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OBASANJO’S LETTER TO PRESIDENT BUHARI: MY TAKE HOME By Ikenna Asomba

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Since Tuesday, January 23, 2018, when former President Olusegun Obasanjo released to the Press, his 20-page Open Letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, where he advised Mr. President to jettison the temptations of contesting the 2019 Presidential Elections, mixed feelings have continued to trail that letter.

In Obasanjo’s Special Press Statement, purportedly the 7th in series to Nigerian Presidents, he advised that President Buhari, in 2019, shouldn’t recontest but “join the stock of Nigerian leaders whose experience, influence, wisdom and outreach can be deployed on the side line for the good of the country.”

OBASANJO’S MAJOR REASONS

Obasanjo cited the following reasons for President Buhari not to recontest the Presidential Elections in 2019:

1. Buhari’s Failing Health

2. Insecurity/Herdsmen Menace

3. Poverty and Unbearable Socio-economic Situation

4. Poor Economic Management

5. Passing of Buck

6. Nepotism

7. Condoning Misdeeds and Corruption of close allies etc.

OBASANJO’S LETTER WRITING SKILLS SINCE 1983

Recall that Obasanjo in September 1983 wrote Civilian President Shehu Shagari and in December 1983, Shagari was ousted in a military coup.

Sometime in June 1985, he wrote Military Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and in August 1985, Buhari was ousted in a military putsch.

Obasanjo also wrote Military President Ibrahim Badamasi Babaginda (IBB) and in 1993, IBB was forced to resign back to his Minna countryhome.

Obasanjo was critical of the General Sanni Abacha military regime and also wrote him, Abacha jailed him, and in 1998, Abacha was called to eternal glory.

Obasanjo was critical of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2009, and Yar’Adua was called to eternal glory.

Obasanjo wrote an 18-page Open Letter to President Goodluck Jonathan in December 2013 entitled, “BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE,” and in May 2015, Jonathan handed-over to an opposition party’s candidate, the first of its kind in Nigeria, and worthy of emulation.

Recently, on Tuesday, January 23, 2018, Obasanjo had written President Muhammadu Buhari in another 20-page letter entitled, “THE WAY OUT: A CLARION CALL FOR COALITION FOR NIGERIA MOVEMENT.”

LAI MOHAMMED’S DIPLOMATIC BUT DODGY RESPONSE

Following Obasanjo’s Letter, the Minister of Information, our own Alhaji Lai Mohammed, had responded on behalf of the Presidency, on Wednesday, January 24, 2018.

He listed the Achievements of the Buhari administration among which he said are:

1. Foreign Reserves peaked at $40b in about four years

2. Inflation fallen for 11 consecutive months, standing at 15.37% as at Dec. 2017.

3. Some N108 billion saved through Treasury Single Account, TSA, with N24.7 billion saved monthly.

4. N120billion saved through elimination of Ghost Workers.

5. Nigeria rose 24 places on the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking.

6. JAMB remitted N7.8 billion to the coffers of the federal government in 2016.

7. Rice farmers increased from 6 million to 12 million farmers through Anchor Borrowers’ programme making rice import from Thailand drop from 644 metric tonnes to 22,000 MT.

8. Nigeria accounts for 70% of the world’s yam production.

9. 5.2 million primary school children in 28,249 schools in 19 states are being fed daily.

10. 200,000 unemployed graduates have enlisted into the N-power Job Scheme.

11. Power Generation at 7,000mw.

MY TAKE-HOME

Without mincing words, it can’t be said that the Buhari’s administration is a TOTAL FAILURE. It’s an academic discourse to say any leadership of the country since 1960 till date, is a TOTAL FAILURE, not even the Jonathan administration which was the most criticised in this nation’s history.

As one who has covered press conferences addressed by Alhaji Lai Mohammed in the past, I must say that the press statement read by him on Wednesday, in Abuja, had a diplomatic tone, but was dodgy and nicodemusly a sneer at the messenger (Obasanjo).

Throughout the reading out of the press statement, unlike the Alhaji Lai Mohammed I know and have covered in the past, he was so Ashamed to look into the tv and still cameras or the faces of the Pressmen he was addressing. Rather, he stayed eyes glued at his paper. Perhaps he must have been soliloquizing that he was lying to himself.

The indices and statistics reeled out by Alhaji Lai Mohammed don’t show in the current Socio-economic realities across the country.

The statement was dodgy. The more it tried to tackle the seven major issues raised by Obasanjo, the dodgy it sounded.

Saying Obasanjo may be too busy to notice the economic achievements of the Buhari administration is nicodemusly sneering at the former President, as if he (Obasanjo) was a globetrotter who do not live in Nigeria or have poor relations who buy from the Nigerian markets.

