having more than 75 percent of PDP members in the state.

Going into the election, most of the PDP’s leaders and followers are campaigning for APC, LP, APGA or AA. And the news of Samdaddy's sack as the national secretary of the PDP is another blow to him and the party. The PDP is not likely to finish as runner-up in the governorship election on November 11.

Still, Samdaddy's media coordinator, Comrade Ikenna Onuoha, says his principal has the brightest chances of winning the election in view of his antecedents, which are people-oriented.

Athan Achonu of LP The structure of the “Obidient Movement” in Imo State is actually what is firing up the Senator Athan Achonu's LP Campaign Organisation as the November 11 governorship election draws nearer.

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...Anxiety Mounts in Bayelsa, Imo, Kogi Achonu, according to political pundits, is the one campaigning massively and vigorously across the state. Unlike others who are only seen on the pages of local newspapers in the state, Achonu has almost visited all the 27 LGAs in the state, re - echoing Peter Obi's philosophies of economic recovery based on production and fiscal prudence.

However, Achonu, popularly known as Agu Otuaka (The Lion with one hand/ One Arm General), is being alleged to have been aided and sponsored by Uzodimma during the LP governorship primary election. This dust generated by this story is yet to settle down. Again, Achonu is seen as a part of the old order that destroyed the system.

Another point that counts against Achonu is that the “Obidient Movement” that went agog for Obi during the presidential electioneering is lukewarm towards his governorship ambition.

Taken together, Achonu is however a threat to the ruling APC and Uzodimma.

"The fact remains that Senator Achonu, based on popular rating, will emerge victorious in the forthcoming governorship election because he has been having a robust campaign and his message is very clear to the people," Barrister Emeka, a member of LP's legal team, stated.

APGA's Tony Ejiogu The APGA used to be a vibrant party in Imo State until 2018 when Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, using his wealth and influence, intimidated party chiefs to grab the party’s governorship ticket. Many were pissed off and they labelled the party Anambra Cash Cow. Otherwise, the party’s candidate, Tony Ejiogu, is vibrant, dynamic and hard-working and he has what it takes to emerge the winner of the election.

Yet, many people are of the view that Ejiogu is not doing any serious campaign. Again, his tentacles are grossly limited.

KOGI STATE Political parties involved in the Kogi governorship race are the governing APC, PDP, SDP, Action, Alliance, AA, Young Peoples Party, YPP and Africa Democratic Congress (ADC).

Nonetheless, the battle for Lugard House is between the APC’s candidate, Usman Ahmed Ododo and the candidate of the Social Democratic Party SDP, Alhaji Yakubu Muritala Ajaka.

APC is relying on incumbency, having established its presence and consolidated as a party in all the 21 local government areas of the state But the declining fortunes of the people, particularly the workers, following what the state NLC Chairman, Gabriel Amari, referred to as percentage payment of salaries.

This means that the minimum wage does not operate in the state. In fact, workers, according to THEWILL checks, can earn anything between N10,000 and N15,000 monthly.

According to Amari, public commentators argue that as long as workers in local government areas earn percentage salaries, economic growth at the grassroots will remain a mirage.

“Unfortunately, the percentage payments to workers at Local government gives rise to financial pressure and increase in rural-urban migrations.

“Your Excellency, as your tenor draws to an end, we urge you to compel the authorities in charge of local government to restore payment of complete salaries to workers to bring them at par with their state counterparts. It is bad enough that the state is a hotbed of insecurity, particularly the Lokoja-Abuja area.

farmers depend on cropping and other agricultural practices to earn a living. Therefore, the frequent attacks by herdsmen on farmers constitute a huge threat to the social and economic stability of the state,” Amari concluded.

Of the 16 political parties participating in the governorship poll in Bayelsa State, the two dominant political parties, the PDP, APC and LP are campaigning, although the battle for votes appears to be a PDP/APC affair.

In the midst of these economic and insecurity challenges, the ethnic factor is currently playing out in the election among the three major ethnic groups, namely the Igala of the Eastern Zone, Okun of the Western Zone and Ebira of the Central. Zone,

The major streets and strategic positions within the state capital, Yenagoa, are inundated with billboards, banners and branded cars of both political parties represented by the incumbent Governor Douye Diri of the PDP and his APC challenger, Timipre Sylva, a former Minister of state for Petroleum.

For now, APC is having the upperhand as it is using incumbency powers and government machinery at its disposal.

The recent Appeal Court victory of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and her subsequent swearing-in at the Senate has consolidated her Central Senatorial Zone for the PDP. She is very popular and liked in the zone and may give the APC and Governor Yahaya Bello a tough time in the zone.

But the problem with the Western Zone where Senator Dino Melaye comes from is that it will in all likelihood share votes between the PDP and the candidate of the ADC, Leke Abejide, who also hails from there. That is why the APC and SDP, from THEWILL investigation, are the likely parties to win the election because the SDP candidate, Yakubu Ajaka, hails from the Eastern Zone that has the majority population and they are throwing everything into the election to reclaim the leadership that was lost, following the demise of the late Prince Abubakar Audu who is from the zone. This is one of the major reasons why the violence witnessed during electioneering has been between supporters of the APC and the SDP. If the Federal government, INEC and security agencies keep to their promise to give a level playing field in their constitutional duties, surprises will happen irrespective of incumbency factor. So, the election is too close to call.

Senator Melaye failed to answer repeated calls to his phone, neither did the Director of Communication of SDP, Faruk Adejoh-Audu. Allso, the state Commissioner for Information and Director General of APC campaign council, Kingsley Fanwo, did not answer the phone calls made to him.

BAYELSA STATE Despite being a homogenous Ijaw state, Bayelsa has always been volatile politically and the November 11 governorship election is living up to that expectation.

The advent of militancy during the agitation for resource control has increased the tempo of violence in the oil producing state.

“

The recent Appeal Court victory of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and her subsequent swearing-in at the Senate has consolidated her Central Senatorial Zone for the PDP. She is very popular and liked in the zone and may give the APC and Governor Yahaya Bello a tough time in the zone

”It is a fact that Kogi State is an agrarian society; THEWILLNEWS

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Amid electioneering, both candidates have been trading words, each accusing the other of planning to rig or cause chaos in order to emerge the winner.

The Peoples Democratic Party candidate and incumbent Governor of the state, Senator Douye Diri, had a field day when the INEC published the list of candidates for the November 11 poll without Sylva’s name, following a court judgement. Following his victory at the Appeal Court, the tension has risen again, even though his name is yet to be inserted in the final list.

Confirming the new development to THEWILL, Oyekanmi said, “I am not sure if we have been served yet. We have already released a final list of candidates for all the three off-cycle governorship elections.

However, if there is a court order/judgement asking INEC to remove, include or substitute a name, the Commission will comply and indicate “by court order” in the “remarks” column.”

Governorship election petitions usually end at the Supreme Court. So, if the petitioners decide to pursue the case further, there is no telling the fate of Sylva.

But the former Minister is campaigning unperturbed, saying he would win the poll.

Bayelsa is a traditional PDP state. While Diri is very sure of his second tenure, the APC governorship candidate, Sylva, who governed the state on the platform of the PDP, (which is the subject of the litigation against him as he would be sworn-in for a third time, though he did not complete his second tenure) is also very sure of a resounding victory come November 11.

Campaigning in the shadows is the LP candidate, Udengs Eradiri, a former leader of the Ijaw Youth Council. He has openly confessed that he lacks the war chest of both the PDP and APC, but with the support of the youths on his side, he is ready to pull a surprise. He is currently embarking on a door-to-door campaign across the eight local government areas of the state and has been able to win followers among the youths who feel disenchanted with the PDP and APC, regarded as the face of corruption and elitism. More important is the support of the “ Obidient Movement”, in the state, which has a strong base in Bayelsa State.

The state Chairman of the PDP, Solomon Aguanana; the Secretary, Gesiye Isowo and the Publicity Secretary, Ebiye Ogoli, and the APC State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Doifie Buokoribo, are always at each other's throat, accusing one another of violence.

Ogbolomari community in Nembe, BassambiriNembe, Opokuma, Odi and Kaiama in Kolokuma/ Opukuma Local Government Council and Sangana in Brass Local Government have been areas of violent confrontation between supporters of the PDP and APC. But given the capacity of the PDP and APC to outspend rivals, coupled with the violence that both major parties have been engaging in, it is unclear how LP can spring any surprise.

Rising to the occasion, the Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, Obo Effanga, has said that there will be stakeholders meeting on Tuesday, while on Wednesday, the 16 political parties will sign a peace accord to ensure the peaceful conduct of the governorship election.

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 WWW.THEWILLNEWS.COM

Will Atiku Contest in Future Presidential Elections?

BY AYO ESAN

T

he 2023 Presidential Election was concluded on Thursday, October 26, p 2023 when the Supreme Court affirmed the election of Bola Tinubu as Nigeria’s President.

Tinubu’s election was challenged by his two major opponents – Atiku Abubakar of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party.

Atiku and Obi asked the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal to declare each of them the winner of the election. They pleaded with the tribunal to nullify the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s declaration of Tinubu as elected president. Both petitions were dismissed. Not satisfied, Atiku and Obi approached the Supreme Court.

In his reaction to the judgment, Atiku on Monday, October 30, 2023 addressed a World Press Conference in Abuja where he condemned the ruling of the Supreme Court and made few proposals that he said he believed would help in future elections. He also said that he would not quit politics.

On the proposals, he said, “We can urgently make constitutional amendments that will prevent any court or tribunal from hiding behind technicalities and legal sophistry to affirm electoral heists and undermine the will of the people. Our democracy must mean something; it must be substantive. Above all, it must be expressed through free, fair and transparent elections that respect the will of the people.

“Firstly, we must make electronic voting and collation of results mandatory. This is the 21st century and countries less advanced than Nigeria are doing so already. It is only bold initiatives that transform societies.

“Secondly, we must provide that all litigation arising from a disputed election must be concluded before the inauguration of a winner.

This was the case in 1979. The current time frame between elections and inauguration of winners is inadequate to dispense with election litigations.

“What we have currently is akin to asking thieves to keep their loot and use the same to defend themselves while the case of their robbery is being decided. It only encourages mandate banditry rather than discourages it.

“Thirdly, in order to ensure popular mandate and real representation, we must move to require a candidate for President to earn 50 per cent plus 1 of the valid votes cast, failing which a run-off between the top two candidates will be held. Most countries that elect their presidents use this Two-Round System (with slight variations) rather than our

current First-Pastthe-Post system.

“Examples include France, Finland, Austria, Bulgaria, Portugal, Poland, Turkey and Russia, Argentina, Brazil, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Namibia, Mozambique, Madagascar and even Liberia where a run-off is expected to hold in the coming days.

“Fourthly, in order to reduce the desperation of incumbents and distractions from governing and also to promote equity and national unity, we need to move to a single six-year term for President to be rotated among the six geo-political zones.

This will prevent the ganging up of two or more geo-political zones to alternate the presidency among themselves to the exclusion of other zones.

“INEC should be mandated to verify the credentials submitted to it by candidates and their parties and where it is unable to do so – perhaps because the institutions involved did not respond in time – it must publicly state so and have it on record.

“A situation where a candidate submits contradictory credentials to INEC in different election cycles and the electoral umpire accepts them without question points to gross negligence, at best, or collusion to break the law by the leadership

“

In his reaction to the judgment, Atiku on Monday, October 30, 2023 addressed a World Press Conference in Abuja where he condemned the ruling of the Supreme Court and made few proposals that he said he believed would help in future elections THEWILLNIEWS

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... Future Presidential Elections?

Chief Olusegun Osoba, among others. Atiku emerged as the presidential candidate of the Action Congress. He lost the election to late President Umaru Yar’adua of the PDP who was Obasanjo’s anointed candidate.

of the INEC, at worst. The submission of contradictory qualifying documents by a candidate as well as those found to be forged or falsified should disqualify a candidate even if the falsification or forgery is discovered after the person had been sworn into office.

Atiku came a distant third with over 2.4 million votes in the controversial 2007 election which many observers described as a charade. After the election,he dumped the AC and returned to the PDP.

“The burden of proving that a document submitted to INEC is forged should not be on the opposing candidates in the election. It is never the responsibility of an applicant for a job to prove that the person who eventually got the job did so with forged documents”.

In 2011, Atiku once again went into the presidential race. In the party’s primary, he was defeated by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Atiku also said that in addition to the proposed constitutional amendments, the Electoral Act should be amended to provide that, “except where they explicitly violate the Constitution and other laws, the rules and procedures laid down by the electoral umpire and made public for the benefit of the contestants and the voters will be treated as sacrosanct by the courts in deciding on election disputes.

“A referee cannot be allowed to set the rules for the game only to change or ignore them when one side has scored a goal or is about to win the match. We must restore confidence in our electoral system which the current leadership of INEC has completely eroded and undermined. Also, we need well-thought out provisions in the legislation and regulations to reform the judiciary, including the introduction of an automated case assignment system; transparency in the appointment of judges; a practice directory that stresses that the goal of judges in election cases should be to discover and affirm voters’ choice rather than disregarding voters’ choice for the sake of technicalities.

“There should also be publicly available annual evaluation of the performance of judges using agreed criteria. By improving the transparency of the electoral process and reducing the incentives to cheat, in addition to transparency in the appointment of judges and other judicial reforms, the number of election petitions as well as corruption in the judiciary will be significantly reduced. More importantly, we would have succeeded in taking away the right to elect leaders from the courts and return it to the voters to whom it truly belong”.

He added, “As for me and my party, this phase of our work is done. However, I am not going away. For as long as I breathe I will continue to struggle, with other Nigerians, to deepen our democracy and rule of law and for the kind of political and economic restructuring the country needs to reach its true potential. That struggle should now be led by the younger generation of Nigerians who have even more at stake than my generation”.

