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Igala Agenda, Pitfalls, and Prospects

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By Amb Valentine Opaluwa Ejeh Anu

Let me start this treatise with this quote from an outstanding scholar, poet, writer and journalist, Tunde Olusunle, in order for the purveyors of Igala agenda to be well abreast of the common foe of our collective
destiny. “Lious XIV it was who boastfully declared in 1655: L’Etat, c’est moi, meaning “I am the state; the state, that is me.” that phrase denotes absolute monarchy and absolutism, the type that Yahaya Bello has typified in his tour of duty as default governor of Kogi State.” This is Bello’s psychology of power and it is befitting to be strategic about anything that concerns him and his quest to remain in power through political proxy to continue to torment the citizens of the confluence state.

The idea of “Igala agenda” has dominated political discourse on the social media sites in Kogi State particularly among Igala people who are the dominant ethnic group. More recently, this state of affairs can be attributed to the fall out of the recent primary elections of which none of the aspirants of Igala extraction who aspired for the plum job of governorship under the platforms of the ruling the All Progressive Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) failed to clinch the tickets. Hence the idea has gained huge momentum among the people.
Apparently majority of Igala people are now calling for an Igala agenda because they are now treated as second class citizens in the state.

However, the big question needs an urgent answer is, how do we intend to achieve the goal of Igala agenda? Can Kogi East senatorial district use her numerical strength to produce the governor in the forthcoming election? How are we sure that votes will count? Given what happen in 2019 of which many Igala sons preferred their political interest above the collective good of their people, how can Igala agenda subdue this factor? What do we make of the different endorsements of consensus candidates particularly of Alhaji Murtala Yakubu Ajaka and Vice Admiral Jibrin Usman Oyibe by different groups clamouring for Igala.

agenda? Is that how we think we can achieve this? Can Igala people go into election with this kind of mindset and triumph? What are the credentials and pedigrees of these eleven candidates who are eligible to contest that we can leverage upon? In reality it is in public domain already, but it seems, some of us are not ready for the best
standard to be used and do not care about factors that could clearly affect the realization of this goal. And lastly what is the paramount body working on consensus doing and what standard are they adopting in throwing up a candidate that can truly bring development to Kogi State and East in particular?

Even though, I share in the believe by some kogites, that it should simply have been Kogi State Agenda for good governance or something similar but I cannot discountenance the fact that in actuality, it was the desire for good governance that took ethnic dimension because of how Igala people fared in more than 7 years of abysmal failure to deliver the essentials of democracy to the good people of the state. Many people thought that the God factor that was involved in birthing the administration will become the impetus for good governance, Alas! I was dead wrong, rather it is well known among the Nigerian people that the political fortune of Kogi State and Igala ethnic has been at the ebb in more recent years. Prince Abubakar Audu who departed to the life beyond on the eve of the day he was to be elected the governor left a huge vacuum. The inheritor of his political misfortune could not attempt
to wear his large shoes, in order to carve a niche for himself and truly become a political leader who feels the impulse of his people. Rather he decided to toe the line of a villain with sadistic political subjugation and
oppression of his kinsmen.

On the day Bello was sworn in January 29 th 2016 at Lokoja Township Stadium, there were unwarranted rains of abuses and curses on the Igala people, it was against the living and even the dead (Prince of Niger). I never in my life imagined and thought an African child can be so depraved minded to talk ill of the dead in such manner and to take the Igala people to the cleaner when they were still mourning the death of their illustrious son. Senator Dino Melaye, the present candidate of PDP’s excitement about the governorship stool unfortunately inherited by Bello made him to express himself in a way that many least expected of someone who shares in this civilization. But can Dino truly deny the influence of Audu in his political life and fortune? Even if, he had scores to settle with Igala people and the dead for any reason, he should have restrain himself from such unguarded and fallacious statements on such public odium, especially that it was the death of Audu that pave way for what by all account has turned out to be a very sad event. Tunde Olusunle, poet, journalist, scholar and author in his essay titled: Yahaya
Bello, LOUIS XIV AND THE LIMITS OF ABSOLUTISM, he described what Bello government look like thus: “Since he became
governor in circumstances which remain fuzzy over seven years ago, Yahaya Bello, the governor of Kogi State, has left no one in doubt about his totalitarian grip on the north central state.”

