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‘We will embarrass old Politicians in 2019’ – Nigerian Youths rage
As the 2019 elections approach, various youth groups in the country have expressed readiness to effect generational power shift, sending a signal to old politicians that they would be disgraced in the forthcoming elections.
Latching on to former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s call last week on youths to democratically wrest power from old politicians, they said older generation of politicians should give them a chance or the youths would utilize their numerical straight to vote them out of office. Arewa Youths Leader, Yerima Shetima, said: “Come 2019, they would be disgraced if they participate in politics.
We constitute 65 or 70 per cent of votes in the country and we will ensure that our votes go to ensure that we have order in this country.
We will disgrace them in 2019. We will make sure they are massively embarrassed.“ Obasanjo, at the Youth Governance Dialogue in Abeokuta, Ogun State, last week, said since the old guards are unwilling to quit the stage and would not give leadership positions to the youths on a platter of gold, it was high time the youths picked the gauntlet.
”Nobody will choose you; you have to choose yourself. Why can’t you become president at the age 40? Why can’t you become president at the age of 35?
Why can’t you become president at the age of 30? General Gowon became Head of State at 33. I became Head of State at 39. And it is because of my track record. But how are you prepared? Are you really prepared?” he challenged the youths.
Expressing youths’ readiness for the challenge, Yerima said, “The likes of Obasanjo should go back to their homes and relax and be ready to offer useful advice when necessary to younger generation of leaders, on technical matters on governance. We will learn some lessons from their history, but we would not work in line with what they did during their tenure.”
Ohanaeze Youth Leader, Chukwuma Okparaezeukwu, in a similarly vein, said the youths feel greatly challenged by the call. “We are not only challenged, but highly encouraged, motivated and feel reawakened.
It is a call for a positive, diplomatic and sustainable revolution. It must not be the regular revolution that comes by force or bloodshed, but one that comes with strategy, raising youth’s consciousness and participation.
“However, as much as we feel highly motivated by former President Obasanjo’s statement, we the youths must wake up and embrace our responsibility because this is our time.
Otherwise, the next generation will vilify us the way we do the older generation today.
“You see, for now, some of the youths have allowed themselves to be used by the current crop of politicians to dish out hate speeches which polarise the youth groups across the country. But we will narrow this gap in the current reawakening towards the current move in order to work strategically and work in unity towards the goal.”
Also, Protem National Chairman, Alliance for New Nigeria, (ANN) a political association seeking Independent National Electoral Commission’s registration, Dr. Jay Osi Samuels, said, “The statement is not only appropriate but timely, because we, the youths, can no longer wait for them to give power to us, rather we are stepping out to grab it from them.”
He said the declaration was in tandem with the “objectives for the ANN, “because we are creating a credible platform apart from all the other platforms that are being managed by the older politicians.
That platform is what we will use to actualize our goals of grabbing power from the old generation. It is a movement being created for the new leaders of Nigeria. Samuels, a Harvardtrained medical doctor, said the youths have the numerical advantage. “Potentially, we have the bigger number.
I mean the youths constitute majority of the eligible voting age in Nigeria, but what we have witnessed over the years have led to loss of faith in the political system in Nigeria, but what we are going about to let people know is that they cannot just despair, they cannot lose hope, that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and if we put our acts together, we can collectively take over the reins of power from these older generation of leaders.
Reminded of the role Obasanjo played in the election of Buhari, who belonged to the older generation politicians, he said: “We are not relying on any past leader…
We are not relying on anybody, what we are doing is that we want to show that with or without them, we can do it by ourselves. They themselves got into power years ago, when they were even younger than us.
So we are taking the bull by the horns, with or without their support, we are going to achieve our aim.
The Presiding Minister of Trinity Center, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo, joined his voice, but was quick to add that anyone of the age of 35 and below cannot rule the nation for now because such a person will be too young for governance at that level. “From my own personal perspective, youths of ages 30 and 35 might be too young for president. The ideal age will be between the ages of 45 to 55.
That sort of person has seen life to an extent, made some mistakes, has fallen, risen and still has the energy to run around and still has reasonable contact base. We can go as low as 41, 42, 43; but not 30.
The world view of anyone of that age is not as broad,” he said.
Ighodalo however, warned that no room should be left for any particular group of persons to anoint a youth for presidency in the manner that so-called godfathers in the Nigerian political space have been doing in the past, insisting also that power is never relinquished but consciously taken by anyone who is truly interested and makes himself available for service.
Ighodalo said the space “is wide open for any serious person, youth or not, that truly wants to get involved and get closer to the people and offer their service to the people, urging such people to start from the grassroots to learn and be ready to make their way up.
They should join any party of their choice, become important in the parties and get selected for position and bit by bit money politics and god-fatherism will fade.
It is not going to be a short run but they will get there.” “From my own personal perspective, youths of ages 30 and 35 might be too young for president.
The ideal age will be between the ages of 45 to 55. That sort of person has seen life to an extent, made some mistakes, has fallen, risen and still has the energy to run around and still has reasonable contact base. We can go as low as 41, 42, 43; but not 30. The world view of anyone of that age is not as broad,” he said.