Many political analysts and watchers of political developments in the country have interpreted his words that the future political challenges will be led by younger elements to mean that Atiku will no more participate as an aspirant in future Presidential election.

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Having seen the sign that Jonathan, who was the incumbent president at the time, would be favoured to go for a second term, he led about five PDP Governors to walk out of the party’s convention and established the newPDP.

“

Although Atiku’s presidential bid failed in the last election, he was said to have assured his supporters, when queried about his desperation to become Nigeria’s President, that as long as he remained alive, he would continue to pursue his ambition of becoming president

Others feel differently, saying Atiku had said that to be Nigerian President is his life time ambition and that he will continue to contest until he achieve his ambition to be the country’s president.

Atiku Abubakar born on November 25, 1946 will be 81 years-old in 2027 when another Presidential election will be conducted.

THEWILL recalls that Atiku has made five failed attempts at becoming Nigeria’s President.

Atiku who was on his second term with Obasanjo in 2007, defected to the defunct Action Congress, a political party founded by Bola Tinubu and other former state governors in the Alliance for Democracy, including Chief Bisi Akande, Alhaji Lam Adesina,

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In 2014, after the Action Congress of Nigeria, All Nigeria People’s Party, Congress for Progressives Change and All Progressives Grand Alliance through a coalition formed the All Progressives Congress, Atiku and his allies in the nPDP teamed up with the APC. He declared for President once more. In 2015, he contested the APC presidential ticket along with the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, and former Kano State governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso in the party’s primary at Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos.

He came third behind Buhari and Kwankwaso.

Realising that Buhari will contest for a second term in office in 2019, Atiku went back to the PDP and picked the party’s Presidential ticket.

Reluctantly supported by stakeholders in the PDP, Atiku lost the presidential election to former President Buhari. He returned in the build-up to the 2023 election and he clinched the PDP presidential ticket, but lost the election to current President Bola Tinubu.

Although Atiku’s presidential bid failed in the last election, he was said to have assured his supporters, when queried about his desperation to become Nigeria’s President, that as long as he remained alive, he would continue to pursue his ambition of becoming president.

“It is a life-long ambition and as long as I’m alive and strong and healthy, I will continue to pursue it,” he said.

When THEWILL contacted Atiku’s media aide, Mr Paul Ibe, for his reaction, he said the former Vice President had not said anything new since last week’s World Press Conference.

“Although I am bereaved and I am in the village, but I don’t think His Excellency Atiku Abubakar has said anything new than what he said at the press conference. I will refer you to the speech at the press conference. Did he say he will not contest in future election? No!” Ibe said.

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POLITICS

Politicians, Traditional, Religious Leaders Encourage Banditry – Rufai Dr Murtala Rufai is a renowned historian and a lecturer at the Department of History, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto'. He is the author of a book titled 'I'm a Bandit', a decade of research in Zamfara Bandits den and warlords. He speaks with TUNDE OMOLEHIN about the causes of banditry in the North-West geo-political zone. Excerpts: In a nutshell, the idea of ungoverned or under-governed spaces within the context of the porous borders, movement of small arms and the lite weapons, and the rest of them, combine to escalate banditry in the NorthWest.

In your book titled ‘I am a Bandit’ you mentioned the names of some leaders of bandit groups operating within the North-West states, especially in Sokoto, Zamfara and Katsina. What are the hidden identities of these people?

Well, the identities of these warlords can be traced to their emergence in the early stage.

First, these are just peer groups that are involved in communal violence within their communities. Virtually, most of the gangs are of the same families, living within the environment. They were childhood friends who became armed bandits.

One hidden identity of their operational system is that they exchange and trade in arms among themselves easily. Another one is the way and manner they convert rustled cattle into weapons. This means that they can have access to weapons wherever and whenever they like without giving out cash or travelling far. Arms, particularly the AK-47 rifle, is valued on the basis of herds of cattle.

These people are not so much interested in the amount of naira or other monetary denominations you have. In a day, you see them equating numbers of rifles with herds of cattle. On a very serious note, these are

Y

ou are a renowned historian who has researched a lot on the issue of conflicts, especially banditry, in the North-West geo-political zone. Based on your knowledge, give us a foundational insight into banditry in Nigeria It has a very long history of extortion, injustice, exclusion and impunity by different security agencies in the zone, with the support of traditional authorities and politicians.

Banditry in northwestern Nigeria is a product of agelong misrule, impunity and high-handedness on the part of state actors.

Who are the drivers of banditry?

The fundamental actors are the pastoral communities.

They are a broad category of people that include the local pastoralist in Nigeria and migrants that came through the international borders. These categories of people have played a very important role in the emergence and escalation of violence in the first instance.

Also, we have witnessed the activities of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) and an upshot of this vigilante group known as ‘Yansakee’ operating differently across the northwestern part of the country. Basically, these are two principal actors when you look at the issue on the surface. But when you look at it deeply you see traditional and religious leaders, as well as local miners fueling banditry. Even foreign miners are not excluded.

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Young and junior group members have free access to weapons and could organise minor attacks, raids and kidnappings without the consent of the leaders. Consequently, to minimise inter-gang squabbles, the entire North-West was divided into bandits camps and each area/zone allocated to a particular leader

some of the hidden identities that are very fundamental and principal in their operations.

Another aspect is that these warlords no longer live in the den, in the forest as they were wont to be in the past.

Today, a large number of them are living in villages and hamlets and other rural settings, mingling and interacting with residents in the communities.

There are ongoing military operations against these armed groups within the North-West states and across the Lake Chad region. In your view, is the militarisation action winning the war against these groups?

Well, I don’t think the Federal Government is winning this war through their military operations. Because, each and every military operation has a certain level of collateral damages. These collateral damages are impacting on the number of targeted armed bandits and other civilians who are losing their families or relatives.

Majority of the casualties are civilians who have no business with the targeted bandits. Again, do not forget that this conflict is not intellectually driven by any scientific data, information or exact ideology of the root problems. For instance, you cannot go into this kind of war without proper mapping, proper understanding and research into different layers of the conflict, as regards the supply of small arms, the actors and inter and intrabandit relationships. Most importantly, one should ask if the community you are fighting for has the will to support military actions? My answer is no and this is highly problematic. You see communities within the areas where bandits are operating are not giving vital information to the security agencies.

Communities must key into either the Carnatic or non-Carnatic approach of the government. But we see government fighting bandits and the community stands in the middle without taking sides with government.

This is a very serious problem. Ordinarily, government is supposed to relate with these communities to know their problems and options about the military operations within their locality. Since these questions are not asked, they (communities) are closer to bandits than the government. That is why the problem persists.

The communities will tell themselves that the military operations do not last forever and they believe the military are not going to stay with them forever.

Whatever it is, if the military succeeds in eliminating 10 bandits, leaving only two, the communities always have the fear that those two will always come back to attack them when the military are no longer there.

That is why these communities take sides with bandits.

They see the bandits as lesser evils than the military who sometimes cause collateral damages on innocent civilians in the course of their operations. That is why military operations witnessed a lot of sabotages within the communities they are operating. Some of these communities are informants to the bandits. Also, bandits use residents of the communities as human shields.

In your book you also mentioned 16 major bandit camps within the North-West. How do they operate?

Historically, the first armed group evolved in 2011, led

by Kundu and the notorious Buharin Daji, both of Fulani background. The group operated underground in the forest, but its real motive started to manifest itself in 2012 when cases of cattle rustling began in Zamfara State. At the onset, membership of the group was restricted to the Fulani, especially during the recruitment exercise between 2011 to 2012. Recruitment was through conscription, use of cash and cattle, promise for sex and leisure, as well as intimidation of other Fulani people.

What is confounding about these bandits is that, although they are united for the same purpose, they are paradoxically divided along different camps. The quest for more sophisticated weapons was not largely motivated by the fashion for attack and killings, but largely against other rival groups. Arms procurement and inter-gang rivalry is a common feature of the groups.

Young and junior group members have free access to weapons and they can organise minor attacks, raids and kidnappings without the consent of their leaders.

Consequently, to minimise inter-gang squabbles, the entire North-West was divided into bandits camps and each area/zone allocated to a particular leader.

You have researched extensively on banditry within North-West states. What are the resolutions you were able to come up with? Has any government (federal or state) looked at their merits to find a lasting solution?

As a student of history and a researcher in conflict, mine is just to make suggestions or recommendations which I have made. They are in the public domain. I don't have the power or authority to implement it. It is the responsibility of government at all levels to implement them, if it so wishes.

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

SHOTS OF THE WEEK Photo Editor: Peace Udugba [08033050729]

Governor of Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo (left), swearing-in Dr. Ebuka Nwankwo Senate President, Godswill Akpabio (right), and the new senator, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, after the oath of office was administered on her, during plenary on as his Special Adviser on Special Projects, in Anambra State on November 1, 2023.

November 2, 2023

Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, flanked by the Regional Senior Partner for West Senator of the Federal Economy of Germany/Managing Director, Tipp Oil Manufacturer GmbH.Co. KG, Dr. Africa and Country Senior Partner, PwC Nigeria, Mr. Sam Abu (left) and his predecessor, Mr. Uyi Akpata H.C. Sebastian Maier (right), with Togo's Foreign Minister, Robert Dussey, at the European Parliament in (right) during a meeting with the governor at the Lagos House, Marina, on November 2, 2023.

Berlin, Germany...recently.

L-R: Country Manager, Tek Experts Nigeria, Olugbolahan Olusanya; Chief Medical Director, Nigeria Television Authority, Dr. Martina Agberien; Chief Executive Officer, American Business Council, Nigeria, Margaret Olele; Project Management Specialist, United States Agency international development, Susan Oranye and Head, Executive Business Development Nigeria & Africa, Tek Experts, Adewale Adeyemi at the ABC Cyber Hackathon held at Tek Experts, Victoria Island, Lagos recently.

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L-R: Managing Director/CEO International Breweries, Mr. Carlos Coutino; Assistant Corps Marshal, FRSC, Gilbert Igbokwe; Chairman, Beer Sectoral Group and MD/CEO, Nigerian Breweries, Hans Essaadi and Company Secretary / CAD, Guiness, Rotimi Odusola, during the Beer Sectoral Group and Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) event on the 2023 edition of the annual “Don’t Drink & Drive” Campaign at Movenpick Hotel, Ikoyi on November 1, 2023.

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EDITORIAL

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 WWW.THEWILLNEWS.COM

Political Elite And Self-serving Interests Over 100 days after the inauguration of the Tinubu administration, Nigerians have not really heaved a sigh of relief as the plight of the majority of the people keep sinking below the general expectations.

Policies and actions that will bring succour to the masses should be fasttracked instead of defending the selfish and self-serving spending jamboree for the political class

NIGERIA BUREAU: 36AA Remi Fani-Kayode Street, GRA, Ikeja.

Lagos, Nigeria. info@thewillnigeria.com / @THEWILLNG, +234 810 345 2286, +234 913 333 3888 EDITOR: Olaolu Olusina @OLUSINA LETTERS/OPINIONS: opinion.letters@thewillnews.com

T

he controversy surrounding the recent acquisition of 469. high end Sport Utility Vehicles for members of the National Assembly was not in any way a surprise to observers of political and economic developments in Nigeria given the plights of most Nigerians in recent times.

However, the justification for the purchase of the N57.6bn imported vehicles at a whopping N160 million each at a time Nigerians are being asked to tighten their belts and bear with the government over the prevailing economic hardships in the country really leaves a sour taste in the mouth.

The arguments for and against the apparently unpopular decision had hardly slowed down before another issue relating to the allocation of another whopping N2.9 billion on Sport Utility Vehicles for the Presidential Villa and the purchase of SUVs vehicles for the Office of the President and First Lady came into the national discourse, following the approval of a N2.1 trillion supplementary budget for President Bola Tinubu by the National Assembly.

The criticisms that followed became even more interesting with the revelation of the inclusion of the plan to purchase a N5 billion luxury

yacht allegedly for the President.

Interestingly, and as expected, the Presidency has since denied planning to make such a purchase, saying the yacht is an operational vessel meant for the Nigerian Navy.

However, the recent profligate spending and plans of the new administration are, disappointingly, the exact opposite of its initial stance and posture as an administration with a mission to clear the mess left by its predecessor.

Sadly, all the actions taken so far are clear pointers to the simple fact that the political class will stop at nothing to satisfy themselves before the interests of the generality of Nigerians are served. More annoying is the fact that all these are being rubbed on the faces of helpless Nigerians who are constantly being reminded of the need to bear with the government with the assurance that "things will soon improve."

Meanwhile, the Nigerian workers are being served some beggarly and meagre amounts in the name of palliatives and succour for the economic hardships imposed on them as a result of the withdrawal of subsidy on petrol. While most of the promises by the Federal Government are yet to be delivered fully, with labour always in limbo over nonfulfilment of agreements, Nigerians are being told that the interests of the political elite come first.

The hard reality Nigerians must be ready to face in the next four years is not to expect too much from the present administration if they must retain their sanity, otherwise they will be met with total disappointment and more frustrations. While most manufacturers and employers of labour in the private sector are finding it tough to maintain their operations as large-scale lay-offs loom large, the Federal Government keeps borrowing to splash on satisfying the interests of the few political elite as if the time to settle themselves has come.

Over 100 days after the inauguration of the Tinubu administration, Nigerians have not really heaved a sigh of relief as the plight of the majority of the people keep sinking below the general expectations.

Policies and actions that will bring succour to the masses should be fast-tracked instead of defending the selfish and self-serving spending jamboree for the political class.

We therefore call on President Bola Tinubu and his team to place the interest of the masses at heart instead of concentrating on settling the political class, knowing full well that much is expected from them by the majority of Nigerians who gave them the mandate to steer the ship of the state for the next four years.

They should remember that to whom much is given, much is expected.