Kogi State Map


As it turned out to be, it was obvious that Dino acted a script that was virtualised and agreed upon. This conclusion can be derived from what transpired later in Bello’s administration wherein, the Igala people in the
state civil service were treated with disdain and wrongfully relieved of their jobs, it was a gory testament about the ignominious plot hatched to undermine the Igala people in a state where they are clearly the majority.
When Bello took over the saddle he deceived many people with the appointment of Edward Onoja, as the chief of staff, he claimed no governor of the state ever appointed someone from another ethnic group and he used it as an argument for his knack for political inclusion which at best was a hoax. However, subsequent juicy appointments in the state went exclusively to his Ebira kinsmen especially those from Okene Local Council and the same thing can be said of federal appointments.
Many Igala people in the state civil service at the cadre of director and permanent secretary lost their jobs for their Ebira counterparts below them in service ranking.

I remember a conversation I had with an Igala man who was a director before Bello became a governor, he was one of those affected by his inhumanity to humanity in the guise of doing the right thing in curbing the incidence of ghost workers. It is difficult for an Igala man to treat an Ebira man the way he dealt with Igala people in his inglorious rule. In fact the previous governors of Kogi State, Prince Audu of blessed memory, Ibro, Wada never marginalize Ebira people the way he did to Igala people, I stand to be corrected if someone can provide superior
claim. Bello government engaged in a nefarious and shady worker’s screening in the process many Igala sons and daughters of the middle and lower cadres were victimized and they lost their jobs and means of livelihood. Some of them were killed through road accidents travelling week in, week out to clear themselves of the screening.

Some of them who were originally employed by Benue State government lost their jobs in the process. Bello’s administration used the instrumentality of the screening to stop the payment of monthly salary of workers. They were on percentage salary of 20%, 30% or 40% as the case may be. In fact a director with the state civil service from Kogi West, Mr Edward Soje became suicidal and hung himself just 10 days after his wife gave birth to a set of triplets because the state government owed him 11 months’ salary (Channels Television 2017, October 22). Civil servants in the state and local governments were left in penury and poverty. Consequentially, Igala people with large labour force bore the brunt of the devious scheme Bello orchestrated against the hard working people of Kogi State.

Ahead of the 2019 primary election many Igala sons indicated interest to rescue the state from his ignoble paroxysm and assault on democracy and governance, but he connived with some Igala sons and the APC party apparatchik to blackmailed them and stop them in furtherance of exercising their democratic rights. He prevented people like the Late Professor Seidu Onalo, former Director General, Nigeria Airspace Research and Development Agency (NSRDA); Admiral Jibrin Usman Oyibe, former Chief of Naval Staff, Mustapha Audu, son of the late Prince Audu among others from participating in the process. He unleashed the highest form of political brigandage ever perfected, using
some willing tools among Igala youths to perpetuate himself in power and he went as far as deploying helicopter to attack the electorate in Ganaja, Lokoja during the 2019 governorship election.

The last stray that is considered a red line is that despite the fact that he enjoyed the supports of some Igala sons notably Edward Onoja, a man he described in the early days of his administration as his Siamese twins and a loyal political associate. And of course, those elected on the platform of APC at the National Assembly and appointees stood by him.

Similarly, Alhaji Murtala Ajaka, a member of National Working Committee of APC at the time and a confidant of Bello gave him unflinching support and ensured Bello secured second term by hook and trick. Most of them did this against their own people to pave way for the attainment of their own political interests. They are most likely to have
supported him not out of hate for their own kiths and kins but to build bridges with Bello and other political players in other senatorial districts. We cannot reprimand them because of understanding of the micro-purpose of politics which emphasizes “personal interest,” we have thegeneral of Igala land in many ways. Many of them have added value intheir own way we cannot discountenance that fact.

In the aftermath of the whole charade called primary election, I feel for them because despite the support they gave to him embedded with loyalty and open mindness, perhaps towards power balancing along the lines of major ethnic groups (senatorial districts). Yet he did notconsider them worthy enough to contest the APC governorship primary. in 2023 in line with democratic norms. Instead he imposed his cousin, Ahmed Usman Ododo, who until then was the Auditor General of the Local Governments and a serious partner in the mismanagement and maladministration that has defined his autocratic dynasty of the poor regime. “ Ododo is reputed as the “executioner in chief” in the
impoverishment of local government workers many of whom lost their jobs and livelihoods in a means spirited and scurrilous “staff verification exercise” conducted in the early years of the Bello government” (Tunde Olusunle 2023). Despite the age long call for power shift in the spirit of equity which is desirous but it must be built on good governance and inept leadership and victimization of Igala people just best they are majority, Igala people is not happy to only be a majority in Kogi State but Nigeria because of her people found in many other states. It is
glaring that Igala people have been subjected to the highest forms of humiliation, deprivation and underdevelopment under the administration of Yahaya Bello. Engr Musa Wada once captured it appropriately, when he described Kogi State the “poverty capital of Nigeria.”