1. Buhari’s Failing Health: Alhaji Lai Mohammed failed to tackle this issue in his press statement. He failed to tell Nigerians if Buhari’s old age and failing health can carry him or allow him tackle the enormous challenges of governance confronting Nigeria. 2015 till date tells us more. Needless over flogging the dead horse.

2. Insecurity/Herdsmen Menace: Alhaji Lai Mohammed also failed to convince us on what the Buhari administration is doing to tackle this issue of armed Fulani Herdsmen menace who have been running over, burning down and killing innocent men, women and children in sleepy villages, particularly in Southern Kaduna, Benue, Taraba, Plateau, Kogi, Nasarawa, Enugu etc.

3. Poverty and Unbearable Socio-economic Situation: All the indices reeled out by Alhaji Lai Mohammed you would all agree don’t show in the lives and standards of living of average Nigerians since 2015. The prices of essential goods and services have skyrocketed steeply. A bag of rice which sold for N7,500 in 2014 now sells for N14,500 as I write.

Petrol pump price which in 2015 officially sold for N87/litre and N100 at the Black Market, now officially sells for N145/litre and N200/litre at the Black Market as I write.

When former President Jonathan reduced petrol pump price from N97/litre to N87/litre in 2014, Alhaji Lai Mohammed told the world it was “MERE TOKENISM,” as oil price had globally crashed to $50/barrel.

Laughable as it was, reacting on behalf of the then opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed had said in a statement that the new price of petrol was “mere tokenism at a time the price of crude oil has crashed by about 60 percent.”

The APC had urged the Jonathan government to immediately cut the price of petrol to N70/litre.

Recall that Buhari’s man-Friday and former Minister of Petroleum under Buhari 1983-1985, Prof. Tam David-West, had during the campaign era in 2015 vowed that under Buhari’s Presidency, petrol would sell for N40/litre.

What’s happening today? Nigerians are paying through their noses just to get Petrol. Even with their money, they still can’t get the essential product with ease. I weep for Nigerians.

What of the Exchange Rate? In 2015, the U.S. Dollar officially exchanged for N197/$1. Now it exchanges at N305/$1 and N364/$1 at the Black Market as I write. President Buhari during campaign had purportedly promised to make $1 to exchange at N1. Where are we today, despite claims of an increased Foreign Reserves. I weep for Nigeria.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, over 16million Nigerians have lost their jobs since 2015. Banks and many companies have continued to downsize their staff strength. Many a companies and Media Organisations can no longer pay staff salaries, allowances, pensions and gratuities. As I write, most Media Organisations are owing their staff for over 7 months. A lot of businesses have closed shops.

What this means is that the claim by Alhaji Lai Mohammed that Nigeria under Buhari moved 24 places up the ladder in Ease of Doing Business is only on paper.

These are the Top 10 Indicators used in rating the Ease of Doing Business in Sub-Saharan Africa and Globally:

1. Starting a Business
2. Dealing with Construction Permits
3. Getting Electricity
4. Registering Property
5. Getting Credit
6. Protecting Minority Investors
7. Paying Taxes
8. Trading across Borders
9. Enforcing Contracts
10. Resolving Insolvency.

Quite unfortunately, Nigeria is no where among the top 10 in Sub-Saharan Africa, despite having the largest market. The so-called giant of Africa is no where found in the comity of over 46 Sub-Saharan African nations in the Ease of Doing Business (2015-2016).

Smaller nations like Mauritius, Rwanda, Kenya, Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, Seychelles, Lesotho, Namibia, Malawi, Swaziland, Ghana, Uganda, Cape Verde, Tanzania, Mozambique, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, Mali, Niger and 13 others outpace Nigeria in the Ease of Doing Business in Sub-Saharan Africa.

That smaller African nations as captured above have outpaced Nigeria in the Ease of Doing Business should really throw us all into sober reflections, particularly, ahead of 2019. I weep for this nation.

Even the rich have also been crying over the current socio-economic realities. Need I over-flog this issue?

4. Poor Economic Management: Look, not only did Nigeria get into Recession in 2016, we also got into Depression. Why did it take Buhari over six months to form a cabinet and economic team? President George Weah of Liberia just recently sworn-in, hit the ground running within 24 hours by forming his cabinet. This is purposeful leadership.

When concerned Nigerians asked Buhari in 2015 to form his cabinet as soon as possible as the future is bleak, they were called Wailing Wailers. At a point, Buhari said Ministers were Noise Makers that the actual jobs in Ministries are done by Permanent Secretaries. Even when he finally formed his cabinet six months after, he surrounded himself with self-serving politicians and poster boys for corruption. Needless mentioning names. But how far today? I weep for Nigeria.