THEWILL NEWSPAPER TEAM Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

Business Editor – Sam Diala

Photo Editor – Peace Udugba

Austyn Ogannah

Copy Editor – Chux Ohai

Head, Graphics – Tosin Yusuph

Editor – Olaolu Olusina

Cartoon Editor – Victor Asowata

Deputy Editor – Amos Esele

Entertainment/Society Editor – Ivory Ukonu

Circulation Manager – Victor Nwokoh

Politics Editor – Ayo Esan

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Guest Art Director – Sunny Hughes

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OPINION

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 WWW.THEWILLNEWS.COM

Five Years After Anenih

BY SUFUYAN OJEIFO

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n October 28, 2018, Chief Anthony Akhakon Anenih, the Iyasele of Esanland, answered the final call. He spent 85 eventful years on this side, leaving behind inspiring and enduring legacies. A political strategist and tactician of the reticent hue, he was able to dominate his milieu with his sphynx-like disposition. He wore the garb of politics like a second skin, deploying it as an instrumentality for the promotion and protection of the common interests of his political fraternity.

To be sure, Anenih discharged his fidelity to the political fraternity fairly, to the exclusion of his progenies in the nation’s writ-large prebendal politics. Validations: in 2005, under the administration of Governor Lucky Igbinedion, when political influence was deployed in its vast flourish, one of Anenih’s children, a contractor ANENIH’S TRANSITION HAS SINCE whose company, Suo Motu, bided for a road contract in one EXPOSED THE PROBLEM OF of the local government areas in State, without the influence SUCCESSION IN EDO PDP. HE LEFT Edo of his father and got the contract on the merit of the company’s A PAIR OF SHOES THAT NONE OF filings, was compelled by his HIS FOLLOWERS HAS BEEN ABLE father to withdraw from the contract.

TO STEP INTO

What happened? A top official of the local government had put a call through to Anenih to inform him that one of his sons had just been awarded a road contract, perhaps in expectation of Anenih’s approbation, but that move received a negative response-a strong disavowal.

The Leader, Anenih’s moniker that stuck with him like an old adhesive tape right to his grave, gave the marching orders to his son to put a call through to the local government council to announce his withdrawal from the contract. His son, painfully, did.

Consider another incident in 2006 when the second term of Governor Igbinedion was inching towards the terminus and the succession issue became somewhat contentious, Anenih had turned down the proposal by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, supported by some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leaders, that he (Anenih) should bring one of his children as successor to Igbinedion. The Leader rejected the proposal and had insisted on one of his proteges, Senator Odion Ugbesia, in whom Obasanjo was not pleased. And because Anenih refused to allow any of his children to be anointed as Igbinedion’s successor, Obasanjo decided to support Senator Oserhiemen Osunbor, instead of Osunbor, as the governorship candidate of the PDP in Edo and used his awesome presidential power to get Anenih to support the Osunbor choice.

Yet another incident: In 2011, when one of Anenih’s children decided to throw his hat in the ring for the Esan Northeast/Esan Southeast seat in the Federal House of Representatives in open challenge of the occupant of the seat, Hon Friday Itulah, Anenih once again reined in his son and ordered him to take back his expression of interest and wait for his turn. The Leader had insisted on the rotational policy that emphasised that legislators must serve out a maximum two terms. Itulah was then going for a second term. Anenih simply told his son that if he wanted to go to the House of Representatives, he should go and line up behind others before him and bid his time.

That was the expansive and expressive selflessness of Anenih that validated his leadership and ability to chart a political cause of his fraternity without dissent. Anybody who dissented did so from outside the political family after they must have taken their exit in protest.

Anenih infused a great deal of discipline in his political interactions and dealings with his followers and associates from whom he expected 101 per cent loyalty. That sense of discipline found anchorage in his background in the Nigeria Police Force.

Starting out as a policeman, where he rose to the rank of Commissioner (and retired), through his foray into business and eventually politics, or if you like, a commixture of business and politics, he defined his eon with the magnitude of his peculiar politics that placed the others or group interest above family interest. The intersection of politics was actually transcendental, feeding his perseverance and audacity to make successful political moves that had also earned him the “Mr Fix-It” sobriquet.

Anenih became irretrievably immersed in local and national politics, hazarding and stoically taking on the attendant cross currents. Indeed, politics brought him both fame and derision. But on the balance of scale, the fame he got trumped the occasional derision from those at the receiving ends of his political moves and countermoves. He carved a significant niche for himself in the politics of Nigeria and defined his era in ways that transformed him from the run-of-the-mill to an extraordinary politician.

He had his imprimatur in the emergence of Samuel Ogbemudia as Governor of Old Bendel State in the Second Republic (though short-lived in 1983) on the platform of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) under his leadership as the State Chairman. He would later, in the Third Republic, become the National Charman of the Social Democratic Party and under his leadership, he ensured the election of John Odigie-Oyegun as governor of Edo State. In the Fourth Republic, he ensured the election of Lucky Igbinedion as two-term governor of the state and also worked for the election of Osunbor as governor in 2007 before things went awry between them. The Court upturned the election of Osunbor and the governorship politics in Edo State changed irredeemably, slipping into the hands of the opposition party.

He also played remarkable roles in the victory of the PDP in the presidential elections from 1999 to 2011.

•Ojeifo contributed this piece via ojwonderngr@yahoo.co •Continues online at www.www.thewillnews.com

Ineffective Legislature And Nigerians’ Expectations

BY MON-CHARLES EGBO

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legislature that is alive to its roles and responsibilities is a symbol of hope, a shield and a voice for the people. It is marked by robust debates, strict commitment to checks and balances, and deliberate accountability to the people. Also, it confers legitimacy on the government because governance is productive and the citizens are fulfilled.

However, in developing nations, the legislature is defined by weak institutional capacity. It faces the challenges of executive dominance, public trust deficit, poor democratic culture manifesting as a weak electoral system and disrespect to democratic tenets and then disruptions through elections, leading to a high turnover of legislators.

Central to these issues are a weak constitution, a low level of morality in politics as well as poor knowledge of the duties of the parliament.

To begin with, Nigeria’s situation validates the assertion that any constitution midwifed by the military is as faulty as it is anti-democracy. It does not offer the legislature the necessary support for true independence and effective supervision of the executive.

For example, mere legislative refusal of consent cannot stop the executive from borrowing and or engaging in non-budgeted expenditures. Equally, the much-touted powers to override the presidency on critical issues exist merely on paper in the same manner that executive appointees can hold offices without legislative confirmation. And again, legislative summons and resolutions are brazenly ignored because the legislature does not possess the instruments to effectively enforce compliance.

Evidently, the executive is already empowered by the constitution to dominate the legislature.

And as noted earlier, institutional capacity is the missing link between an effective parliament and the rest. It is a product of a trained and motivated workforce supported by a favourable operating environment which in turn is a function of adequate funding.

In Nigeria, the legislature is incapacitated and depends on the executive for operational existence. Beyond executive dominance and disrespect, lack of financial autonomy chiefly erodes overall legislative effectiveness. Among others, capacity building is stunted, the work environment is unconducive, representation suffers and legislative committees majorly rely on MDAs for logistics in the discharge of oversight functions. Meanwhile for over two years now, the national assembly chambers are closed down for repairs, restricting the lawmakers to a temporary arrangement for plenary.

Most bills passed by the legislature, especially the ones it originates, are not accented to and the resolutions arising from motions are utterly disregarded. Even the legislative agenda, despite how fantastic, would always remain a dream except the executive offers the needed impetus.

Yes, the executive determines the dimension of budget implementation which explains the perceived lop-sidedness in infrastructural development across the country.

Additionally, there are interferences in the affairs of the legislature by the ruling political party. Either by way of promises of reward or threats of sanction, the legislators are readily THEWILLNEWS

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blackmailed to influence their actions and conduct.

Buoyed on the weak electoral system, state governors decide the political fates of the legislators using the party structures and deployment of mob rule. Any lawmaker whom the governor does not endorse is as good as gone because the party will not nominate them as candidates for future elections.

Re-election tickets, developmental project locations as well as appointment of relatives and loyalists into positions are LEGISLATORS SHOULD BE employed as baits to keep the legislators in line. Also, despite the popularity of laws SEEN AS TRULY REPRESENTING made by the national assembly regarding THE PEOPLE AND ALSO the matters on the concurrent list, the governors railroad the state assemblies SHUNNING EVERY UNETHICAL into undermining the federal legislature, for political expediency.

CONDUCT, NOTABLY TRAITS

OF POLITICS WITH BITTERNESS. THEY SHOULD NOT TAKE THE PEOPLE’S MANDATE FOR GRANTED. THEY SHOULD PURGE THEMSELVES OF MUTUAL SUSPICIONS AND DIVISIVE TENDENCIES

Hence, when a legislator is confronted with the grim prospects of political extinction, they helplessly ‘play along’ to survive. And inferentially, the executive influences the choices of legislative leadership through this strategy. Now with these, why would ineffective parliaments not thrive?

The withholding of public support and cooperation which also undermines the effectiveness of the legislature, is traced to two major factors. While one is the personality of some lawmakers the other is misplaced public expectations sequel to limited understanding of the preserves of the parliament.

Whereas legislators are expected to be morally upright and beyond reproach, the actions and conducts of some account for the huge public trust deficit plaguing the legislature. There are those lacking in character, the ones reputed for underperformance and the others who embody politics with bitterness or bad-loser syndrome. This last category adopts desperation in their quest for power and would always seek to undermine every electoral outcome that does not suit their expectations, despite established credibility. In political contests, they ‘must’ either have their way or rock the boat.

•Egbo is a parliamentary affairs analyst •Continues online at www.www.thewillnews.com

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 • VOL . 3 NO. 50 WWW.THEWILLNEWS.COM

MULTIDIMENSIONAL POVERTY: RIVERS AMONG LEADING SOUTH-SOUTH STATES WITH MOST POOR PEOPLE – REPORT

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N38.2bn

Unity Bank Records N38.2bn Gross Earnings in Q3’23 / PAGE 34

N25.418bn

Equities Market Ends Week in Bullish Trend

EDITOR Sam Diala

/ PAGE 34

GTCO Q3’23 Results Mirror Growth That Excites Stakeholders GTCO 5-YEAR FINAL DIVIDENDS 2018-2022 (N'bn) 5BN

N

2018

2019

2020

2021

3BN

2BN 3.95

3.80

3.46

1BN

3.29

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otwithstanding its stupendous wealth, Rivers ranks among the leading poor states of the South-South. A number of quality living indices are also against the 56-year-old oil rich state which sits atop humongous wealth that derives from nature’s gift of oil and gas.

In its last eye-opening report published mid-year, data technology company.

StatiSense, unveiled distressing findings from the Multidimensional Poverty Index (2022) report of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The report sheds light on the staggering number of people living in multidimensional poverty in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region, comprising states such as Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Cross River, Edo, Delta, and Bayelsa. The figures are nothing short of alarming and raise serious questions about the effective use of resources and policy implementation in these states.

The report revealed that Akwa Ibom, Rivers, and Cross River states were the hardest hit, with 5.08 million, 4.4 million, and 3.44 million people respectively living in multidimensional poverty.

For Akwa Ibom state, this represents over 71 percent of its total population of 5.451 million people estimated by the National Population Commission (NPC).

Similarly, in Rivers State, the 4.4 million people living in multidimensional poverty account for 62.4 percent of the state’s estimated 7.47 million inhabitants.

Cross River State also struggles significantly, with 3.44 million people living in multidimensional poverty, constituting a staggering 75.6 percent of the state’s population.

While Edo and Delta States also face challenges, their numbers are relatively lower compared to the states mentioned earlier. Edo has 1.4 million people living in multidimensional poverty, representing 35.4 percent of its estimated 3.9 million population, while Delta has 2.73 million people in poverty, which is just under 50 percent of its population.

Bayelsa State emerges as the most concerning case, with a shocking 2.61 million people living in

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2022 A

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BY SAM DIALA

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Source; Coy Reports

uaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) Plc posted impressive results for its third quarter (Q3) operations ended September 2023, which reflects a robust growth trajectory that excites the stakeholders.

This tremendous turn of events is coming after a period of heavyfooted performance on low earnings that put growth on a slow, downward slope.

After the peak performance in 2020 when it posted a profit after tax of N201.43 billion, the Tier-1 financial services institution saw its post-tax profits tumble to N174.83 billion and N169.17 billion in FY 2021 and 2022 respectively.

The Q3 2023 results, therefore, repositioned the group for a better result in 2023 when it is set for a bountiful year-end harvest, going by the nine months figures.

Admittedly, the group’s Q3 2023 performance could be seen as reflective of its resilience and underpins the strategy to generate sustainable value for its stakeholders.

However, the forex revaluation windfall, which loaded Nigeria’s deposit money banks with enormous benefits, forklifted GTCO to an unprecedented level of profitability.

GTCO’s interim unaudited financial statement for Q3 2023 showed that the group recorded robust expansion in profit after tax of N367.41 billion against N130.34 in the corresponding period of 2022 representing 181.8 percent.

The remarkable leap stemmed from a profit before tax of N433.20 billion compared to N169.72 billion in the equivalent period or 155.2 percent growth.

The group’s net interest income recorded a remarkable 155.2 percent increase to N433.20 billion from N169.72 billion in the previous period of 2022.

In all, the expansion trajectory reflected on the group’s loan book (net) which grew by 17.7 percent from N1.89 trillion recorded as at December 2022 to N2.22 trillion in September 2023, while deposit liabilities increased by 37.9 percent from N4.61 trillion in December 2022 to N6.36 trillion in September 2023.

The group’s balance sheet remained well structured and resilient with total assets and shareholders’ funds closing at N8.6 trillion

and N1.3 trillion, respectively.