Those who brought the idea of Igala Agenda cannot be said to be myopic in their reasoning this is because they were pushed to their ethnic cocoon to look for solution to the prevailing systematic political isolation of Igala people in the state and Nigeria at large. However, many of those championing Igala agenda on the social media platforms
seems not to fully grasp the enormity of the challenge ahead, if the goal is to be truly achieved. They are taking it for granted, neglecting the cohesion that is required. The division it has caused on the social media
is unnecessary if we are sincerely and truly determine to achieve the goal.

Obviously, The Igala people have the advantage of numbers and can express themselves as the major ethnic group in the state like the Tiv ethnic group in Benue State. The voting pattern of Kogi State suggest that, if an Igala man field a consensus candidate in a free and fair election such a candidate can win by simple majority. However we all
know that an Igala candidate will definitely pick a candidate from another ethnic group as it has always been. Igala agenda certainly need strong running mate from the West or the central to harness enough vote for it to succeed, permit me to call it Kogi State Agenda for Good Governance because both are synonymous. We need a new vigour for the agenda and that should be, we are ready to support a consensus candidate even if that person is not our preferred candidate. To withstand Bello’s desperate and wicked ambition to ensure he installs a successor. Let us not give him the opportunity to exploit the option of compelling INEC to declare his candidate in order for the electoral tribunal to decide the outcome of the election in his favour on technicalities. It is possible to put him in the situation that he will not be able to influence the election in the favour of his political surrogate,
Ododo. If the people of Kogi East can be united in their voting pattern under one umbrella and protect their votes victory will be guarantee. The present INEC register suggest that Igala people have the numerical strength to win in a free and fair contest. Let me state without any equivocation that we need the international community and institutions like the offices of US Secretary of State, UN Secretary General, US, UK, Germany, and France Embassies to beam search light on Kogi State because the world is truly a global community and electoral governance
as an important ingredient of democracy is respected, to avoid what Yahaya Bello did in rigging the 2019 governorship election in which helicopters fire bullets at polling booths and electorate, was this not an
act of terrorism?

In November 2023 we expect INEC to do the right thing but Bello must first be given sanctions by the Igala people themselves by rejecting Ododo at the poll. The only sure bet way to do it is to collapse groups working for all the eleven candidates for the interest of Igala agenda.
Below is political configuration of eligible voters in Kogi, as a reminder of the numerical strength to be exploited in order to escape new slavery and imperialism which characterizes Bello’s administration.

POLITICAL CONFIGURATION OF VOTERS IN KOGI STATE
S/NO LGA NO. OF
WARDS

POLLING
UNITS

REGD
VOTERS
1 Ajaokuta 14 146 96,504
2 Adavi 10 217 114,663
3 Ogori-Magogo 10 67 17,688
4 Okene 11 284 151,243
5 Okehi 11 188 94,456
Total 56 902 474,554

KOGI EAST
S/NO LGA NO. OF
WARDS

POLLING
UNITS

REGD
VOTERS
1 Ankpa 13 292 180,095
2 Bassa 10 130 69,376
3 Dekina 12 351 187,881
4 Ibaji 10 174 90,556
5 Idah 10 120 64,579
6 Igalamela/Odolu 10 140 77,577
7 Ofu 11 184 101,946
8 Olamoboro 10 174 105,864
9 Omala 11 148 74,537
Total 97 1,713 952,369

KOGI WEST
S/NO LGA NO. OF
WARDS

POLLING
UNITS

REGD
VOTERS
1 Ijumu 15 121 66,482
2 Kabba/Bunu 15 156 87,162
3 Kogi 11 105 63,342
4 Lokoja 10 273 157,284
5 Mopa Muro 10 53 26,827
6 Yagba East 11 82 53,436
7 Yagba West 14 102 51,234
Total 86 892 505,731
KOGI TOTAL 239 3,507 1,932,654

Reliable sources within Government House Lokoja suggest that Governor Bello is becoming more ruthless over lack of support from some of his former allies who benefited from his failed inordinate ambition of becoming Nigeria’s president. Bello’s presidential bid was largely driven by Muri, even though Edward was also deeply involved
but the financial aspect of paving way for Bello’s emergence was actually perfected by Muri as the defacto chairman extraordinary of APC at the time. One can only imagine the amount of tax payers’ money used for this wasteful venture which could have been invested in providing facilities for better living and development. However, resorting to political violence cannot bring back the money wasted on an adventure that can be said be a needless political antagonism and an act of crass political opportunism.

