Politics
Ekweremadu: LESSONS FROM NUREMBERG – Femi Fani-Kayode
What happened to my friend and brother Senator Ike Ekweremadu in Nuremberg, Germany at the hands of IPOB is an eye-opener and a clear signal to every political leader in southern Nigeria! The people of the south are getting angry and you either stand up and defend them or stand aside!
It takes courage to stand for those that have been unjustly killed in Nigeria. It takes courage to say “no” and to stand up against injustice in a jungle. It takes courage to identify and empathise with the enslaved, the oppressed, the poor, the vulnerable and the weak in a killing field and functional zoo.
Yet we must all do it or stop laying claim to being called leaders. When your people and kinsmen are being turned into worthless slaves with little hope for the future and when they are being slaughtered like flies simply because they are southerners and Middle Belters or because of their faith and you say and do next to nothing then somewhere along the line a price has to be paid.
What happened in Nuremberg yesterday marks the beginning of an awakening. Every southern politician, including yours truly, will be called to account to the people of the south about what he or she did to stop the genocide and ethnic cleansing of southerners in Buhari’s Nigeria.
If anyone believes that it is only IPOB or the people of the South-East that feel so bitter then they really do not know what is going on. The sons and daughters of the Niger Delta, the South-South and the South-West are equally aggrieved. The anger is palpable and it is spreading throughout the south.
As each day passes those of us, like Ike Ekweremadu, that have called for patience and restraint are being seen as traitors and sell-outs by our own people who demand a far more candid, courageous, proactive, dynamic, honest, protective and inspirational form of leadership.
Only God knows for how much longer those of us that are moderates and that believe in non-violent and passive resistance can hold the line. Our people are boiling and they are about to kindle a fire that may consumme us all if something is not done to appease them and give them hope.
I call on President Muhammadu Buhari to shed his cloak of partiality, to put Nigeria before his Fulani tribe, to stop the genocide, mass murder and ethnic cleansing, to remove the Fulani herdsmen from the south and the Middle Belt, to proscribe Miyetti Allah and the Fulani mlitants, to declare them as terrorists and enemies of the Nigerian state and to protect the lives of EVERY Nigerian from this great evil that has tormented our people and torn us apart.
The fact that Ekweremadu wore a shirt which was covered with the Nigerian Coat of Arms and that it was torn to shreds by those that attacked him is instructive. It may also prove to be prophetic.
I say this because the assertion that Nigeris must and will remain one regardless of the humiliation, persecution, marginalisation, subjugation, barbarity, wickedness and torment that the south has been subjected to over the last 59 years and particularly over the last four years by those that believe that they were born to rule is, at best, misplaced and naive and, at worse, shallow and asinine.
How can Nigeria possibly remain one when every single one of the 17 security and intelligence agencies in the country and every arm of the Nigerian military except for the Navy is headed by a northern Muslim?
How can Nigeria remain one when the three arms of Government, namely the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary is headed by a northern Muslim?
How can Nigeria remain one when there is only one southerner in the top four positions in the country, namely the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and he is also Muslim?
Worse still his Deputy and every single one of the four principal officers in the House of Represenatives are northern Muslims.
How can Nigeria remain one when the substantive Minister of Petroleum and Gas over the last four years and every single key General Manager and Director at the nations state-owned petroleum corporation, the NNPC, are all northern Muslims?
How can Nigeria remain one when, for the better part of the last few years and up until one month ago, every single branch of the three tiers of the Federal Courts, namely the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the Federal High Court, were headed by northern Muslims?
For the record, one month ago a Christian from the Middle Belt took over at the Federal High Court and that helped to balance the equation but the point remains valid.
How can Nigeria remain one when the first and fourth most deadly terrorist organisations in the world, namely Boko Haram and the Fulani militants, are wreaking havoc and committing the most heinous and barbaric atrocities all over Nigeria with the help and support of ISIS?
Worse still the Fulani militants have made a sport of targetting and killing southeners and Middle Belters and occupying their land with the tacit support of the Government who have refused to call them terrorists or to arrest, prosecute and bring them to justice?
How can Nigeria remain one when it is clear that a Fulanisation and Islamisation policy is being implemented by the Buhari administration before our very eyes?
How can Nigeria remain one when groups that have not killed anyone and that do not carry arms like IPOB and the IMN have been proscribed and declared as terrorist organisations whilst their leaders are subjected to inhuman treatment and hounded?