The giant holco informed that its Full Impact Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) remained very strong, closing at 25.1 percent, while asset quality was sustained as IFRS 9 Stage 3 Loans improved to 3.8 percent in September 2023 from 5.2 percent December 2022.

It noted that Cost of Risk (COR) closed at 4.1 percent from 0.6 percent in December 2022 owing to Management’s conservative stance on provisioning as macros worsened year-on-year, weighing negatively on the ECL variables.

The major boost to both top-line and profit came from a mindblowing surge in the amount of forex revaluation gain, which ballooned to N334.35 billion against loss of N7.39 billion in Q2 2022.

Shareholders who spoke to THEWILL expressed optimism that the group’s Q3 performance signals a robust year-end result that will deliver handsome dividends.

“The result is really satisfactory; we are sure of enhanced returns at the end of the year from what we are seeing now,” said Ambrose Kehinde.

Another investor, Benjamin Akoh said that GT Bank, which has a large customer base, remains investors’ toast because of the unique brand it built over the years.

“These are fantastic results, powered indirectly by the convertible rate of dollar to naira. I am sure other banks’ results will toe the same line but we should not expect bigger leap in the last quarter because the exchange rate should stabilised lower than what it is now.

As an investor, I expect growth in the price of the stock and also more businesses that will engender better performance in the current quarter.

How I hope these banks will in collaboration with other banks try and lower our exchange rate to the dollar which will indirectly help in reflating the economy!” said Prince Anthony Omojola, National Coordinator, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), in a note to THEWILL A Stockbroker and Head of Securities Trading at Planet Capital,

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

BUSINESS WEEKLY

...Mirror Growth That Excites Stakeholders Going into the final quarter of the year, we will continue to leverage the strengths within our growing financial services ecosystem to improve our products and service offerings, enhance customer experience, and maximise shareholder value

Dr Paul Uzum, attributed the profit windfall to the banks to the foreign exchange revaluation gains that the devaluation of the Naira threw at them.

“FX translation gain was the factor.

You will see it across the big banks GTco, Zenith, Access and UBA. FBNH equally had impressive results. The banks have been keeping a part of their reserves in FX, and some of their loans to clients are also in FX, so it is natural that with the steep d’évaluation, they will make large profits,” said Dr Uzum.

Doyen of Nigerian Stockbrokers, Sam Ndata, said the impressive performance of GTCO will attract more investors to it.

Commenting on the results, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc, Mr. Segun Agbaje, said; “Our 3rd Quarter performance underpins our strategic positioning as a leading Financial Holding Company and reaffirms our strong capabilities to successfully navigate the challenges

in our operating environment.

“Going into the final quarter of the year, we will continue to leverage the strengths within our growing financial services ecosystem to improve our products and service offerings, enhance customer experience, and maximise shareholder value.”

He further said; “We are proud of our work towards Promoting Enterprise across the African continent over the years and remain committed to helping indigenous small businesses thrive through our consumer-focused fairs. The 6th Edition of the GTCO Fashion Weekend is scheduled to be held in Lagos, Nigeria, on 11/12 November 2023, and will give entrepreneurs in the Nigerian fashion retail space a free-business platform to showcase their diverse talents and creativity to a global audience.”

The current share price of Guaranty Trust Holding (GTCO) is N35.15. GTCO closed its last trading day (Friday, November 3, 2023) at N35.15 per share on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX), recording a 0.4 percent gain over its previous closing price of N35.00.

GTCO began the year with a share price of N23.00 and has since gained 52.8 percent on that price valuation, ranking it 58th on the NGX in terms of year-to-date performance.

GTCO is the eighth most traded stock on the Nigerian Exchange over the past three months (Aug 7 - Nov 3, 2023). It has traded a total volume of 1.02 billion shares—in 19,323 deals—valued at N37 billion over the period, with an average of 16.2 million traded shares per session.

A volume high of 54.8 million was achieved on September 4th, and a low of 1.97 million on October 16th, for the same period.

Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd, the major subsidiary of the group, was named Best Bank in Nigeria at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2023. This marks a record 12th time that Guaranty Trust Bank has been recognised as the leading financial institution in Nigeria.

...Rivers Among Leading South-South States With Most Poor People multidimensional poverty, constituting a staggering 88 percent of the state’s estimated 2.9 million inhabitants.

The Ijaw ethnic group-dominated state, despite receiving significant funds from the federation account (N87.13 billion in 2021), faces a severe challenge in improving the living standards of its people.

The 13 percent derivation funds, intended to ensure that resource-rich regions benefit from their natural resources, have been a subject of scrutiny.

Many people question why these funds have failed to uplift the living standards of the people in these states. Despite receiving substantial financial support, poverty persists and worsens with the rising cost of living, magnified by increases in fuel prices and the depreciation of the naira, the national currency against major international currencies, especially the US dollars, the report emphasised.

In conclusion, the StatiSense report serves as a stark reminder of the deep-rooted multidimensional poverty plaguing Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region.

In a research by Samuel Gowon Edoumiekumo and two others, the students of the Department of Economics, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, noted that Rivers residents like their counterparts in other Niger Delta region ranked low in the National Living Standard Survey (NLSS) as ones with acute energy poverty.

“Energy is the live wire of any economy. Give the people energy you would have solved a large proportion of their problems. Not only is energy needed for domestic consumption, its availability creates an enabling environment for small-scale businesses to thrive.

“The hair barber, the hairdresser, the woman who sells fish by the roadside, that woman that deals on sachet water, fishermen, farmers, sculptors, etc all need one form of energy or the other to foster their businesses, thus energy is not only an end but also a means to an end. For the purpose of household health and environmental sustainability having access to a modern cooking fuel is also important,” In its Q4 2020 Labour Force Statistics Report, the National Bureau of Statistics showed that Rivers played in the league of top states with the highest unemployment rate: Imo (48.7 per cent), Akwa-Ibom and Rivers with (45.2 per cent) and Rivers (43.7 per cent), respectively.

Nyesom Wike, then governor of Rivers State, in January of 2021, donated N500 million to Sokoto State to support the rebuilding of the state’s central market which was gutted by fire.

The gesture which generated reactions from many people was heavily criticised.

The pensioners in Rivers said the N500 million could have been used to meet some of the demands of retired civil servants.

According to them, Wike was unbothered that his state ranked number one on the unemployment index.

“The action of the governor clearly proves that he does not seem to have a protected future at stake or vision for our dear [Rivers] state.

He is not bothered that the state ranks number one on the unemployment index having the highest unemployed population as published by the National Bureau of Statistics and other institutions,” said Sobomabo Jackrich, a prominent political leader of the state.

Furthermore, in September 2023, the all-items inflation rate on a year-on-year basis, published by NBS, was highest in Kogi (32.95 per cent), Rivers (30.63 per cent), Lagos (30.04 per cent).

Data from the Debt Management Office (DMO) showed that Rivers Delta State’s domestic debts are the highest compared to other states in the Southsouth region of Nigeria, according to data from the Debt Management Office (DMO). *Continues online at www. thewillnews.com

NCDMB Boss Commissions Genesis Academy, Lauds Firm For Creating 2500 Jobs

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he Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Kesiye Wabote, on Thursday commissioned the corporate Head Office and Training Academy of the hospitality conglomerate, Genesis Group Limited, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The NCDMB boss lauded the firm for being the leading provider of catering services for major oil and gas companies in the country and employing over 2,500 persons across its various operations.

The firm’s footprints include operating seven standard hotels across the nation, managing 30 restaurants in eight states and operating 12 cinemas.

Wabote highlighted the specialization and expertise that are required in catering for the oil and gas industry, stressing that the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act does not allow for the lowering of standards under any guise.

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He said: “The ability to cook is perhaps just about 20% of what is required to provide good catering service for the oil and gas industry. The ambience, how you serve the food, the people you use to serve the food, how you preserve the food, the quality of the substance you use are the most important conditions. It is all encompassing.”

The Academy, built by the Group for capacity building in Hotel and Tourism Management, Client Service Dynamics, Business Processes, Etiquette, Emotional Intelligence, Logistics and Supply Chain, among other courses drew commendation from the Executive Secretary, who emphasized the importance of those skills in delivering wholesome hospitality experience.

He said the Genesis Group has helped to raise in-country value and reduce the dominance of foreign companies in industrial catering and hospitality, recalling that very few Nigerian firms

could compete with such foreign interests in the hospitality industry until the 1990s.

The firm and other indigenous players in the sector facilitated the actualisation of provisions of the NOGICD Act which stipulate, among other things, “a minimum of 80% Nigerian Content” in catering services in the industry.

Commenting further on the accomplishments of the company, which ranks as the first indigenous catering firm to be certified as ISO 90001 and ISO 22000-compliant, he pointed out that Genesis has demonstrated strict compliance in both local and international best practices in safety, quality and regulatory requirements.

He equally observed that it is one of the very organisations in Nigeria where female staff far outnumber their male counterparts. *Continues online at www. thewillnews.com

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

BUSINESS NEWS

L-R; Head, Primary Market, Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Mr. Tony Ibeziako; Non-Executive Director, Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, Mrs. Erejuwa Gbadedo; Executive Director, Primary Markets, NGX, Mr. Jude Chiemeka; Chairman, Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, Mr. Abi Ayida; Managing Director/CEO, Berger Paints Nigeria PLC, Mrs. Alaba Fagun; Non-Executive Director, Berger Paints Nigeria PLC, Mrs. Ogechi Iheanacho; Chief Digital Officer, NGX, Dr. Olufemi Oyenuga and Mr. Olusola Oni, PR Consultant to Berger Paints Nigeria Plc, during a Physical Closing Gong Ceremony to introduce the new Managing Director to Capital Market Stakeholders in Lagos on November 2, 2023.

Halilu Targets Q1 2024 to Put NASENI Products in Nigeria Market

Unity Bank Records N38.2bn Gross Earnings in Q3’23

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etail lender, Unity Bank Plc has recorded gross earnings of N38 billion for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2023, with customer deposits appreciating by 5% to N344.4 billion within the period, indicating business growth and customer confidence in the Bank.

A review of the lender’s unaudited nine-month results released to the Nigerian Exchange Group Limited showed that the Bank continued to maintain its expansionary and customer-centric model with total loans and advances rising to N222.8 billion, even as interest and similar income stood at N33 billion, which underscores the Bank’s strategic focus to reinvigorate and sustain asset creation that will deliver returns to shareholders.

Other key highlights of the 9-month financials include the total assets which stood at N423.4 billion; net fee and income commission, N4.4 billion within the period.

However, the recent FX regulation impacted the Bank’s bottom line, which can be reversed as the Naira appreciates.

Commenting on the result, the Managing Director/CEO of Unity Bank Plc, Mrs. Tomi Somefun said that the Bank is focusing on its efforts to recapitalize the institution, aggressively drive asset creation, innovate with products to compete favourably in new markets and relentlessly drive the pursuit of digital Banking innovation in order to shake off and completely reverse negative positions.

She stated that despite the tough operating environment, the deposit position continues to witness steady appreciation, which supports the business as the Bank drives initiatives to ramp up transactions as part of its strategy for the short and medium term.

“This also means that the Bank enjoys market confidence, which will enable the institution to thrive better in the months ahead with increased business conversion, profitability and growth needed to achieve sustainable returns,” she said.

Added to the above, Somefun also stated that “the Bank is seeing encouraging uptake in its digital Banking services and with expansion envisaged in the pursuit of enhanced retail franchise, fintech partnership, consumer banking and other innovative retail loans as well as diversification of portfolio investment, the outlook remains one of optimism’’.

Analysts expressed confidence that re-engaging the market in the short and medium term by deepening the retail end as part of the business strategy will drive more income streams to boost both market share and financial position in the days ahead.

he Executive Vice Chairman of the National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Mr. Khalil Suleiman Halilu has said his vision or direction for the Agency’s products and technologies is to make them available in every household in Nigeria in the next few years.

Nonetheless, Halilu disclosed in Abuja today that some tangible products emanating from NASENI’s prototypes will be in the market through technology transfer arrangements, specifically, by 1st quarter of year 2024.

“Expect some products from NASENI’s R&D efforts in the Nigeria market during the first quarter of 2024”. The EVC/CEO disclosed this on Thursday November 2, 2023, during his maiden television media interaction held at the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja.

Halilu said expectations from stakeholders of NASENI are very high as its activities must ensure transparency and focus to assist the Agency deliver on its mandate.

According to him, part of his preoccupations since assuming office in September is to give adequate attention to enhance the human capital potential of the Agency through improved motivation for staff to enable them to adjust to the transformations to be introduced in the system. Also, he said stakeholders’ engagements and efforts to rebrand the Agency around its products and technologies have remained top priorities.

The New NASENI Chief Executive said that the era of stacking prototypes on shelves has ended in the Agency, saying that all its products and technologies must find their ways to the market.

“We are going to do a national rebranding to have footsteps of NASENI products in every household in the country. In the next few years this is what Nigerians should expect. We are no longer going to sit back to watch endless research and prototypes, keeping them on the shelves.

“We will take them to the market so that Nigerians can consume them. In fact, one of our next year plans is to have NASENI Showrooms in key cities of the country. So that NASENI products are not things you view only on televisions but anyone could walk into our product outlets to experience those technologies that we’ve been talking about. And that is another way we will be expecting the public to hold us accountable as part of the promises we made.”

The EVC/CEO further stated that he met lots of wonderful researchers with over 150 products at prototype level when he came on board. “However, the commercialization aspects are very little. Coming from my background of manufacturing and technology innovation, I believe the whole essence of doing research is to transform it into meaningful products that will have impacts on the economy.’’

“We are going to do this through technology transfer. Ever since we made the announcement to go into technology transfer particularly, especially the intention to have our products in the market, we have been receiving a lot of interests from private sector organisations looking out for our capacity, the spread and goodwill which we are endowed with being a government organisation and how they can partner with us.”