According J.S Kutepa SAN, “Governor Yahaya Bello has been waging a relentless campaign of violence against his political opponents using the state power and instrumentality against the biggest ethnic group in Kogi state (Igala) and any opposition of Igala extraction, who does not support Mr Yahaya Bello’s anointed candidate. On 3 June 2023, Mr Yahaya Bello unleashed the full force of the state power against opposition candidate Mr Murtala Yakubu Ajaka and his supporters on the main road that connects Abuja, Nigeria and Lokoja Kogi State, leading to heavy gun shots aimed at Mr Murtala Yakubu Ajaka” Okutepa, Samuel Jibrin (2023 June 4). AIT news bar on 9/10/2023
observed that though the governor claimed that he was attacked, thereare evidences to suggest that his security operatives were the people who unleash mayhem on Muri and his supporters. Since Muri became the candidate of Social Democratic Party (SDP), Yahaya Bello has been vengeful over his failed presidential ambition and apparently he is
displaying it through violence which he has promoted in high wire dimensions, even though political violence is not new in Kogi State, but it was at the verge of extinction before he came to power. Bello should not make any attempt to kill Muri or any other governorship candidate for that matter from Kogi East, it will be consider as a red line and declaration of war against the Igala people. Federal Government and the International Community should take note of this assault and reprehension against Igala ethnic group, which signed the famous 1841 treaty with the representatives of Queen Victoria. The major instrument Britain used at the Berlin Conference as an evidence of
their presence in the confluences of Rivers Benue and Niger. There is a consensus among the stakeholders and Igala people that Chief Gabriel Yakubu Aduku led Elders committee will deploy the best standard in arriving at a consensus candidate. Though there are many pitfalls in Igala agenda like the hasty endorsement of candidates by somegroups without looking at the larger picture of what it may portend.

However, if we are able to make sound judgments without bias and sentiment using the credentials and pedigrees of the candidates as benchmark and juxtaposed it with all existing factors and indicators, that will interest many Igala politicians in APC and PDP to support the Igala agenda albeit covertly. This is what is required to defeat the dynasty of poverty, political violence and underdevelopment staring the Igala people on the face and it must be curtailed headlong.

My compatriots if credentials, pedigree and other factors are carefully and objectively used as the standard in getting a valid consensus, then Admiral Oyibe is our best bet to recapture the Lord Lugard Government House in November 2023 governorship election. If Muri becomes the consensus candidate many battles are involved and we are not likely to triumph. Though Muri, Ilona, Okeme, Mubarak, Abayawo, are worthy ambassadors of Igala struggle, they should be impressed upon to consider him as their consensus candidate. Amongst them if it is done with sincerity he it is obvious that he is the one who can lead the struggle for emancipation of Igala people. Withous sentiment and bias, in Muri’s candidacy we have insurmountable challenges that may consume us as a people. I know Muri is a good guy and a generous fellow with deep pocket. I know some of his benefactors, I personally appreciate his kind gestures as a kindhearted person but the issue at stake is beyond that. Let me be frank, if Igala do not have strong candidate Kogi East will become battle ground. I will weep for Igala failed project 2023 because Ododo will be declare the winner or a candidate from the West senatorial district will emerge, the reason is simple because all the senatorial districts will vote in block for the candidate of their choices.

Are we not seeing the handwriting on the wall? I do not envision Igala succumbing to the bait, the most beneficial option for Bello to negotiate and take power is Muri’s candidacy. We need Tinubu to be desirous of conducting a free and fair election so that an Igala candidate can win but Tinubu men alone put a hole in Muri’s candidacy, giving how he was used to whittle down his influence in APC as the defacto APC chairman extraordinary. Let us play more safe and leave emotion and sentiment out of this and make sound judgment of the situation, initially I thought
of tossing a coin as the solution to consensus but our lot may not be posteriors, even though, it could still remain the last option, if we are adamant to do the most ethical and beneficial thing giving the options at
our disposal.