5. Passing of Buck: President Buhari has never taken charge of his gaffes, flip-flops and misgovernance. He has always blamed past administrations, anybody but not him. No true leader does that. President Buhari, after two years recently appointed over 9 dead persons into boards of parastatals and agencies. As usual, he blamed it on others not him. This is Rudderlessness of the highest order. I weep for Nigeria.

6. Nepotism: In 2015, President Buhari formed his kitchen cabinet with Northernerns- his kinsmen occupying almost all positions. He appointed Service Chiefs, same lane of Nepotism was trailed. He made other appointments tilted towards a Northernisation Agenda. The entire security aparati of a secular country like Nigeria is all North, yet Buhari never budged despite the outcry by many a concerned Nigerians. I weep for Nigeria. Little wonder the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB can be tagged a Terrorist Group, but the Murderous Fulani Herdsmen under the umbrella of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, MACBAN, are not Terrorists and are untouchable. NEPOTISM is the cause of this tragedy. I weep for Nigeria.

7. Condoning Misdeeds and Corruption of close allies: Obasanjo, like many of us had done in the past, even dating back 2015, raised the issue of Buhari condoning the misdeeds and corruption of his allies.

By and large, Alhaji Lai Mohammed unfortunately dodged all these pertinent issues raised by Obasanjo in his Open Letter. I now ask, who is deceiving who?

Well, for time constraint here is the link of my views about these issues as I shared on TVC News at 10.00am on Thursday, January 25, 2018.

Happy Viewing!

Ikenna Asomba is a Journalist/Social Commentator.

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TINUBU IS THE WISEST MAN EARTH -PROPHET IKURU 

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TINUBU IS THE WISEST MAN EARTH -PROPHET IKURU.

by Collins Nkwocha 

 

Nigerian prophet, prophet Godwin Ikuru of Jehovah Eye Salvation Ministry, Lagos magnetized everyone’s attention when he referred to the president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu as the wisest man on earth regarding the appointment of Daniel Bwala as special Adviser on policy communications.

 

 

Speaking to reporters today in Lagos,

Prophet Ikuru applauded the president for choosing him and enunciated that he’s capable of delivering effectively and marketing the Renewed Hope Agenda of the president and urged Nigerians to stop the criticism because of what he said in the past “I’m personally happy with his appointment and I urge Nigerians to forget about the past, forget about what he must have said about the president some years ago which people are now disseminating on the social and taunting him a betrayal that lacks integrity, Nigerians should forget his past because he’s the best choice”.

 

Prophet Ikuru insisted that Bwala saw the sincerity and genuity of the president’s Renewed Hope Agenda and he decided to partake in it “even if he criticized the president, it was in the past, he saw the sincerity in the Renewed Hope Agenda and decided to join in nation building ,the president is ready to unite everyone in order to build Nigeria,that’s why someone like Wike is in his government,Bwala has what it’s required to be successful under Mr.president, as a wise man, the president saw it and decided to harness it ”

 

Finally, he praised Tinubu and referred to him as a great leader who is ready to involve everyone in his government, he maintained that his wisdom is magnanimous ,Baba is truly the wisest man on earth.

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U.S. Courtroom Shock: Funke Ashekun, Husband Collapse as MFM Wins

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U.S. Courtroom Shock: Funke Ashekun, Husband Collapse as MFM Wins

U.S. Courtroom Shock: Funke Ashekun, Husband Collapse as MFM Wins

A dramatic scene reportedly unfolded in a United States courtroom as a legal battle involving Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries (MFM) ended in favor of the church, leaving the opposing party visibly shaken.
According to accounts from individuals familiar with the proceedings, tension had been high throughout the hearing as the court prepared to deliver its ruling in the long-running dispute involving Funke Ashekun and her husband.
Moments after the decision was announced in favor of MFM, the atmosphere inside the courtroom reportedly turned chaotic. Witnesses said Ashekun and her husband appeared overwhelmed by the verdict and suddenly fainted, prompting immediate concern from those present.
Court officials and medical responders quickly intervened to provide assistance, while proceedings were briefly interrupted as the situation was brought under control.
The case, which had drawn attention among observers following the dispute, concluded with the court ruling in favor of the ministry, marking a significant legal victory for the church.
U.S. Courtroom Shock: Funke Ashekun, Husband Collapse as MFM Wins
While details surrounding the legal arguments remain closely watched by those familiar with the case, the dramatic moment following the ruling quickly became the most talked-about aspect of the courtroom proceedings.
As reactions continue to emerge, the outcome is expected to close a chapter in the dispute while raising conversations about the broader implications of the case
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Had FFK Faced Mehdi Hassan, Nigeria Would Have Spoken With Fire 