He recalled a recent trip to China by the top management of the Agency, led by the EVC/ CEO himself: “we just came back from China with the Vice President from the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) Forum where we signed a $2 billion dollar partnership MOU for technology transfer into Nigeria which is something we were able to achieve in just five weeks of operations. At the same forum, we received a lot of partners that provided letters of Intent to partner with us, to invest in the country’s economy amounting to $4 billion,” The EVC said NASENI’s China trip has the potential to yield about $6 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) to Nigeria. And the areas that the agency received interests were around Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Electric Vehicles (EVs), Agricultural equipment, Electronics and Electrical equipment and many others. *Continues online at www. thewillnews.com

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Equities Market Ends Week in Bullish Trend

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he NGX All-Share Index and market capitalization appreciated by 4.56 percent and 4.53 percent to close the week at 70,196.77 and N38.557 trillion respectively A total turnover of 2.451 billion shares worth N40.570 billion in 37,959 deals was traded last week by investors on the floor of the Exchange, in contrast to a total of 1.446 billion shares valued at N25.418 billion that exchanged hands last week in 28,933 deals.

The Financial Services Industry (measured by volume) led the activity chart with 1.480 billion shares valued at N21.160 billion traded in 16,671 deals; thus contributing 60.39% and 52.16 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

The Oil and Gas Industry followed with 354.911 million shares worth N1.214 billion in 2,917 deals. The third place was the ICT Industry, with a turnover of 175.216 million shares worth N8.218 billion in 3,759 deals.

Trading in the top three equities namely Japual Gold & Ventures Plc, United Bank for AfricaPlc and Fidelity Bank Plc (measured by volume) accounted for 835.584 million shares worth N8.631 billion in 5,514 deals, contributing 34.09 percent and 21.27 percent to the total equity turnover volume and value respectively.

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

ENERGY

Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier Continues to Supply LNG, Other Commodities to German Government

BY OLAOLU OLUSINA

Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier, one of the largest commodity traders in the European market, has continued to supply LNG and other commodities to the German Government as he did last year.

Under the able leadership and direction of Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier, Tipp Oil, the Bergakem-based lubricants manufacturer, delivered large quantities of LNG to the German Government in December 2022 due to the energy and gas supply problems and also LPG propane gas to industrial companies across Germany

Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier with TIPP Oil products

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Senator of the Federal Economy of the Government, Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier is also the Founder and Managing Director of Tipp Oil Manufacturer GmbH.Co. KG, a German lubricant manufacturer known for its high-quality and innovative lubricants. He is more determined now to assist the German Government in confronting the energy and gas challenges currently facing Europe's largest economy.

Under the able leadership and direction of Dr. H.C Sebastian Maier, Tipp Oil, the Bergakem-based lubricant manufacturer, delivered large quantities of LNG to the German Government in December 2022 due to the energy and gas supply problems and also LPG propane gas to industrial companies across Germany.

Tipp Oil boasts a vast array of mineral and synthetic oils that cater to various types of vehicles and machines, including cars, trucks, construction machines, and industrial machines, providing customers with a wide selection to choose from based on their specific needs.

Providing a range of potent and innovative lubricants suitable for various applications, Tipp Oil adheres to strict quality control measures in line with manufacturing norms to ensure that all its products meet national and international standards. From design and production to filling and marketing, each stage is carefully monitored to guarantee that all Tipp Oil products maintain the highest level of quality.

At the core of the company’s philosophy is the belief that the customer is king. Tipp Oil is dedicated to retaining its customers by providing excellent services. The company understands that each customer has unique underlying issues. Thus, it strives to offer tailored, individual solutions that cater to its client’s specific problems by prioritising their needs and satisfaction just as it seeks to establish long-lasting relationships with its clients.

The company manufactures a wide range of products, including motor oils, gear oils, industrial oils, and stroke-to-rim cleaners, to cater to diverse customer needs. Tipp Oil also employs a THEWILLNEWS

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reasonably competitive and affordable pricing strategy for its high-quality products. The company ensures that its retail prices are fair and customers receive free advertising material in significant quantities. To further enhance customer satisfaction, Tipp Oil provides free delivery for container and truck loads, minimising additional costs.

Tipp Oil also offers special monthly promotions for its exclusive distributors, providing them with excellent value for their money.

The Leader Born in 1984, Tipp Oil’s founder, Sebastian Maier, currently holds the position of Managing Director at Tipp Oil Manufacturer GmbH.Co.KG & Tipp Oil Manufacturer Administration GmbH. He pursued his education in International Business Management from a private university in Florida, after which he gained a decade of experience in international commodity procurement. He was a managing director for “International Petroleum Trading in the UK.” Being a member of AHK, IHK, Ghorfa Arab Chambers of Commerce, a UN organisation and a Senator in the Federal Economic Senate of BVMW, he actively participates in various social and environmental welfare activities across different countries.

Saving the Planet Since its inception in 2018, Tipp Oil has received several international awards for sustainability, especially for the quality of its environmental protection measures.

The organisation has implemented a cutting-edge Rebottle Deposit System that recycles empty plastic bottles ranging from one litre to 20 litres. The system reintroduces these

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bottles into the circulatory system after they have been professionally cleaned and cleared of any oil residues. Only the lid of the container is replaced during the process. As a result, these plastic containers can be used for up to two years or more, depending on their condition. This innovative and cost-effective approach benefits the environment and reflects the company’s commitment to sustainability.

This Rebottle Deposit System has also been subjected to an audit report by the German Institute for Sustainability and Economics, which has rated it as “good.” Tipp Oil’s efforts to promote sustainability have earned it international recognition and numerous accolades. The company’s innovative solution has reduced CO2 emissions during the return transport process.

During the pandemic, Tipp Oil achieved a remarkable return rate of 60 percent for empty containers, which accounted for 80,000 plastic containers. This recycling procedure is also being carried out in Africa, Europe, and Asia.

“With a production of around 100,000 drums per month, there was a 60 percent return rate during COVID-19 period. You can also see our dimensions from the fact that we are represented in 63 countries. We do not have any raw material problems due to our special technology. The lifespan of our containers is in the range of five years with regular use. They are very sustainable,“ Maier explained.

Tipp Oil is dedicated to developing environmentally friendly lubricants, recognising that modern lubricants are high-performance fluids that must be specifically formulated for their intended application. It employs a diverse range of lubricants for various machines, tractors, aircraft, and wind turbines. Tipp Oil supplements the base oil with thickening agents or binders to regulate the viscosity and film-forming properties. Today, the lubricant industry is witnessing a growing demand for high technical performance and sustainability in formulations. Tipp Oil recognises this and is dedicated to researching the use of bio-based ingredients to promote a more sustainable future.

Awards and Accolades Under Sebastian Maier’s leadership, Tipp Oil has been recognised for its outstanding achievements by various prestigious organizations. In 2020, the organisation was awarded the title of “Best Engine Oil Manufacturer” by the Business European Enterprise Awards. The company was also recognised as the “Most Environmentally Focused Oil Company 2020 in Germany” and for having the “Most Innovative Oil Deposit System 2020 – Rebottle” by the EU Business News. As an international player in the lubricant trade and commodities trading, Tipp Oil Germany Ltd. is committed to providing its customers with the best possible solutions for their needs. The company’s independent brand, coupled with its expertise and comprehensive range of products, ensures that Tipp Oil can offer the ideal lubricant for every application.

Tipp Oil takes pride in its products, which are exclusively made in Germany by highly skilled and experienced employees who adhere to strict quality standards. The company offers a wide range of cutting-edge, high-performance lubricants and related products that cater to every need. Tipp Oil ensures that each product is optimised to deliver the best results to its customers.

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SPECIAL REPORT

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 WWW.THEWILLNEWS.COM

Nigerians by Birth, Nigeriens by Choice (II) ... Failed Promises, Dashed Hopes Increase Woes of Banditary's Victims

BY TUNDE OMOLEHIN

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oth refugees and internally displaced persons including women and children across the border communities have continued to suffer hunger, malnutrition and rejection in the society while the Nigerian government looks aside.

In recent times, several Humanitarian bodies have alarmed the high rate of mortality among women and children while surviving refugees are facing an uncertain future as they have remained unproductive in many camps after fleeing from their communities.

Stakeholders in the health emergency sector confirmed an extraordinarily high number of children under-five years with malnutrition in various internally displaced camps across five states across this northwest region in Nigeria where these children were moved to as a safer haven.

"Honestly, northwest are states next to this nutrition emergency with a large-scale health and malnutrition crises after Maiduguri," says Tijjani Andrew, a Sokoto based humanitarian worker.

CONFLICT OF HUNGER In September 2022, the international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), was alarmed by the malnutrition crisis in northwest Nigeria that was rising at catastrophic levels.

The organisation, in a statement in September last year indicates that from January to September 2022, they treated about 100,000 children suffering from acute malnutrition in its outpatient facilities across five northwest states of Kano, Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto and Kebbi "We have treated close to 100,000 children suffering from acute malnutrition in 34 outpatient facilities and admitted about 17,000 children requiring hospital care in 10 inpatient centers," Dr. Simba Tirima, MSF Country Representative in Nigeria had stated.

But as at the end of the year (2022), MSF had treated 147,860 children with severe acute malnutrition across northwest Nigeria.

that could ensure that the displaced persons are relocated and resettled back to their various communities.

The humanitarian body has since called for response to the emergency needs of people in the region and wanted media to focus coverage on the northwest communities where infancy-children were dying of acute malnutrition.

But, most of the refugees told TheWill how the promise went unfulfilled before leaving office in May, 2023. "We were happy when the government visited our camps and promised to rebuild our homes and resettle us by the end of 2022. But nothing was heard again." Saida'atu Junaid, a refugee returnee, had said.

It also believes that through media efforts, northwest Nigeria could be included in the United Nations humanitarian response plan, this would enable a broader and more sustained response.

A member, representing Sabon Birnin South constituency at the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Aminu Almustapha told TheWill how the immediate past government could not showed enough concern for the plight of his people,

Musa Gandi, a member of Red Cross, an international humanitarian organisation, says most of the Internal Displaced Persons in the state had complained about the lack of basic amenities like water sanitation and medical care.

Ukashatu Muhammad, who is the Director General of Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), "Accessing thousands of Nigerian refugees in Niger Republic communities has been a nightmare for Nigerian authorities."

"Despite that, they are not ready to even vacate most of these camps unless the government can guarantee their security and rebuild their houses." Musa points out.

"I can remember when we moved to most of these camps to assist Nigerian refugees in Niger Republic. They are almost turned down by Nigerien authorities. It took the intervention of some traditional leaders of both countries to make it possible for us."

THE FAILED PROMISES In 2021, the erstwhile governor in Sokoto' state, Aminu Tambuwal visited some displaced persons camps in Dan Daji Makau, Tudun Sunni and Garin Kaka all in Guidan Roujun of Niger Republic.

The governor, now elected as a parliament member at Nigeria's upper legislative assembly, had promised a process

He also promised that the current government is putting a lot of mechanisms together to ensure that the Refugees are returned to their communities.

The State Emergency Agency's spokesman, Ghani Abdullahi says the state and other stakeholders have been collaborating to ensure both the refugees and Internally Displaced persons

are given the necessary succour.

"Sokoto SEMA, NEMA and International Organization Of Migration [IOM] have jointly assessed the sympathetic situation of some IDPs. Our latest visit was in TangazaGidan Madi and other communities in Binji LGAs of Sokoto State."Ghani explained.

He said the team while at the camps, the assessment team learnt that hundreds of people including women and children were displaced as a result of banditry activities in the state.

"The team also found that the displaced persons living in those buildings are currently faced with the problem of shortage of potable drinking water, shelter and food among others. Other challenges faced by those IDPs in the camp including women and children include malaria, typhoid and diarrhea."

"What the present governor is doing is to put in place viable security by providing logistics vehicles to the security agencies in the state. "We have also earmarked palliatives for the Internal Displaced Persons across the state and the Refugees living across the border communities." Ukashatu explained further.

ANY HOPE? Despite the widespread humanitarian situation within the border communities, officials at the Sokoto' zonal office of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), have denied any knowledge about the plights of the displaced persons.

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NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

SPECIAL REPORT

... Failed Promises, Dashed Hopes Increase Woes of Banditary's Victims

An abandoned Refugees' camp provided by the Nigeri

Upon TheWill's enquiries, the head of Operations at the agency office in Sokoto, Aliyu Kafindangi declined any official comment. However, an official who pleaded in anonymity said the agency has not received a formal request from the Sokoto state government for any humanitarian assistance.

Paul Nyulaku-Bemshima, Country Director, International Alert, and Peace, Security and Justice professional with extensive experience in policy communication, research and Peace building, said that the decision to perpetrate violence or defect from it begins in the mind.

"Honestly, the NEMA office in Sokoto is unaware of any humanitarian crisis faced by the Nigerian refugees along the Nigerien communities.

"Besides that, we will need a formal communication from the state government before we can activate any humanitarian assistance, and that would be from the headquarters, Abuja," the official explained.

The unnamed official recalls how NEMA had intervened in similar refugee crises in both Cameroon and Benin Republic while the Niger Republic by providing relief materials to them, saying, "could be possible, if activated by the state government."

Like NEMA, similar efforts made to get official response from the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, (NCFRMI) were unsuccessful.

In response to the refugees' claims, a Freedom of Information enquiry dated 25th September, 2023 was sent by TheWill to the correspondence email address; info.ncfrmi@ncfrmi. gov.ng provided by the commission on its website.

TheWill enquiry was addressed to the Federal Commissioner in charge of the commission, asking details about the commission's humanitarian activities within the northwest states and steps it had taken to ensure Nigerian Refugees living within communities in Niger Republic were safely returned and resettled back to their homes.