In conclusion Chief Gabriel Aduku and other members of the Elder Committee set up at the instance of Chief James Okai are bequeathed with the generational landmark by writing their names in the sand of time. They must live up to expectation by making sound judgment so that Igala agenda can succeed, let them carefully and meticulously look
at the merits and demerits of the strength and weaknesses of Muri and Akpabana and of course all others who are very qualified and eligible. Even though Igala agenda is laden with pitfalls due to contending political interests of individuals, it has huge prospect in Akpabana’s candidacy. Muri is still young and can still govern Kogi State in the nearest future because he has carved a niche for himself in many respects, he endeared himself in the minds of some Igala people including me but to triumph over someone described as Lious XIV of France, known for terrorism, we need Akpabana. Also we know Ilona built one of the best brands not only in Nigeria but Africa. He has shown immense capacity in many business interests that can be useful for the governance of the state in the future but just like Muri and many others, however, they still have time ahead of them, let them all unite in one
accord to liberate Igala land.

Igala cannot afford to disappoint those that are sympathetic to our cause at the top echelon of power to truly position ourselves to take power back and entrench good governance. The record of less than two years in the saddle as Nigeria’s Chief of Naval Staff is a testament to what we should expect, when he is elected. We need Mubarak, Muri, Okeme, Elukpo, Abayawo, Ilona, Agada and all the other candidates to queue behind in solidarity for Igala land not for Akpabana and Muri sakes, if we are all patriotic to Igala land as we professes in our Igala Agenda
vision, based on good governance and upward mobility of Igala race that is struggling to find her feet in recent times. We should remember the great Ayegba of the Third Ata Igala Dynasty, who sacrifice Inikpi for the sake of Igala land. We should be ready to offer less sacrifice which is of grand compromise and cooperation in order to salvage Igala land from modern slavery and imperialism. We cannot remain under absolutism riddles with autocracy and dictatorship which has defined the features and landscape of Kogi State democratic appellation since 2016.
References.

Channels Television (2017, October 22) Kogi Civil Service Director Wrote Suicide Note Before Hanging Self, available@www.channelstv.com Okutepa, Samuel Jibrin (2023 June 4) Ongoing Violence Aganst Igala Ethnic Group,, posted on Muri November 11 WhatsApp group Tunde, Olusunle (2023) Yahaya Bello, Lious XIV and the Limits of
Absolutism (visit to past analysis of Bello), accessedonline@https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.
php/2023/05/17/yahaya-bello-lious -xiv-and-the-limits-of-absolutism

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Remembering late Alhaji Dan Sallah, late Alhaji Garba mai biredi and other good people

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By Adamu Muhd Usman

If a man is endowed with a generous mind, that is the best of nobility, and you are measured not by how much you undertake but by what you finally accomplish. In life, when you help the people around you to be good, you surely become the best. The people to be discussed in this column need to be attached to some of the above sayings. These personalities touched lives, for the value of a life is measured by the lives it touched.

The late Alhaji Musa Abubakar, popularly known and called ‘Alhaji Musa Dan Sallah’ or ‘Alhaji Dan Sallah,’ was known for his atypical religious commitments, compassion, and distinctive philanthropy.

If Dangote is the most successful businessman in the world of today, Alhaji Musa Dan Sallah was the most successful businessman in Kafin-Hausa in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. If Dangote becomes famous for his wealth, religious engagements, and philanthropy, Alhaji Dan Sallah too.

Alhaji rose from a small business to a dealer and distributor of cement (Ashaka), flour, fuel, gas, and kerosene, as well as a marsh, rearing animals, and farming in both the rainy season and irrigation system.

His business flourished drastically despite his immense donations to charity and zakat giving. He established Islamiyya schools, encouraged, helped, and supported religious teaching and learning and clerics and pupils/students.

Alhaji Musa Dan Sallah built dozens of mosques (Masjid), including Friday (Juma’at) mosques. In and outside Kafin-Hausa town in Jigawa state. To my knowledge, I have never heard, seen, or known a person in our community who built a mosque like Alhaji Musa Abubakar Dan Sallah, the second to him, politics aside, don girma Allah (For God’s sake) is the present Jigawa state governor, Malam Umar Namadi (FCA), a.k.a. Dan Modi. And he has been doing that even before he delved into politics.

One of the things that makes me remember Alhaji Musa Dan Sallah in the month of Ramadan, during fasting. The way and manner he plans and gives out iftar and sadaqat (offering) must be eulogised. Alhaji Musa shared even meat; can someone remember pigeons (Baraysi or Tattabaru)? May Allah reward Alhaji Dan Sallah.