Mr. Gbadabo Rhodes- Vervor, a youth in his early 30s who contested for the chairmanship in Ikeja Local Government in Lagos State, recently on the platform of the KOWA Party, scoring less than 1,000 votes, said “We, as a generation, need to get more involved, not just on whatssapp groups or on other social media, but in our communities and people in our wards….political participation is not just about running, political participation is diverse.
“Youths can either contest or sponsor political party/candidates whom they believe in their ideals. They must also join a political party and be active and most importantly register to vote for folks they believe in on election day,” He said the youths need to actively start making a difference in the communities so that they can become influencers.
NNPCL and Corruption’s Final Throes
By Pius Olasanmi
In the twilight of the Obasanjo administration, when Nigerians were still capable of being outraged, when Turn Around Maintenance (TAM) of refineries was a buzzword that still held some mysticism to bamboozle citizens, during a conversation, a certain man said something profound. The man said, “As a businessman, if I were the owner of these refineries, knowing that they are three decades old, I would take the last money I have, hire bulldozers, raze them to the ground, and obtain loans to build new ones.”
When we pressed him further on why he would engage in such waste, he explained that repairing the refineries is the real waste. He explained that even if the TAM were honestly carried out, a thirty-year-old refinery would never compete favourably with a new one that would integrate contemporary technology. Operating at its best, such a refinery would never be comparatively more efficient. It is therefore pointless to have spent another one naira on the refineries at that point.
A few months later, I had a conversation with a then-lawmaker on an entirely different matter. I mentioned that the National Assembly has failed by not crafting legislation that would criminalise and punish public office holders who foist wrong decisions on the country. The logic: a public office holder need not steal to be punished, wrong decisions should attract penalties for an office holder who opts for the worst of all options when there are less injurious ones.
These established premises speak to the ongoing nauseating efforts at revisionism by those who wrecked the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and its previous iteration, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Notably, this campaign to rewrite history is traceable to Engineer Mele Kolo Kyari, the disgraced immediate past Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL and his hirelings. They have suffocated the news and the public opinion space with even more lies than they spun while in office.
The Saint Kyari campaign is anchored on convincing Nigerians that the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna Refineries were fully functional when he was booted out of office. So brazen is the campaign that one of its talking heads challenged the group chief executive officer (GCEO), Engr. Bayo Ojulari, to “inform Nigerians categorically what happened to the functioning refineries he inherited from his predecessor, Engr. Mele Kyari.” The effrontery.
We have not forgotten so soon the charade that followed the baffling claim that Nigeria has spent $2.8 billion on the repair of the refineries, while they are not churning out even a single litre of refined product among them. Saint Kyari and his goons played all manner of tricks, all of which embarrassed President Bola Tinubu, who had counted on ticking off the return to productivity of the refineries as part of his achievements, only to realise that he was deceived into celebrating phantoms. Tragic.
Lest we forget, 200 trucks were arranged as props in a well-directed video clip to celebrate the re-streaming of the Port Harcourt Refinery. The disappointment. Nigerians were to learn from several reports that the Port Harcourt refinery was not producing and was instead using old, stored petroleum products to load trucks. Worse still, the Kyari crew was passing off sanction-tainted Russian-sourced crude oil refined in Malta as locally refined products. More insult was piled on the assault on our collective sensibility with the lies that the Port Harcourt Refinery exported semi-finished products. Brazen.
Meanwhile, Kyari and his hirelings called those who pointed out or protested these glaring scams all manner of names. They hid behind industry technicalities and jargon to create the impression that those of us who knew Nigerians were being robbed did not understand what we were saying. The point remains that a $2.8 billion investment can potentially build a refinery with a capacity of around 100,000 barrels per day (bpd). Of course, the actual capacity of such a refinery will depend on various factors, including the complexity of the refinery, the technology used, and the location. That is the amount that Kyari’s regime at the NNPCL took and did not give Nigerians refined products.
Fast forward to Kyari’s sack and the appointment of Engineer Bayo Ojulari, who has demonstrated that things can indeed be done differently. Kyari’s exit was expectedly followed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) going after him and his associates. The extent of the theft is better understood against the backdrop of N80 billion being found in the bank account of one of his associates. They went on the run.
Perhaps because the EFCC was biding its time on securing international warrants for the arrests of these characters on the lam, they have become emboldened. They have decided to fight back and rewrite the story of their participation in the greatest fraud against Nigerians. Engineer Ojulari’s renewed mindset, which is entrenching a semblance of the transparency Nigerians demand, became their natural target. The demons that once roamed around the corporation came out with malevolence. They started spinning stories of corruption to tarnish the incumbent who refused to hide their crimes. The objective: bring Ojulari down. But alas, he is winning the war as it stands.
His innocence is proven, and it is glaring that those who want him out are mere charlatans who can no longer ply their corrupt wares because of the impact of the new reforms. Corruption in the NNPCL is in its final throes. The fake news being unleashed against the incumbent leadership is akin to corruption’s last kicks as reforms in the sector strangulate it and its practitioners. The reforms must take place in the NNPCL, whether the industry demons like it or not.