“This largely depends on what narratives a person is exposed to, and how vulnerable or receptive they are to it. However, the key question is: Where is the real battlefield, are we focused on winning the battle or winning the war?

Malam Hali, 72-yrs-old says most of his conterporaries have died since arrived at Gandi IDPs camp

“

The FOI had guaranteed the right of unhindered access to public information, including information held by all federal government agencies, despite this provision, there was no official communication with TheWill as at the time this report was filed by the two agencies.

Yemi Oladimeji, a public affairs commentator said it is alarming to see displaced persons catering for themselves without government assistance. He pleaded that all hands should be on deck to help the families of bandit attacks be rehabilitated.

"What the Government at all levels should try to do now is to return these people and empower them with skills.”

Oladimeji urged.

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Sani Danjika, a Refugee at Gandi IDPs Camp, Rabbah

Both refugees and internally displaced persons including women and children across the border communities have continued to suffer hunger, malnutrition and rejection in the society while the Nigerian government looks aside. ...We were happy when the government visited our camps and promised to rebuild our homes and resettle us by the end of 2022. But nothing was heard again

“Why do youths choose to join?

How best can those who have been associated be brought back to civilian life and how communities be made to work together in promoting peace.

“Therefore, while military forces deal with the physical threats; efforts must be made to reinforce narratives that promote defection, rehabilitation and social cohesion,” he said.

The country director said that the event was aimed at increasing public awareness on the role of the media in promoting positive messaging and reducing harmful cultural norms.

“This workshop will provide the opportunity for key actors to generate alternative narratives, key messages, identify targets, and appropriate channels for achieving behavioural change outcomes.

“The efforts entail promoting policies and actions that aim to prevent populations from committing or supporting violence that is justified using Ideology,” he added.

Nyulaku-Bemshima said the workshop would also address the root causes, prevent recruitment and radicalisation and narratives that fuel violence and instability.

• This reporting was completed with the support of the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development and the Open Society Foundations.

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Sim Shagaya Floats Private University

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ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY EDITOR Ivory Ukonu

I

n recent years, there has been a significant increase in the number of candidates registering for the examination administered by the Joint Admissions and Matriculations Board (JAMB). Unfortunately, a considerable number of these candidates will not secure admission into conventional universities. This is where businessman, Sim Shagaya who is the older brother of socialite, Chalya Shagaya, thought to bridge the gap by joining the league of university owners in Continues on page39

NATASHA AKPOTIUDUAGHAN, THE WEAPON FASHIONED AGAINST YAHAYA BELLO

N

atasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has proven beyond reasonable doubt to Yahaya Bello, the governor of Kogi State, that she is no doormat to be trampled upon at will. Her victory at the Court of Appeal to regain her stolen mandate from Senator Abubakar Ohere, the All progressive Congress candidate, was a heavy colossal loss for the governor who did everything within his power to Continues on page 39

CELEBRITY TRANSFORMATIONS When Before Meets After

NOVEMBER 5, 2023 T H E W I L L N E W S P A P E R • www.thewillnews.com

ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY STORIES BY IVORY UKONU

Continued from page 38

FEMI OTEDOLA OFFLOADS OWN SHARES IN GEREGU POWER F

Sim Shagaya Floats Private University Nigeria. He is the chancellor of Miva Open University, a division of the uLesson Group, an online learning app for secondary school students in Africa which he runs. The launch of Miwa University, an Open Distance eLearning university comes four years after the establishment of uLesson. The university aims to provide undergraduate programs in a variety of fields such as Computer Science, Cyber Security, Data Science, Software Engineering, Public Policy and Administration, Economics, Accounting, and Business Management, as stated on their official website. In addition to the existing course offerings, Miva Open University has plans to expand its curriculum to include nursing and law programs.

emi Otedola, the Chairman of Geregu Power Plc, a power generating firm which he acquired after selling off his interest in Forte Oil, has now sold over 14.8 million units of his shares held in the company. He sold them through Amperion Power Distribution Company Limited, bringing the total value of his sold shares to N5.05 billion and further reducing his stake in Geregu to 81.85 percent, from 82.45 percent.

While he owns 1,245 direct shares, he holds indirect shares of 1,245 through Calvados Global Services Limited and 2.04 billion through Amperion Power, one of the 16 bidders that pre-qualified for the acquisition of five national integrated power projects (NIPPs).

Recall that THEWILL had reported earlier in the year that Geregu Power, the first Nigerian owned power generating firm to list its shares on the NGX, was in acquisition talks with investors. He sold a five per cent equity stake to Fund for Export Development in Africa (FEDA), the impact development arm of the Africa Export and Import Bank (Afreximbank). FEDA bought 125.0 million units of the company’s stocks at N100 per unit, amounting to N12.5 billion.

Geregu had made its entry into the Nigerian Exchange, NGX with a market value totalling N250 Otedola billion.

This latest development coincides with Otedola’s donated at the cost of N2 billion. He earmarked another recent philanthropic gesture at Augustine University, N110 million for the installation of streetlights on the Lagos in commemoration of his installation as the campus and the purchase of a new standby power second chancellor of the higher institution during the generator. school’s 5th Convocation Ceremony. The philanthropist, Only three months ago, Otedola revealed an ambitious who is also a director in First Bank of Nigeria Holdings business plan - a collaboration with both the Lagos State Plc, donated N750 million to 750 returning and fresh government and African Development Bank, AfDB to students of the university, each of whom will receive develop a power transmission project. The collaboration a million naira each to help cushion the effect of the will be a Public-Private Partnership arrangement which economic hardship in the country. will be key in driving investment in the power sector of He also donated N140 million for the furnishing of the state. the university’s Engineering Faculty building which he

Continued from page 38

Florence Seriki's Timeless Legacy in Omatek Ventures Lives on Effiong

Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, The Weapon MICHAEL Fashioned Against Yahaya Bello EFFIONG BAGS frustrate her to give up on challenging Ohere and him by extension.

During the week, the Court of Appeal in Abuja affirmed her electoral victory as the winner of the February 25 National Assembly election in Kogi Central Senatorial District. In the judgment, a three-member panel of the court upheld the judgment of the State’s election tribunal and dismissed the appeal filed by her contender and the governor. Instead, the court agreed with the submission of Natasha's counsel for being meritorious.

The appellate court awarded the sum of N500,000 against Ohere and invalidated his victory. She was thereafter sworn in as the duly elected senator to represent Kogi Central. No doubt, Natasha's political journey has been a tortuous one, made even worse by the governor's insistence on stopping her. Her political journey dates back to 2019 when she attempted to challenge him in the gubernatorial election. The self-styled social entrepreneur had made an attempt in 2018 to run for a seat in the National Assembly to represent Kogi Central Senatorial District on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), but it was an effort in vain. Natasha had claimed at the time that the governor planned to assassinate her for daring to give expression to her political ambition. She had alleged manipulation and rigging in favour of his candidate as the reason for her loss. She recently revealed that the governor had offered her at that time N50 million to step down from the race but instead, she shifted focus to the governorship election. However, her ambition in that direction failed to happen and she challenged the result of the election, alleging that the election was marred by irregularities, bribery and malpractice, all of THEWILLNEWS

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which favoured Bello to emerge winner. She thereafter dumped the SDP for the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and emerged the party’s senatorial candidate in the 2023 general election. To stop her making any progress with her plan, he first allegedly accused her of having an alleged link with a notorious terrorist known as Safiu. This prompted the Northern Youths Movement (NYM) to demand an immediate probe of the allegation by the Police and Department of State Services. Then just a few days before the polls, the governor dug out huge gulleys on roads leading to Natasha’s hometown.

His aim according to Natasha was to prevent officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission from getting there to administer the election. In defense, the state government claimed that the excavation was a deliberate security measure to cut off traffic on those roads with a view to restricting the use of the roads by criminals who had been breaching the peace of the area with attendant loss of lives and property. Despite this manipulation, it didn't stop people from coming out en masse to vote for Natasha. The election was marred with violence, ballot box snatching etc and at the end of the polls, Ohere was declared winner. Natasha, knowing she clearly won, challenged his electoral victory at the State's election tribunal and she was declared winner.

Not satisfied, the governor and his candidate appealed the judgement and Natasha was again affirmed winner.

Whether Bello and Ohere will pursue the matter to the Supreme Court remains to be seen. Ironically before all of these, she was in the good books of the governor and was even closer to his three wives until their friendship was torn apart by politics of bitterness. But today, she is obviously having the last laugh.

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This expansion will put them in competition with established institutions like the National Open University (NOUN), Nexford University and AltSchool which offers a one-year diploma program that promises to fast-track graduates into tech jobs, with courses in product marketing, product design, data engineering, and cloud engineering. Besides his foray in the educational sector, Sim is the founder and former Chief Executive Officer of one of West Africa's largest electronic commerce websites Konga.com, an e-commerce platform. He is also the founder of E-Motion Advertising, a leading out-ofhome media company. He was once named in Forbes' list of '10 Most Powerful Men in Africa.'

POLITICAL APPOINTMENT

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ichael Effiong, the editor of Ovation International magazine, has been appointed as the Senior Special Assistant, Lagos Liason, to the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno. Michael was appointed alongside 49 other Special Assistants and Personal Assistants to the governor.

A media expert, Michael is highly experienced and is reputed to have edited two of the most sought-after celebrity journals in Africa, a task he diligently carried out consistently for 20 years. With a forte in news reportage and media administration, Effiong is considered a force to reckon with. An alumnus of the University of Lagos, he is a member of the Nigerian Guild of Editors, Member, International Press Institute, Associate Member of the Nigeria Institute of Public Relations and Member of, the Institute of Strategic Management, Nigeria. A distinguished Rotarian and Paul Harris Fellow who has served as President of the Rotary Club of Ikeja South and currently holds a Rotary International Regional position.

Seriki

O

matek Ventures has come out of rebound.

Almost seven years after the ICT company went comatose due to financial challenges, it is now off the hook of receivership, has hit the market running and is set to start trading.

The company recently held its first physical Annual General Meeting since the COVID-19 pandemic. The management reiterated its commitment to the company’s shareholders.

The first company to have a factory to locally assemble computer cases, speakers, keyboards and mouse, other than computer systems and

Notebooks in the whole of Africa, Omatek Ventures is also one of the few ICT companies to be listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. The assembling of these computer components created a great advantage to other systems builders as well as resellers all over Africa for retailing.

If only the founder, Florence Seriki were to be alive today to see that the company, the product of her sweat, tears and blood, still carries on with her legacy despite the huge setback experienced.

Unfortunately, she passed on six years ago from cancer of the pancreas at the age of 54.

Fondly referred to as Mama Computer, Florence was a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Chemical Engineers, Nigerian Computers Society and the Institute of Directors.

She held a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the Obafemi Awolowo University.

She was ahead of her time and she did stamp her footprint like a colossus.

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ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY

Celebrities With Fat to Fit Transformations

Weight loss transformation isn't a new phenomenon but with celebrities and socialites recently shedding excess weight to look trim through various means, including surgery, the weight loss industry in Nigeria has now assumed a new dimension. IVORY UKONU writes about some of these celebrities/socialites who went from pulling around excessive weight to flaunting remarkable transformations

Hakeem Olaleye

Before

After

Ifeanyi Ubah S-based luxury bridal stylist, Hakeem Olaleye, more popularly known as Segun Gele, stunned U many of his clients and fans when he lost weight dramatically. The once beefy guy lost 120lbs and he is currently spotting a trim look. Hakeem revealed that he struggled to shed his weight for 13 years, having lived with it for over 35 years. This caused him to start managing conditions, such as diabetes, high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

He also confessed that in the past before he finally decided to lose weight, he turned deaf ears when loved ones complained about his weight getting out of hand. Today, he is grateful that he eventually took charge of his life and made a great turn around. He attributed it to dedication, handwork, and consistency with self-love.

Kemi Balogun Before

is the wife of Bolaji Sof lateheBalogun, the first son banking Czar,

After

Subomi Balogun. Kemi, a woman who dedicates her life to the spiritual and emotional growth of other women, used to be quite chubby. Although many admired her looks and didn't let it define their own perspective of her, she took a conscious decision to shed all that excessive weight and chose to have a slimmer frame while staying healthy with her dieticianapproved meals.

An evangelist, intercessor, prayer advocate and teacher of the Word, Kemi runs her own gospel ministry with a vibrant outreach arm that works with the prisons, the homeless, orphanages, the blind, destitute, old people’s homes, abused and women at risk and widows in Nigeria and several other countries.

who has lived most of his life on the large side, the new-look of former Young Progressive YPP, governorship candidate in Anambra State, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, has left many speechless.

FUbah,orParty,someone the founder of petroleum marketing company, Capital Oil Plc, now spots a trim frame and looks almost

unrecognisable. Before now, he once boasted to close friends that he owned a well-equipped gym in his Abuja home which he hardly made use of. He also has masseuses on standby in his home to always massage his hands and feet and whenever it is time for meals, Ubah who doesn't like to eat alone, always has a large spread consisting of a variety of meals for him and any guest (s) present at that moment.

Ubah who recently defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, underwent a gastric bypass surgery, also known as Roux-en-Y, a type of weight-loss surgery that involves creating a small pouch from the stomach and connecting the newly created pouch directly to the small intestine.

After gastric bypass, swallowed food will go into this small pouch of the stomach and then directly into the small intestine, by-passing most of your stomach and the first section of your small intestine. It is one of the most commonly performed types of bariatric surgery when diet and exercise haven't worked or when one has serious health problems because of one's weight. Ubah's weight loss journey, which he had been mulling for a while, began late last year.

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ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY Jumoke Oyeneyin

Adedamola Ladejobi

opular fabric merchant and socialite, Jumoke Oyeneyin joined the fit and fam gang when she decided to P shed some weight a few years ago. The chubby-looking entrepreneur, who deals in high end swiss lace fabrics, simply disappeared from the social radar only to resurface spotting a new look. She looked quite lean and her new look set tongues wagging as to why she shed the excessive weight. All kinds of insinuations were made and it took a while for many to get accustomed to her new look.