In the second republic (1979), he was an NPN party man and a leader. He was generous even in politics. ‘A kind politician’

Alhaji Musa Abubakar Dan Sallah was the grandfather of Shu’aib Isyaku, a.k.a. Dan Ladi Bayani. He was also the grandfather of Hajia Rakiya Musa Zakari and the biological father of my friend Alhaji Muhammad A Musa, a.k.a. Alhaji Bala, the former Kafin-Hausa local government secretary during H.E. Badaru’s tenure.

Alhaji Musa Abubakar Dan Sallah was a remarkable man of faith, kindness, simplicity, and generosity. He was deeply committed to fostering relationships, promoting reconciliation, and ensuring that everything is done in order, like the spread of Islam.

His house was a mecca of sorts for children, destitute and orphans who thronged in droves, especially during the Zakat period and the month of Ramadan for succour. Alhaji Musa Dan Sallah was a cheerful giver, and God loves cheerful givers. May Allah reward him and grant him eternal rest.

Alhaji Garba mai biredi is a name that rang in the 70s and 80s, especially when it comes to taking care of Almajirai (Islamic pupils/students) and their Malams (teachers). He devoted his life to helping, supporting, and encouraging learning and teaching of the Qur’an.

Also, when it comes to the issue of bakery in and outside Kafin-Hausa for deliciousness, health, affordability, and all that, just put a full stop there. The bakery is still in existence, which is the present day called ‘Salama bread.’ Thank God, his children have emulated the late father’s attitudes of faithfulness, generosity, simplicity, gentility, humility, etc.

I also remember him at the time of the Ramadan fast for what he is doing at iftar and other goodies he used to share with the general public. When you tried coming to his masjid (mosque) close to his house, you will love to come the next day for iftar (breaking the fast).

Alhaji Garba was faithful, an employer of labour, philanthropist, lover, helper, supporter, and encourager of Islamic religious activities. His moralities are worth commending and emulating. He was a very simple, gentle, humble, accommodating, simple-headed man, kind-hearted person, and so friendly. We exchanged nice pleasantries and jokes with him. He does call me ‘Dan Fulani’ as a native/tribal/cultural joke between Fulani and ancient or who were connected with Bare-bari (Kanuri people). May Allah reward him and have mercy on him.

The third person was the late ‘Alhaji, Malam, Baba Idris Suleiman.’ He is an elder brother to Baba Toro. Baba Idi, as some called him. He is the father of Hajiya Hauwa (something). and Alhaji Bello Mam B.

This old man was simple, gentle, and very religious. He liked commiting his life to Islamic activities. He was humble, gentle, and humane attitudes will not give you an edge; he is from a royal family. He is humane and simple to the core.

I remember him always when it comes to magnanimity. Yes, in kindness and generosity he always comes to my memory, especially during the month of Ramadan (fast) because I can vividly reflect back on my memory and guess or say it right. Back in the 70s and 80s, and partly in the 90s, there was no household (family) in the entire Kafin-Hausa town that did not benefit from his generosity at Ramadan every year. That ‘funkaso’ (wheat cake) Ayyah!!! May Allah reward Baba Malam Idi and admit him in Al-Jannar Firdaus.

The fourth person was an all-round businessman. If you are talking of a typical, encompassing, promising business tycoon in Hausa land when you mention the person in the name of Alhaji Ismail, popularly known as Alhaji Badali, just match break. His name as a very wealthy man rang in Kafin-Hausa and its surroundings in the 70s and 80s. He engaged in farming, textiles, PZ (provisions), and transportation. Despite being a very rich man, his lifestyle was worth extolling, commending, and emulating. He was a humane, religious, and easygoing gentleman. His house was just a mecca of sorts, with people mostly his employees and those who came to seek help in one way or the other. He is the biological father of Muhammadu Gwadancy and my friend, Alhaji Musa Abdul Aziz, a.k.a. (Hajindo).

Alhaji Ismail promoted peace and made Kafin-Hausa a liberal place and brought positive initiatives to the community. He helped many to be their best and stand on their own. A philanthropist and a businessman. His life is a lesson and worth emulating. May Allah reward him and place him in the high garden. (Al-Janna)

The person at this juncture is last, not the least, in the list. He is my biological father, Malam (Alhaji) Usman Suleiman, popularly known and called ‘Manu.’. Manu is a name driven from Usman (u) by the Fulbe (Fulani). I can’t be selfish and self-centred if I include my father among the list of the persons in the Kafin-Hausa community who did something worthy of eulogising, commending, remembrance, and emulation. Because he did something that is a virtue.