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AHMAD GUMI: CLERIC OF BLOOD, FACE OF HATE 

Had FFK Faced Mehdi Hassan, Nigeria Would Have Spoken With Fire 

By Mohammed Bello Doka

 

 

 

In politics, timing is everything. In diplomacy, character is everything. And in moments of national importance, leadership must be entrusted to individuals who possess not only experience but courage, intellect and an unshakable commitment to the nation they represent.

 

It is for this reason that the appointment of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode as Nigeria’s Ambassador to a foreign nation stands out as one of the most consequential diplomatic decisions in recent years.

 

Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, better known in the South as “FFK” and in the North as “Sadauki”, is one of the most brilliant, experienced, accomplished, vocal, respected, educated, profound, intellectual, patriotic, disciplined, well-read, historically literate, versatile, forceful, persuasive, sophisticated, cosmopolitan, charming, eloquent, courageous and resilient men in Nigerian politics and he has paid his dues and proved his worth over the last 35 years in politics and political discourse.

 

 

In each role he has played he has excelled and succeeded even when he was in opposition.

 

 

His friends value him as a great and loyal defender and his traducers and political adversaries fear and respect him because when he goes to war he is utterly relentless, takes no prisoners and literally spits fire.

 

 

 

How I wish it was him that was interviewed by Mehdi Hassan of Al Jazeera and not the young and inexperienced Daniel Bwala because he would have not only humbled Hassan but also done Nigeria proud.

 

 

 

He played Bwala’s present role in the Presidential Villa 23 years ago as President Olusegun Obasanjo’s spokesman and not only brought the then President’s domestic enemies to their knees but also had a series of very hot exchanges with foreign Government officials like America’s Under-Secreatary of State for Africa Jendaye Fraser and the White House over the Charles Taylor issue and Liberia.

 

 

 

Tinubu decision to appoint him as an Ambassador for our nation was a wise one because he will fight for and protect the interests of Nigeria and the Nigerian community whetever he goes and will never sell his soul or bow to foreign imperialist interests.

 

 

 

His appointment is not about just rewarding loyalty for the key role he played in Tinubu’s presidentiel campaign organisation as Director of New Media and Special Operations in 2023 and the staunch support he has given the President over the last three years but also about putting a square peg in a square hole.

 

 

 

If you want to put Nigeria first Sadauki is the one to do it.

 

 

If he runs the Nigerian Mission in the country that he is sent to in the same way he ran the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Aviation when he was Minister to each of them one after the other twenty years ago he will do very well and both our nation and whichever nation he is posted to itself will benefit from his efforts.

 

 

 

History teaches that diplomacy is most effective when nations deploy individuals who possess both intellect and courage.

 

 

 

As the American statesman Henry Kissinger once noted, “Diplomacy is the art of restraining power.”

 

 

 

To do so successfully requires deep historical awareness and strategic clarity—qualities that have long defined Fani-Kayode’s political career.

 

 

 

Sending a politically seasoned voice like FFK to any nation that is a key partner to Nigeria signals that Bola Ahmed Tinubu intends to strengthen Nigeria’s diplomatic posture with confidence.

 

 

Throughout more than three decades in the political arena, Fani-Kayode has remained one of the most resilient and outspoken figures in Nigerian public life despite numerous challenges which would have broken and destroyed lesser men.

 

 

Regardless of all that was thrown at him he continues to pull through and come out victorious which is why many refer to him as the “Akanda Eledumare” and the “Ayanfe Oluwa” which mean “the strange one of God” and “the beloved of the Lord”.

 

 

There appears to be a divine dimension to his life that makes him unstoppable and irrepressible even though his enemies are legion.

 

 

 

 

 

One wonders what sets him apart and makes him so different.

 

There is no doubt that his education played a part in it and this set him apart from most.

 

 

 

He never went to school in Nigeria but was educated from the age of eight in England starting off at Holmewood House School in Kent, one of the UK’s best and most famous Preparatory schools, after which he attended the famous Harrow School just outside London which is, together with Eton College, an institution that is the exclusive preserve of high society in the UK, one of the two best private schools in that country where only the ruling elite, the rich, the well-to-do, the famous and only a tiny proportion of those in British high society can afford or even qualify to attend.