Before

After

dedamola Ladejobi runs a health and wellness company targeted at improving the lives of people by A educating them on ways to achieve their desired body goals. She does this through the AskDamz brand, a weight management, health, and wellness company which she started in 2013 which she first started as a

hobby. This was inspired by her decision to live a healthy lifestyle.

Ladejobi struggled with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and this motivated her to start the wellness journey. A United Kingdom certified personal nutritionist with a diploma in nutrition, she is a Barrister and Solicitor of the Nigerian Supreme Court with an LLB from the University of Exeter and a BL from the Nigerian Law School. The married mother of two children runs Smile Express Empowerment Foundation, a platform built to help small businesses and the less privileged in the society and is a strong believer in women empowerment.

Before

After

Olufunke Abosede Ogunboye

Safia Usman expert, Smorekincare Safia Usman popularly

known by her brand name, Fifi Dmoon, now looks nothing like her old self. Besides the fact that she had to lose weight, she also had to reduce the size of her enlarged bum which she surgically acquired twice. There are insinuations that the Akwa Ibom indigene had to lose weight and deflate the Brazilian bum due to a need to feel light, following an alleged illness.

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Before

After

reviously a size 32, comedienne Abosede Ogunboye, aka P Lepacious Bose, lost an outstanding 70kg and is currently a size 14. She took the decision to shed some weight after

Before

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being told that she was acting like somebody that was going to die because of her heavy breathing. She took a reality check and decided to ask herself some questions by taking an inventory of her life. She wrote a list of things that made her happy. She couldn’t find much to write. She tried to write a list of things that made her unhappy and she had so many things to write about. The first 10 things were tied to being fat. So, she decided it was time to make a change.

She stayed away from 'eba' for three years and missed eating good food. It wasn’t a decision that she really liked; it took a lot of hard work, discipline and commitment. She tried to avoid consuming junk food and soft drinks while commuting during the day. Sometimes she attends parties and won’t eat anything. And she hasn't looked back since.

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ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY Teniola Apata

Eniola Badmus ollywood actress, Eniola Badmus took the bull by its horns when she decided to shed her excess weight.

N She wowed many after pictures of her new look surfaced online in 2021. Eniola revealed that she had so far lost a total of 33kg in a few months by sticking to healthier habits, while adding that she had received

nown for her K plus-size fashion style, the chubby singer

decided to tackle her obesity after she started fearing for her life. She started to adopt better choices for herself when she realised that she needed to be alive to enjoy the fame and money she had acquired. She took the courage to shed 75 pounds (34 kg). She simply disappeared from the radar and surfaced, spotting a transformed look. She however revealed that she shed the excessive fat without going under the knife. Teni explained how challenging it was to restrain herself from consuming her favourite foods and drinks in her bid to seek better

more compliments and made more friends after then.

At some point, she said, she could not control what she ate anymore as she ate anything as long as it was edible. So she decided to do something about it. She stayed glued to her diet routine after consulting a dietician and therapist. She started abstaining from carbohydrates and beef and began to eat lots of salad and vegetables. Although she did not explicitly spell out the other procedures that resulted in the weight loss, from her explanations it appeared as if the actress went under the knife for a gastric bypass surgery.

The 40-year-old actress said that she made the decision to lose weight because of the social stigma that her previous size attracted and pressure from her family and friends.

Before

After

Ibironke Ojo-Anthony

Before

After

hen Nollywood actress, Ibironke Ojo-Anthony aka Ronke Oshodi Oke decided to shed her excessive W weight, many naturally assumed she was nursing an ailment and this was because of how shocking and drastic her weight loss was. Well, they were not wrong. The divorced mother of two known for her buxomy figure had challenges battling a kidney ailment which she has now been healed of. She revealed that since 2021 she had been going through a weight loss programme, which helped her shed weight from 110kg to her current size which is between 86 – 87kg. Today, she is happier because of it.

Elvina Ibru

After

Before

ollywood actress, Elvina Ibru and billionaire N daughter of late Chief Michael Ibru, went from 260 pounds and shocked the general public when

Before

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she slimmed down to less than 70 pounds. Her decision to undergo weight loss came after she started feeling sluggish and suddenly trapped in her own body. She got encouraged by her sister, Gloria, to reduce her weight. Also, her body was just not responding to certain things she loved doing despite not battling ailments, such as diabetes, high cholesterol, or hypertension, except a mild backache, but she also didn't want a situation where she would become unhealthy.

After

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ENTERTAINMENT &SOCIETY WEEKLY Uche Ogbodo

Anita Asuoha

ollywood actress, Uche Ogbodo, began her weight loss journey in 2018 after gaining weight through N childbirth. The actress decided to hit the gym to shed a few pounds. The married actress who recently welcomed her third child revealed that her then boyfriend encouraged her to lose the excess weight in

order to regain her self-confidence. Expectedly many didn't believe the weight loss was achieved by merely exercising. They wanted to know the secret of her weight loss. Not minding cynics and with eyes on the ball, she has continued to flaunt her very trim figure.

Before

Before

After

opular comedienne, Anita Asuoha, aka Real Warri Pikin, shocked her almost 4 million followers when P she debuted a slimmer frame. The mother of two revealed that her husband persuaded her to undergo surgery because he was worried about her health. Anita said that she had been struggling with her weight

for many years. She tried dieting and exercising, but she was unable to lose weight consistently. She also said that she was experiencing health problems due to her weight, including difficulty in breathing, pain in her knee, high cholesterol and chest pain. Anita said that the surgery was the best decision she ever made. She has since lost over 60 kg and currently feels much healthier. She is also more confident and comfortable in her own skin.

After

Destiny Amaka

Ngozi Ezeonu

bout 10 years A ago, when she lost weight drastically,

many fans of plussized Nollywood actress, Ngozi Ezeonu, concluded that her weight loss was health related. All manner of ailments were diagnosed, forcing the actress to cry out to set the records straight. She insisted that she only shed her excess weight in order to feel young and cautioned many to end their insinuation that she was ill. Today, the actress spots a healthy and trim stature.

After

After

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nair Personality, Destiny Amaka, joined the trim look gang when she decided to shed her excess weight.

O She shed over 23kg of flesh within 12 months and she said she has been happier and healthier as the medical challenges attached to her former weight have since been a thing of the past. Her previous weight

affected her emotionally. She had a knee operation, her left knee to be specific and her right knee carried the bulk of her weight as a result and she soon began to feel pain there. She couldn’t wear high-heeled shoes for much longer and her lower back had issues. She also had a lot of personal health issues that her weight was not helping her to get over.

She however insists that she lost all that weight naturally without resorting to weight loss pills or surgery.

Amaka now looks much slimmer after shedding 66kg from her previous 89kg. With a smaller waistline, she says, she feels lighter and healthier.

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Why Journalists Should Make Frequent Use of FOI Act At a recent workshop on the importance of Freedom of Information Act, Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda Edetaen Ojo surmised that Nigerian journalists are not doing enough to avail themselves of this most important piece of legislation. THEWILL was there. Michael Jimoh reports…

Now here is this best of all possible Acts giving journalists in Nigeria more than enough leverage and they’re just not making the most of it. Instead, most reporters seem to be quite content doing routine stories without paying much attention to investigative pursuits, especially now with the latitude FOI Act allows them.

“Most of the information coming through the media is routine,” Edetaen said Tuesday October 31 at a workshop in Ibadan on how journalists can avail themselves of the FOI Act. “There is not much investigative reporting going on.”

For Edetaen who started as a journalist with Nigeria’s flagship The Guardian, it shouldn’t matter what desk, beat they cover: Arts, Aviation, Business, Energy or Sports. “Identify the institutions in your beat,” Edetaen urged participants at the workshop. “Identify the sectors that are of interest to you.”

What he left unsaid is that if they look deep enough in any of the MDAs relating to their beats, there will be something unwholesome to unearth, something to conceal from the public – a padded budget, say, a duplicated contract, funds spent on things never purchased and such like underhand deals by bent government officials.

It is puzzling to Edetaen that reporters are not taking advantage of this gift of freedom to ask questions, pore over government documents to see whether a stretch of road was actually constructed, abandoned midway or never even begun at all. In the past, reporters digging into the finances of a ministry may be stonewalled by an inscrutable permanent secretary, a headstrong minister or be reminded of the civil service code preventing them from divulging government secrets. But that omerta has since been removed making it possible for journalists and just about any person to seek information about public institutions or those running them, which is what FOI Act is really all about.

In plain English, FOI Act “is to make public records and information more freely available, provide for public access to public records and information, protect public records and information to the

extent consistent with the public interest and the protection of personal privacy, protect serving public officers from adverse consequences for disclosing certain kinds of official information without authorization and establish procedures for the achievement of those purpose.”

The workshop therefore was clearly meant to help reporters understand what FOI Act is and how they can use it more effectively. Along with Ojo as instructors at the workshop was Deputy Executive Director of MRA, Ayode Alonge, Legal Officer Obioma Okonkwo and Esther Adeniyi.

Ojo

I

f the Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda Edetaen Ojo had his way, journalists in Nigeria should take full advantage of the Freedom of Information Act to hold public institutions and officials who run them accountable. With the signing of the Act into law by former President Goodluck Jonathan in May 2011, journalists were handed licenses to look into the inner recesses of government institutions previously closed to them or simply out of bounds.

It is sometimes said that the synergy between teachers and students in a class is marked by the number of hands shooting up spontaneously during question time. The assumption is that in the course of teaching, the instructors did their job perfectly while the students also listened attentively. In other words, there was communication. It was exactly so at the twoday workshop at Palms 77 Hotel Agodi Ibadan from Tuesday October 31 to Wednesday November 1.

The students were journalists drawn from media organisations – mainstream, online covering print and broadcast – in the South West. The teachers were a team of instructors from Media Rights Agenda, a non-partisan, non-governmental and not-for-profit organisation led by Ojo himself. Subject of discussion?

Freedom of Information Act, specifically “Workshop on Using the Freedom of Information Act for Investigative Reporting.”

“

If the Executive Director of Media Rights Agenda Edetaen Ojo had his way, journalists in Nigeria should take full advantage of the Freedom of Information Act to hold public institutions and officials who run them accountable

Until May 20II, dubious government officials and public institutions in Nigeria could hide under the protective shield of the Official Secrets Act decree to ward off nosey reporters. But once Jonathan signed the FOI Act into law in 20II, the cover of such individuals and institutions was literally blown away, thus making them more accessible and accountable to the public.

With the Act in place, the job of reporters should be relatively easier, not so? True! How many of those gathered at the commodious conference hall of Palms 77 were aware of the FOI Act? Ojo wanted to know. Nearly all hands went up. There were 26 of us.

How many of them had made any request using the FOI Act? Only two. That was not impressive, Ojo said, which the workshop hoped to redress in due time.

But first, there was a pre-test knowledge of FOI Act for the reporters at the workshop to find how much they are conversant with the Act itself on day one and another to assess the level of understanding postworkshop.

Divided into 12 plenary sessions for two days, Ojo and his team from MRA taught the journalists the basics of FOI Act, its scope and limitations, what it means for investigative reporting and how they can apply it in their work most effectively.

Effortlessly tackling “Overview and Elements of Investigating Reporting,” “The Role of Records in Investigating Reporting,” MRA’s top man pretty much dictated the pace and flow of the first and second plenary followed by comments, questions and answers reminiscent of lively interactive sessions at such workshops.

To participants with a patchy knowledge of FOI Act, Alonge filled in the gaps starting with key features of the Act, proactive disclosure under it, information exempted from disclosure and duties and obligations of public institutions under it. MRA’s legal officer Obioma naturally talked about making requests for information under the FOI Act in the sixth plenary, with emphasis on who can apply for access to information and what types of information can be applied for. Of THEWILLNIEWS

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...Should Make Frequent Use of FOI Act course, day one ended with a brainstorming session on challenges of investigative journalism. Someone mentioned the evident risk of being an undercover reporter, the threat to life, lack of funding by media houses and even little or no insurance on the job.

Despite that, Ojo encouraged participants to fear not, recalling his well-told anecdote of reporters being put off from investigative writing because of possible harm that may come to them. To him, it is like committing suicide because death is approaching. In his reckoning, a thoroughgoing investigative journalist has everything to gain from publishing outstanding reports rather than losing.

“

Ojo encouraged participants to fear not, recalling his well-told anecdote of reporters being put off from investigative writing because of possible harm that may come to them.

To him, it is like committing suicide because death is approaching. In his reckoning, a thoroughgoing investigative journalist has everything to gain from publishing outstanding reports rather than losing

First, they expose wrongdoings by government officials that would have gone unnoticed. Second, they become superstars in the process after such exposures. Ojo specifically singled out an American British investigative reporter who blew open what became known as an expense scandal involving MPs in England.

Sometime in 2004, a little known Heather Brooke began an investigation into the expenses of members of the House of Commons. Prior to that time, no one had considered giving the public details of the expenses of the lawmakers. As a student reporter in Washington, Brooke could access her local politician’s receipts in a “matter of days.”

But when she wanted to do the same thing about the expenses of members of the Commons, there were obstacles and brick walls everywhere, many of them erected by the lawmakers themselves. For one, Speaker Michael Martin was not amused about the strange request to look into what many of his colleagues considered a private matter or something untouchable, a no-go area. So, they raised every possible objection – legal and administrative - to Brooke’s request.

It dragged on for five long years, prompting Brooke to comment thusly: “Little did I realise that the simple request to the Commons would end up becoming a five-year investigation, and take me to the high court and back.” But the “opaque parliamentary expenses system,” as Brooke described it, galvanized her the more. Like most thoroughgoing investigative

journalists, she was determined to get to the root of the matter.