As a parting shot, Kyari and his associates would do well to prepare their defence. In addition to accounting for the $2.8 billion they laundered in the name of repairing the moribund refineries, they must also answer for the poor decision to fix that which is irretrievably broken. Awarding contracts for Turn Around Maintenance of 59-year-old refineries that a right-thinking person had suggested should be demolished almost twenty years ago, when they were only 30 years old, is criminal. Trying to deceive Nigerians that the fake repairs worked is treason.
Olasanmi is a public affairs analyst writing from Lagos.
GRANDIS 5STAR LUXURY APARTMENT & SUITES SET TO REDEFINE LIVING IN VICTORIA ISLAND
Set to Rise elegantly against the Lagos skyline, is the Grandis 5Star Luxury Apartment & Suites. According to Adejuwon Ademola, The General Manager of the Development company, it is more than just a residential building
“it’s a lifestyle statement. Standing 17 floors high in the heart of Victoria Island, this revolutionary masterpiece of modern architecture will offer a panoramic 360° view of Eko Atlantic, Victoria Island, and Ikoyi, transforming every apartment into an exclusive penthouse experience for the world’s most discerning elite.”
Developed by Dumarco Construction Limited, a globally acclaimed company with decades of delivering complex, high-value projects in the highly regulated petroleum, oil, and gas industries, Grandis 5Star brings unmatched international safety standards, uncompromising quality, and timeless elegance into Nigeria’s luxury property market.
> “When you live in Grandis, you’re not just buying a home—you’re investing in peace of mind, world-class safety, and an effortless luxury experience that will remain pristine for decades,” says Adejuwon A. Ademola, General Manager of Dumarco Construction Limited.
The Gold Standard in Safety and Quality
Dumarco’s roots in the oil and gas sector mean the company operates to some of the strictest safety protocols in the world. Every stage—from conceptualization, design, construction, to long-term maintenance—follows internationally accepted procedures and quality assurance measures. Cutting corners is simply not in Dumarco’s vocabulary.
> “In the oil and gas industry, there’s no room for compromise. We’ve brought that same discipline and zero-tolerance for mediocrity into property development,” says Ademola. “That’s why Grandis will be one of the safest and most enduring residential developments in Nigeria.”
To ensure transparency and prevent (project complacency), Dumarco deliberately separates the developer, contractor, and consultant roles, engaging only the most competent professionals in each respective field. Dumarco’s project team includes globally recognized contractors such as Julius Berger, Cappa & D’Alberto, and Elalan, Migliore Construczione & Tecniche (MC&T) and their partners VENCO IMTIAZ CONTRACTING COMPANY (VICC) based in Dubai, UAE, Business Contracting Limited, alongside leading consultants like Morgan Omanitan & Abe, LAMBERT, and James Cubitt.
Grandis – Investments, appreciation, returns and profitability
Our selection process for the location of the project alone was pains-taking and completely thorough scientific process. Top professional companies were employed to conduct a scientific data acquisition and analytical survey of the entire Victoria Island, Ikoyi, Lekki and Eko Atlantic before a project site is selected. Analyzing and acquiring areas developmental charts and trends, studying and gathering historical and present sale prices, rental charge and occupancy rates over a 50 year period from every individual street before the selection of the location of any of our developments especially true for the Grandis Project
He adds,
“Our clients and residents can be rest assured that the location of Grandis has been scientifically proven through all existing data to provide our clients with a 100% occupancy rate, highest developmental location, highest rental income and investment returns. ”
The Grandis Experience
Located minutes away from international corporate headquarters, embassies, and landmarks such as Eko Hotel, Radisson Blu, and the Radisson Red, Grandis offers unmatched convenience for professionals, diplomats, and high-net-worth individuals. Every residence is designed for both indulgence and efficiency, with high-grade finishes, smart-home systems, and private amenities that ensure seamless living.
From sunrise over the Atlantic to the glittering Lagos night skyline, residents will enjoy uninterrupted luxury, supported by discreet and highly trained staff, advanced security systems, and a design that prioritizes comfort and privacy.
> “We designed Grandis for people who want everything—security, elegance, convenience, and the assurance that their home will look as spectacular in 20 years as it does on day one,” Ademola notes.
A Legacy That Lasts
With its combination of visionary architecture, peerless safety, and meticulous maintenance planning, Grandis is built to remain iconic for generations. Thanks to Dumarco’s meticulous approach, the building’s service charges are expected to remain low while its value and appeal continue to appreciate over time.
In a market often marred by shortcuts and substandard practices, Mr Ademola says
Grandis stands as a beacon of what luxury living should be—safe, spectacular, and built to last.
“Grandis 5Star Luxury Apartment & Suites — Where safety meets sophistication, and every detail is designed for a life well-lived.”
He added
Website -www.dumarcoltd.com
Project website – www.26idowutaylor.com
Email [email protected]
Tel / WhatsApp +234 9077777883
GM – Adejuwon A. Ademola
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