 

 

No less than eight British Prime Ministers, including the great Sir Winston Churchill, and countless British cabinet ministers attended Harrow and so did many leaders, diplomats and top politicians from many foreign countries.

 

 

 

After finishing at Harrow he attended some of the top universities in the world, including London University (SOAS) and Cambridge University (Pembroke College) where he did so well.

 

 

 

As a matter of fact his great grandfather, Rev. Emmanuel Adelabi Kayode, attended Furrough Bay College which at that time was part of Durham University and graduated with an MA (Hons.) in Theology in 1893. His grandfather Justice Adedapo Kayode attended Cambridge University (Selwyn College) where he studied law and graduated in 1922. His father Chief Remilekun Fani-Kayode attended Cambridge University (Downing College) where he studied law and graduated in 1943. Sadauki himself graduated in law at Cambridge University (Pembroke College) in 1984 whilst his daughter Folake Fani-Kayode graduated from Durham University in 2009.

 

No African family has an uninterrupted streak of 116 years of Oxbridge-level university graduates except for the Fani-Kayode’s which is something that both his family and every patriotic Nigerian should be proud of.

 

 

It therefore makes perfect sense that a man from such a distinguished pedigree and intimidating lineage and that has such an extraordinary intellectual heritage should represent Nigeria on the international stage.

 

 

 

There is also his role in the debate on Gaza which made him a hero in the eyes of millions of people in the Global South both amongst Christians and Muslims.

 

 

 

He spoke out consistently about what he described as the genocide being committed against the Palestinians and he was prepared to put his life and career on the line for this cause even though most Nigerian leaders and politicians refused to say what he was saying publicly out of fear of the Zionist lobby and the Jewish state.

 

 

 

His sense of patriotism is unquestionable and nothing reflects this better than his series of essays written against Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the British Opposition Conservative Party and his write up against one Ben Llewelyn-Jones, who at that time was the Deputy British High Commissioner to Nigeria, when the former consistently sought to insult and denigrate Nigeria and the Nigerian people and the latter attempted to interfere in our internal affairs by making statements in support of Peter Obi and his Obidients in the 2023 presidential elections.

 

 

 

Sadauki successfully put them both in their place and when American Senator Ted Cruz, President Donald Trump, Congressman Tim Riley and other American politicians began to peddle the false narrative and fake gospel of Christian genocide and persecution in Nigeria Sadauki, a devout Christian himself, rose to the challenge and more than any other Nigerian wrote about the issue in a series of essays pointing out the fact that as many Muslims were being killed as Christians by the terrorists in our country and that Christians were not being persecuted by our Government and are in fact faring better when it comes to positions in the security apparatus and governance under Tinubu than they did in the previous administration.

 

 

 

He also spoke out boldly against President Trump and his administration when they accused the Government of South Africa of indulging in genocide against the white minority population in their country and pointed out the fact that South Africa, like Brazil, was a shining example of a successful multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural nation that was treating its white minority population with the greatest respect. Few Africans said a word to defend South Africa at the time even though they knew that Trump was wrong but Sadauki did so without thinking twice.

 

 

 

He is clearly a strong Pan-Africanist and a believer in the importance of the African Union, African solidarity, the BRICS coalition and the Global South alliance comprising of China, Russia, South Africa, India, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and other emerging world powers.

 

 

This is commendable and it reflects his courage and disdain for those that display ignorance, disdain and contempt for our nation and people and that seek to denigrate and misrepresent us.

 

 

 

Sadauki is not the type that bows and quivers before Westerners like so many other Nigerian leaders and politicians but rather takes pride in his Nigerian culture, race, heritage and identity and is prepared to defend us and speak for us no matter whose ox is gored and who is involved.

 

 

 

In an increasingly competitive global environment, Nigeria requires diplomats capable not only of negotiation but also of defending national interests with conviction.

 

 

 

If the energy, eloquence and intellectual fire that have defined Fani-Kayode’s political life accompany him to the country to which he has been posted, his tenure may well become one of the most consequential chapters in Nigeria’s modern diplomatic engagements.

 

 

 

I wish him well and I thank God that he is back in the saddle of public office after so many years.

 

 

What more could any of us ask of this great and noble son of Nigeria?

 

 

This is undoubtedly the quality of personnel and leaders that we need on the international stage.

 

I hope and pray that in his endeavours and during the course of his work he meets with Mehdi Hassan in a debate and prove to him and the rest of the world that Nigeria still has men that can not only match them but that can also remove their trousers in any verbal encounter. Bwala put us to shame but FFK can redeem us before the eyes of the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Mohammed Bello Doka, the author of this essay, is the publisher of Abuja Network News and can be reached via [email protected])

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