How can Nigeria remain one when the Coalition of Northern Groups, with the backing and support of the Northern Elders Forum, openly and publicly threaten the lives of southerners that live in the north and give them ultimatums to leave and consistently threatenen to target southerners if RUGA is not implemented in the south?
How can Nigeria remain one when Miyetti Allah appears to be above the law and when the Fulani herdsmen are allowed to carry arms and appear to be untouchable?
How can Nigeria remain one when the most senior Presidential spokesman says we must either give up our land to the murderous Fulani terrorist herdsmen or give up our lives?
How can Nigeria remain one when our quisling Vice President says that we must pray for the Fulani herdsmen that kill us on a daily basis, that take our land and that rape and abduct our wives and children?
How can Nigeria remain one when the Vice President also says that the number of killings are “exagerrated”?
How can Nigeria remain one when Christian leaders and clerics are being singled out and targetted for slaughter all over the country?
How can Nigeria remain one when more Churches have been burnt and more priests and Christian clerics have been killed in the last four years than at any other time in our history?
How can Nigeria remain one when more Nigerians have been killed in the last four years than at any other time other than during the civil war?
How can Nigeria remain one when over 3,500 MASS murders and MASS killings have taken place in Nigeria this year alone?
How can Nigeria remain one when our people are more divided on religious, ethnic and regional lines than at any other time in our history?
How can Nigeria remain one when southerners and Middle Belters are treated like scum and are regarded as nothing but slaves and, at best, second class citizens in their own country?
How can Nigeria remain one when Mr. Omoyele Sowore is abducted from his home in the middle of the night like a common criminal, dumped in a DSS cell, treated like a terrorist, detained for a minimum of 45 days and will be charged for treason or treasonable felony simply because he wanted to organise a peaceful demonstration against the reckless, inept, incompetent and dangerous policies of the Buhari Government?
How can Nigeria remain one when a courageous young lady by the name of Miss Leah Sharibu was not released and allowed to come home with the other Dapchi girls simply because she refused to renounce her Christian faith?
How can Nigeria remain one when southerners and northerners regard one another with increasing suspicion and contempt and with growing disdain?
How can Nigeria remain one when Fulani nationalism and supremacy is engendered and encouraged by the Buhari administration whilst the ethnic nationalism of the Yoruba, Igbo, Ijaw, Tiv and other indigenous tribes from the South and the Middle Belt are frowned upon, outlawed and treated as a crime?
Given all this, it is not surprising that when those that attacked Ekweremadu saw him wearing a shirt with the Nigerian coat of arms emblazzoned all over it at an Igbo yam festival in distant Germany they simply lost control of themselves, allowed their fury to take over and tore it to shreds. I do not seek to justify or condone their behaviour and neither do I support it: I only seek to explain it.
They are in pain and that pain has turned into a palpable and dangerous rage.
Those of us that lay claim to being southern leaders would do well to recognise that fact, accept it and resolve to rise up to the challenges that our people are facing.
The bitter truth is that the Nigerian Coat of Arms and the Nigerian flag itself, to a sizeable number of people from the South, has now become a symbol of tyranny, terror, subjugation and oppression.
As unpleasant and distasteful as this may be and as difficult it is to accept, that is the bitter and plain truth and the ugly events at Nuremberg have proved it.
The biggest miscalculation that the President could possibly make is to believe that this matter can be contained or that it will go away with time. The more the killings, the greater the build-up of anger and the greater the chance that things will soon explode.
We must do all we can to stop this and to restore love, peace, equity, justice, trust and mutual respect to our people and our land. That is the only way to ensure that what happened to Senator Ike Ekweremadu does not happen to other southern leaders some time in the not too distant future.
We must all be ready to stick our necks out for our people and defend them as aggressively and vigorously as is necessary or, if we fail to do so, we must be ready to pass on the baton and step aside for those that will.
Leadership requires risk and sacrifice. We, as southern leaders, must be ready to take a courageous stand and resolve to do both. We must do whatever it takes and whatever is necessary to protect the lives and property of our people, to defend their honor and dignity and to safeguard their future.
This is a duty and obligation that we must pledge to uphold and a covenant that we must make before the Living God. I wish my friend and brother Senator Ike Ekweremadu a speedy recovery from the unfortunate events in Nuremberg, Germany.