It paid off. Her doggedness notwithstanding, she had one great advantage: Freedom of Information Act she relied on to press her case. By 2009 when Brooke was done with her investigation and published same in a piece headlined “The right to know,” the previously unknown reporter had become a celeb in her métier, ranked alongside the likes of Bob Woodward as a first rate investigative reporter. By that time, too, because of her report, several members of the Commons had resigned from office, notably Speaker Martin.

The person who signed into law the FOI Act in the UK

was none other than a British politician and onetime Prime Minister Tony Blair. In the months leading to new Labour’s success in the British polls, Tony Blair had made a promise “We Will Clean Up Politics” under which was a sub-promise for transparency in government. ”Unnecessary secrecy in government leads to arrogance in government and defective policy decisions…We are pledged to a Freedom of Information Act.” But Blair’s appending his signature to the FOI Act will later come to haunt him after he was made to disclose the extent of the UK’s involvement in the second Iraqi invasion. “You naïve, foolish, irresponsible nincompoop,” Blair wrote of himself in his memoir A Journey. “There is really no description of stupidity, no matter how vivid, that is adequate. I quake at the imbecility of it.”

On his part, Jonathan the Nigerian president did not have any such regret. Months before he became president, there had been speculation on the wellness or otherwise of his principal President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua who was at that time convalescing or dying in a hospital in Saudi Arabia. When it became blindingly obvious Yar’Adua had passed on, his successor was clearly a beneficiary. He wasted no time in signing the bill into law.

The highpoint of the workshop on day two was when participants were divided into groups and tasked with writing sample applications, submitting requests for information and follow up. Unlike extensive reports, requests for information follow a certain format: they are usually short and formal, precise, simple and clear, no verbosity whatsoever. Samples were then written by participants, discussed and evaluated by the teachers and students - a sort of group post-mortem.

At the end of the workshop, participants and the instructors agreed on a communique adopted by all.

First among them was that the FOI Act “is a powerful tool for information gathering for journalists and other media professionals and can significantly improve the quality of routine and in-depth media reporting… journalists should make an effort to read the Act and familiarize themselves with it to enable them to use it effectively for enhanced reporting.”

They also unanimously agreed that in order to “engender better and more impactful reporting of various issues, particularly those relating to transparency, accountability, good governance and development, participants urged these key stakeholders to similarly put more effort and resources into providing training for journalists in other areas such as investigative reporting techniques, factchecking and information verification tools and approaches as well as the use of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies which can aid their work.”

Another motion adopted: "Journalists should endeavor to give greater prominence to issues affecting women and other marginalized group. Women and members of other such marginalized groups should also be routinely reflected in news stories as important news sources in addition to focusing attention on how they are impacted by government policies, programmes and actions.”

The workshop at Ibadan was not the first by MRA in the country. It was the second. The first meeting was in Kaduna the week before with just about the same resolutions adopted by participants. Next stop is Enugu in the South east where a group of select journalists will meet with the crew, thanks mainly to sponsorship by the MacArthur Foundation and Wole Centre for Investigative Journalism.

Ojo and participants at the workshop THEWILLNEWS

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Enyimba And Decline of Nigerian Domestic Football

BY JUDE OBAFEMI

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nyimba International FC was once the crown jewel of Nigerian football. In the early 2000s, they claimed two CAF Champions League titles in 2003 and 2004.

These historic continental victories established Enyimba as a force to be reckoned with across Africa and made them a source of immense pride for Nigerian football. However, in recent years, the fortunes of this once mighty club have taken a drastic downward spiral.

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The government must allocate more budgetary funds for grassroots training centres and football infrastructure

Enyimba's performances have steadily declined and they have struggled to make an impact in African club competitions. In the 2023/2024 CAF Champions League, the club failed to make it past the first hurdle, losing to Libyan side Al Ahly Benghazi in the preliminaries.

To worsen their predicament, the inaugural Africa Football League, which presented Enyimba with an opportunity to reestablish some of their pedigree in continental

football was disappointedly bungled as they lost to Wydad Casablanca to exit at the first round.

Enyimba were not alone as Remo Stars suffered a similar fate. They met Medeama SC from Ghana in the preliminary round. After Medeama won the first leg 1-0 at home, Remo Stars equalised the tie by winning the second leg 1-0 in Nigeria. This led to a dramatic penalty shootout to determine who would advance to the next round.

Despite an own goal by Medeama's goalkeeper Felix Kyei during regular time, he redeemed himself in the shootout by saving three penalties. Medeama prevailed 3-2 in the shootout, advancing instead of Remo.

This regression symbolises a broader malaise affecting domestic football in Nigeria. The country's recent results in the African Nations Championship (CHAN) - the tournament for players based in their domestic leagues - have been highly discouraging. Nigeria failed to qualify for the last two editions of CHAN, which demonstrates how the quality of indigenous league football has deteriorated over time.

Experts have pointed to several factors behind this decline:

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...Nigerian Domestic Football matches, the late delivery of match balls to train with, and poor communication with stadium authorities for training sessions.

George argued that this lack of structure put the team at a disadvantage and negatively impacted performance. While acknowledging there have been problems, he expressed frustration that public criticism was being levelled when greater collaboration was needed. The coach maintained that the same staff had proven their quality by winning the league and cup previously, and that the problems with the current team stem from management and organisation rather than coaching.

Finally, fan support for domestic club football has waned owing to its reducing quality.

Inadequate fan engagement initiatives and sub-par marketing of the indigenous league has driven spectators away from matches, robbing clubs of crucial revenue streams.

State governments are also now demonstrating greater inclination to upgrade sports infrastructure and promote youth football through partnerships and training programs.

Government prioritisation of the sport has opened more avenues for resource mobilisation.

Building on these positive developments will require strategic action from all football stakeholders in Nigeria: The government must allocate more budgetary funds for grassroots training centres and football infrastructure. Tax incentives can attract greater private investment into academies and stadium facilities.

Football administrators need to bring in financial controls and transparency measures to enhance club sustainability. Regulations like financial fair play can also foster responsible spending.

However, there have been a few promising developments that indicate Nigerian domestic football can arrest this decline and get back on its feet.

Clubs must invest more in scouting networks and quality coaching to strengthen their youth development programs. Nurturing talent from a young age is crucial.

For one, corporate sponsors and investors

Marketing campaigns, promotional offers,

have been taking increasing interest in supporting clubs financially. Bankrolling from private investors has given a boost to the finances of certain clubs like Enyimba and Kano Pillars. Investments in club academies are also bearing fruit. For instance, Kwara United has set up a productive youth system through private funding.

and leveraging social media engagement can significantly improve fan interest in domestic football. More revenue can be generated through broadcasting rights and innovative viewing platforms.

First, grassroots football development has been neglected. There is an acute lack of funding and institutional support for nurturing young talent right from the school level. Facilities and coaches at the grassroots are inadequate to systematically identify and groom players from a young age. This has stymied the emergence of quality youth players who can then go on to strengthen the domestic leagues.

Secondly, the infrastructure supporting the league is in poor shape. Many club stadia lack basic amenities and do not measure up to international standards. Outdated training facilities and lack of modern equipment have also impeded the development of players plying their trade in the Nigerian league.

Third, financial instability plagues most Nigerian clubs. Revenues are limited for indigenous clubs, many of whom are heavily dependent on government grants. Unsteady cash flows lead to problems like delayed payment of player salaries, taking a toll on performance. This also makes it difficult for clubs to retain promising talent.

Also, administrative lapses have undermined Nigerian league football. Key organisational gaps like delayed player registrations, poor scheduling, and communication breakdowns between stakeholders have hampered clubs' ability to field their best on match days. There is an absence of robust governance.

In the Enyimba example, head coach Finidi George felt the need to publicly lash out at the club's management for poor leadership and disorganisation. George claimed that the coaches were not consulted in the signing of 19 new players, with only four known to him, and that the team registration was done without their input. This resulted in key players being left off the roster. The coach also cited issues like inadequate travel arrangements for away THEWILLNEWS

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In addition, some traditional powers of Nigerian football like Enyimba and Rangers International have undertaken internal reforms and strengthened club structures aimed at rediscovering past success. Enyimba's NPFL triumph last season is a sign these efforts may be gaining ground.

Newer clubs like Remo Stars and Sporting Lagos have also shown how innovative fan engagement using promotions and social media campaigns can boost attendance. Their ability to successfully connect with fans is a template other NPFL clubs can emulate.

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While Nigerian league football has declined considerably from the highs of the early 2000s, a turnaround is still possible through these constructive steps. The history of clubs like Enyimba FC shows the immense potential Nigerian football holds. By addressing the roots of the problems, domestic football can flourish again and recapture its erstwhile eminence.

The road to revival may be difficult but it requires a collective effort from government entities, football administrators, clubs, players, and fans to create a sustainable and thriving football ecosystem in Nigeria. With the right investments, reforms, and collaborations, Nigerian domestic football can once a gain become a powerhouse in African football.

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Now That we Know That Tinubu Knows...

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he recent revelation that President Tinubu was aware of the presence of his son and some unauthorised persons in the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa where the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting is held has raised some eyebrows among Nigerians. The President had declared that only those officials with clearance should be at the meeting because he had watched videos and seen a photograph of his son in the council area.

This statement contradicts the popular notion that leaders are disconnected from reality and shielded from events as they occur. It also implies that the President is well informed of what is happening in the country and how bad things really are for the majority of Nigerians and the growing frustrations.

In the wake of that FEC meeting declaration, it has become apparent that Tinubu is not as disconnected from reality as many have assumed of presidents. His declaration was a clear indication of his awareness of things and certain anomalies. I will seize this opportunity to remind him of the terrible state of things in the country so that he gives it the urgency and attention that it requires.

It is essential to highlight the realities that may have escaped his attention. Nigeria is currently grappling with a myriad of challenges. The streets are filled with destitution, hunger and desperation. The scarcity of resources, exacerbated by acute inflation, has led to a quadrupling of the prices of basic goods and services.

Sharp levels of immiseration have turned people into desperados ready to engage in every activity as a means of survival. The scarce resources that used to help put food on the table have dried up due to acute inflation which has seen the quadrupling of the price of even the simplest goods and services. Many bare necessities are out of reach for most people across the board.

The fortunate minority who used to earn monthly income in the half-a-million to one million bracket have seen the value of their pay witness acute depreciation to the point of insufficiency as the dollar presently exchanges for over NGN1,000 to USD$1. This economic downturn has made daily living a crisis for many Nigerians. A Nigerian who earned N500, 000 in 2014 at the conversion rate of N178 earned $2, 840. Today, the value of N500, 000 is $480. Salaries have barely remained the same for most people since 2014, while some have seen slight increments with the national minimum wage not seen any significant review upwards. Are we then not all poorer today!

The state of federal roads has worsened the cost of transporting goods and services across states, a very critical part of the economy. The lack of power supply has hindered industrialisation and

development, leading to the closure of many businesses. The high cost of self-power generation has made a bad situation even worse for the average Nigerian.

Insecurity has driven farmers from their farms, putting local sources of agricultural produce at risk and worsening the food situation. The high cost of stable foods, such as garri, rice and yam has made them inaccessible to the poorest of the poor. The issue of insecurity has further consequences for travel, investments, tourism and general disillusionment.

The oil sector is in a dismal state, with high fuel prices and the lack of local refining of petroleum products. The cost of transportation remains high, and the general outlook for the sector is bleak.

In the midst of these, while the government has asked for time and for Nigerians to make sacrifices, we have seen nothing to demonstrate that there is an appreciation of what Nigerians are going through. This lack of empathy is obvious in

the frivolous spending on avoidable luxuries in all arms of government.

The hotel bills racked up by the President at the last UNGA, the overpriced bills for SUVs for the lawmakers, the supplementary budget for renovation of Aso Rock facilities, presidential yacht, luxury cars for the office of the First lady and other poorly intentioned and badly timed luxuries which we can all do without, point to a lack of awareness of the realities that avail the common Nigerian.

Yet, Tinubu's declaration at the FEC meeting tells us that he knows. He knows what is happening and he knows what is being reported.

Therefore, it is crucial for him to use his position to effect positive change in the country. Amid all the controversies that attended his election as president, he has an unvarnished opportunity to write his name in gold and leave a legacy that will stand the test of time. Now that we know that Tinubu knows, it is time for him to act. It is time for him to address the agonies of the average Nigerian and work towards improving the state of the nation.

As a leader who is aware of the realities on the ground, Tinubu has a unique opportunity to address the pressing issues facing the country.

From the economic crisis to the state of infrastructure, power supply, insecurity and the dismal state of the oil sector, there is a lot that needs to be done. He asked for the job and went on to grab it and should be ready to get us out of this mess that the elites dug us into.

The average Nigerian is looking up to leaders like Tinubu to set the road map to bring about positive change. The current state of affairs is a call to action for all leaders to step up and address the challenges facing the country. It is not enough to be aware of the issues; it is time to act and bring about the much-needed change.

When the President was being congratulated for his victory at the Supreme Court, the visuals had him sitting in front of a local newspaper with the assumption being that he must have flipped through the pages and seen some headlines highlighting the worrisome state of the country. So, we are convinced that he is aware of the realities on the ground.

Now that we know that Tinubu knows, it is time for him to address the agonies of the average Nigerian and work towards improving the state of the nation. The time for action is now, and the people are watching and waiting. I am of the opinion that Tinubu has the opportunity to become Nigeria's best president ever and leave a legacy that will stand the test of time. The question is, will he seize this opportunity? Only time will tell.

Tinubu's declaration at the FEC meeting tells us that he knows. He knows what is happening and he knows what is being reported.

Therefore, it is crucial for him to use his position to effect positive change in the country PAGE 48

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