In the 70s, 80s, and 90s, when any person on transit or a stranger, visitor, or wayfarer stepped into Kafin-Hausa town and he or she or they didn’t know anybody or didn’t have a place to put off. The person will be told and directed to go to ‘Manu’s house.’ If the person arrives at our place, even if my dad isn’t around, the person will get food to eat, water to drink, and a place to sleep, and no matter the number of people, when they come, they will definitely be attended to (accommodated). Also, there used to be a villa of Fulanis; the house used to be a Mecca of sorts, especially on market days and during festivities. Our house is an open house for everyone.

My father was a humane, philanthropic, reserved, accommodating, and well-orientated, civilised Fulani man. He believed in giving, as he said goodness comes from giving, and givers never lack. Also, those who want to live meaningfully and well must help enrich the lives of others. It is true, those who choose to be happy must help others find happiness, for the welfare of each is bound up with the welfare of all. May Allah reward him as well and admit him in Jannatul Firdaus, with the rest and all of us.

May Allah accept us if our lives come to an end. May Allah ease us from this trying moment. May Nigeria rise again and work positively well.

Adamu writes from Kafin-Hausa, Jigawa State.

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Malam Nasir El-Rufai ‘s coup and President Bola Tinubu’s counter coup

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What many Nigerians may not know, is that President Bola Tinubu and former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, had parted ways long before the 2023 presidential election.
Whatever political relationship that existed between two, hit the hard rocks shortly after Muhammadu Buhari emerged president in the 2015 presidential election. Watchers of the power circle were quick to observe, that Buhari openly displayed his fascination with Tinubu’s strategic moves that paved the way for his emergence as the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Buhari acknowledged the fact that without Tinubu’s mastery of the game, there was no way he could have beaten heavyweights like Atiku Abubakar, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Aminu Tambuwal who contested the APC ticket with him. From beating the presidential primary hurdles, to clinching the APC ticket and capping it with a resounding victory in the 2015 presidential election, Buhari more or less elevated Tinubu to the status of his political god.

At his swearing-in ceremony on May 29, 2015, Buhari could hardly conceal his admiration for Tinubu. He kept pumping the hand of the former Lagos State governor in numerous hand shakes and gave him several pats in the back at every close encounter. It became obvious to the public that Buhari had found a benefactor and political godfather in Tinubu. What with his previous three failed attempts at the presidency in 2003, 2007 and 2011.

However, the camaraderie was short lived. Along the line, Buhari started giving Tinubu the cold shoulder a few months into the first leg of his presidency. And for a man not given to much restraint, Buhari continued to drive a wedge between Tinubu and his presidency. It wasn’t long before the content of a leaked memo to Buhari, authored by El-Rufai, revealed that Tinubu’s contribution to Buhari’s emergence as president was being “exaggerated.”

At that point, Tinubu got to understand why his initial chummy relationship with Buhari suddenly grew tepid. The thinly veiled rejection from the then president kept growing. The one-sided cold war became so pronounced that Tinubu’s wife, Remi, then a serving senator, was forced to voice her observation right on the floor of the Senate. She openly accused Buhari of ditching her husband after helping him to win the presidency.

But Buhari’s unprovoked indignation towards his benefactor continued unabated. Credible sources within the ruling APC at the time, observed that Tinubu was not allowed to make input into Buhari’s cabinet picks and other strategic appointments.

Right from his first tenure, a handful of power grabbers within and outside Buhari’s kitchen cabinet, were the ones running the government. They formed a cabal that ran rings around the stubbornly insular ex-president.

Members of the cabal had very little electoral value. They were sufficiently disdainful of Tinubu. They used their domineering influence to keep the Lagos Boy far away from their Aso Villa captive. They created the false impression of holding the joker for Buhari’s re-election in 2019. They started treating Tinubu as an expendable commodity as they kept widening the growing chasm between the Daura born ex-Army General and his political benefactor.

Then EI-Rufai came out in the open. He took upon himself the task of “demystifying” Tinubu by rallying some of the man’s political associates for “insurrection” against their leader. From his base in Kaduna, he became a regular visitor in Lagos, which is the nucleus of Tinubu’s political base in the Southwest. He spared no expense as he openly canvased an end to the era of political godfathers. It was during one of his numerous “missionary journeys” that he asked an incumbent Lagos governor: “When are you going to retire your godfather from politics?” And the then first term governor replied: “Second tenure.” And this was a young man who, against all odds, rode on the godfather’s shoulders to the Lagos government house.