(Femi Fani-Kayode, 17th August, 2019)
Obasa Appointed to CPA African Executive Committee
The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. (Dr.) Mudashiru Ajayi Obasa, has been appointed as a Sub-National Representative to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) African Executive Committee.
The announcement was formally conveyed through a letter from the CPA Africa Region, which was read on the floor of the Assembly by the Clerk, Mr. Olalekan Onafeko, on Tuesday, March 10. The appointment confirms Speaker Obasa’s three-year tenure, spanning 2026 to 2029.
Lawmakers took turns to congratulate Speaker Obasa, praising his devotion to parliamentary service and his consistent efforts to strengthen legislative practice. They described his appointment as a recognition of his hard work and a reflection of Lagos State’s growing influence within the Commonwealth. Members noted that his achievements continue to bring pride not only to Lagos but to Nigeria as a whole.
In his remarks, Speaker Obasa expressed gratitude to his colleagues for their support, urging them to remain steadfast in prioritizing the progress of the Assembly and to continue working collectively to advance the legislature. He further directed the Clerk to send a formal letter of appreciation to the CPA African Region for the honour bestowed upon him. “Let us always put the House of Assembly first and never relent in our efforts to move the legislature forward, ” Obasa concluded.
The CPA African Region plays a pivotal role in advancing the interests of African parliaments within the Commonwealth. It is widely recognized for promoting gender equality, women’s empowerment, respect for human rights, democracy, and good governance across member nations.
TINUBU RENEWS TENURE OF THREE PERMANENT SECRETARIES
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the renewal of tenure for three Permanent Secretaries in the Federal Civil Service, in line with existing public service regulations.
The approval was disclosed in a statement issued by the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, indicating that the renewed appointments will take effect from April 27, 2026.
The affected officials include Kachallom Shangti Daju, Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare; Beatrice Jedy‑Agba, Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Justice; and Mary Ada Ogbe, Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Regional Development.
According to the statement, the renewal represents a second and final four-year tenure for the officials, in accordance with the provisions of Public Service Rule 020909, which allows Permanent Secretaries an initial four-year term with the possibility of a second term based on satisfactory performance.
The Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Esther Walson‑Jack, congratulated the Permanent Secretaries on their reappointment and urged them to see the renewed mandate as a call to greater dedication and excellence in service delivery.
She further encouraged them to deploy their experience and professional expertise toward strengthening governance and advancing national development.
The statement was signed by Eno Olotu, Director of Press and Public Relations in the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, and dated March 6, 2026.
Politics
Governor Dauda Lawal’s Prompt Action Against Insecurity in Zamfara State Yielding Positive Result’ – GDL Media Force Fires Back at Critics
‘Governor Dauda Lawal’s Prompt Action Against Insecurity in Zamfara State Yielding Positive Result’ – GDL Media Force Fires Back at Critics
The attention of GDL Media Force and other well-meaning supporters of the Dauda Lawal-led administration has been drawn to a recent statement syndicated on social media by influencers from a group calling itself the Zamfara Good Governance Forum, which ludicrously attempted to portray the Governor’s security efforts as a “total failure.” This characterisation is not only divorced from reality. Still, it represents a desperate attempt by political opponents to rewrite history and undermine a Governor whose growing influence and performance clearly terrify them. It should be on record that in the whole of the North West region, Governor Dauda Lawal has tackled insecurity head-on with verifiable evidence that even those in the opposition have commended him for his huge investment in equipment that will further give security and armed forces an edge over those fueling insecurity in the country.
Since his assumption as Governor of Zamfara State, Dr Lawal has vowed that as the Chief Security Officer of the state, as well as the chief rescuer, an unprecedented commitment to tackling the security challenges that have plagued Zamfara for over a decade is his top priority and he is engaging it with much gusto. Unlike previous administrations, that engaged in shadowy deals with non-state actors, this Governor has chosen the path of transparency, capacity building, and decisive action. He was one of the Governors who openly declared that His administration would not negotiate with bandit rather his administration with fight them to a standstill and ensure they are cleared out.
In a bid to address the issues of insecurity with a well-planned arrival plan, he procured heavy Security Assets that even the Federal Government commended, him for. The recently procured and unveiled 25 units of Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) and an 80-meter endurance surveillance drone capable of covering 50 kilometres and operating continuously for eight hours. This represents the single largest state-government investment in security hardware in the history of Zamfara State.
The Defence Minister, during the inauguration ceremony, praised what he described as a clear demonstration of the Governor’s commitment to protecting lives and property, making the striking projection that “if we continue like this in the second term, Zamfara will look like Dubai”. This is not praise from a partisan source it is professional acknowledgement from the highest level of Nigeria’s defence establishment that Governor Lawal is doing something right.
Beyond heavy military hardware, the Governor has operationalised the Community Protection Guards in accordance with the law, providing them with 60 brand-new, well-equipped Hilux operational vehicles and specialised motorcycles to ensure swift response and effective first-responder services in difficult terrains. This is complemented by the distribution of 150 Hilux vehicles to mainstream security agencies including the Nigeria Police, DSS, and NSCDC, plus 20 Toyota Buffalo vehicles (both armoured and soft-body).
Perhaps most significantly, Governor Lawal established the Zamfara State Security Trust Fund, which provides a predictable, structured framework for logistical support to security forces. This moves the state away from the era of fragmented, reactive responses to a professional, sustainable security architecture.
When recent attacks occurred including the unfortunate February 19 incident in Anka LGA, Governor Lawal did not go into hiding or issue condolence statements from his office in Gusau. He immediately convened and personally presided over an emergency security meeting with all heads of security agencies at the Government House in Gusau, tasking them to urgently review the current security framework and implement coordinated countermeasures.
The Governor charged security chiefs to maintain “heightened vigilance, strengthened intelligence, and immediate, coordinated countermeasures” to ensure that criminal elements do not gain further ground. He also commiserated with affected communities and assured them of his administration’s full support both logistical and institutional. This is not the behaviour of a detached leader. This is the conduct of a Governor who understands that his primary constitutional responsibility is the protection of lives and property.
The public needs to understand the pedigree of those behind these allegations. The so-called “Zamfara Good Governance Forum” has a well-documented history of partisan attacks against Governor Lawal. A simple review of their previous statements reveals a pattern they have consistently attacked the Governor while remaining conspicuously silent during the administrations that presided over the worst years of banditry in the state. Interestingly, these attacks often coincide with political manoeuvres by the immediate past governor, Bello Matawalle, now Minister of State for Defence. The Zamfara State Government has previously accused Matawalle of using federal security apparatus to intimidate opposition figures in the state. The current criticism fits a familiar pattern, when you cannot defeat a Governor politically or at the ballot box, you attempt to undermine him through sponsored propaganda spreading sheer falsehood to ensure the public turns their back on a performing Governor who is rebuilding the rot the Matawale-led administration caused.
These same critics who now demand a “security roadmap” conveniently ignore that Governor Lawal inherited a state that was virtually a failed entity where farmers could not access their lands, where markets were paralysed, and where government had lost all credibility through failed negotiations and ransom payments to bandits.
Critics also conveniently ignore a fundamental reality Governor Lawal is the only opposition governor in the entire North-West geopolitical zone. Since taking office in 2023, his administration has received no federal intervention funds beyond statutory allocations no special palliatives, and no enhanced security support that flows to states with ruling-party governors. Yet despite this political isolation, he has managed to fund security without resorting to new borrowing, while monthly servicing N1.2 billion in inherited debts from the Bello Matawalle-led administration. This is governance under siege fiscally constrained, politically isolated, yet still delivering.
Governor Dauda Lawal has never claimed that the battle against banditry is easy or that success will come overnight. What he has demonstrated is sincerity of purpose, strategic vision, and relentless commitment. From the Security Trust Fund to community protection guards, from armoured personnel carriers to surveillance drones, these are not the actions of a leader who has failed. The growing influence of Governor Lawal across the North-West clearly frightens those who benefited from the old order of insecurity. When banditry thrives, politicians who negotiate with criminals remain relevant. But when peace is restored through genuine security architecture, such elements become obsolete.
Zamfara State is on the path to lasting peace. The detractors may continue their campaign of falsehood, but the facts on the ground speak louder than their sponsored propaganda. Governor Dauda Lawal remains focused, undeterred, and absolutely committed to restoring full normalcy to every inch of Zamfara State. The people of Zamfara see the progress. The Federal Government acknowledges the investment. And history will remember who truly fought for the state’s liberation.
Signed: GDL Media Force Support Group
March 4, 2026
Abuja, Nigeria
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