The phrase was a wrap for the godfather’s retirement when the governor gets his anticipated second tenure. He must have forgotten that Tinubu has several pairs of wide ear lobes spread across the state. So the voice note of the governor’s “second tenure” echoed through the walls of Bourdillon. If a governor you installed planned to retire you in his tenure, you can only put him back there at your own peril. That’s how that governor lost a potential re-election ticket in 2019. It was a political death. The man has since taken his seat on the reserve bench, watching events from the sidelines.

But the movie to push Tinubu off the cliff ahead of the 2023 race did not stop. Three other former Southwest governors, who the godfather fought tooth and nail to enthrone in their respective states, joined the fray. With goading by El-Rufai, the former Ekiti governor, Kayode Fayemi, took steps that culminated in challenging Tinubu for the 2023 presidential ticket of the APC. And on the prodding of the Buhari cabal, his Ogun State counterpart, Ibikunke Amosun, also threw his signature skyscraper cap in the ring. Similarly, Yemi Osinbajo, who was vice president to Buhari, also saw in the fray what he thought was an opportunity to upstage Tinubu in the quest for the party’s ticket. Perhaps, the open “rebellion” by the former Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola, must have been a blow that hit Tinubu below the belt. Fayemi, Amosun and Osinbajo went about their failed adventures without throwing darts at their estranged political benefactor. From his comfort zone as cabinet minister, the ex Osun governor mounted the rooftop to denigrate his former principal. It must have felt like the thrust of Brutus’ sword in Caesar’s groin. Et tu, Rauf? And this was a man who used to be the godfather’s consigliere. The four “renegade” members of the Tinubu political clan could not handle their individual and collective discomfiture when, against all odds, the man managed to dribble Muhammadu Buhari and his cabal to clinch the APC presidential ticket. The godfather crowned it by beating their ambush to win the presidential election subsequently.

Such character traits in the power politics of the Southwest are well documented by political historians. It happened in the First Republic. It was embraced in the Second Republic. It played out in the short lived Third Republic. In those three previous republics, power brokers in the North had forged alliances with overtly ambitious associates in the Southwest for the purposes of pulling down their powerful political leaders. As it was in 1963-1966, so it was in 1979-1983. Circa 1993 (June 12 annulment). It spilled over to the Fourth Republic, 1999 -2023 and still counting. The trend won’t stop with Tinubu. It will continue after him because politicians are a product of ambitions; moderate or inordinate. So the gentlemen who tested their strength with Tinubu for the APC’s 2023 presidential ticket, did not commit any crime.

El-Rufai’s Hidden Agenda

It must be stated clearly that El-Rufai bore no personal animosity towards Tinubu when he set out to instigate the Jagaban’s loyalists against their leader. The ex-Kaduna only played on the moderate or inordinate ambitions of a few of them for his own political gains. It was a long distance race towards 2023.

He knew of Tinubu’s burning desire to succeed Buhari. And he was smart enough to know that another northerner should not be president after Buhari’s eight years in the saddle. The plan was that El-Rufai wanted to be a running mate on the 2023 presidential ticket of the APC. He had figured it all out; that the party would not contemplate a Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket. He had reasoned that being a Muslim, there was no way he could be on the same ticket with Tinubu who is a fellow Muslim. So for him to be on the 2023 ticket, the presidential candidate must be a Christian from the south, preferably from the Southwest. That was why he zeroed in on Fayemi. He was working towards having the ex-Ekiti governor or any other southern Christian as presidential candidate, with him as running mate to balance the religious equation. He must have based his permutations on the 2015 experience when the APC flatly rejected the idea of having another Muslim as Buhari’s running mate. So in his own calculation, he had reasoned that with Tinubu as the presidential candidate in 2023, he stood no chance of picking the vice presidential ticket. He had imagined the party would pick a northern Christian as Tinubu’s running mate, a choice that would automatically shut him out. But contrary to his calculations, Tinubu picked Kashim Shettima, a fellow Muslim as his running mate.

Candidate Buhari of 2015 and candidate Tinubu of 2023 presented two different scenarios. The two leaders are poles apart in terms of their public perception. The former president arrogantly wears his Islamic fundamentalist emblem like a badge of honour. Tinubu on the other hand, maintains a visage of a liberal Muslim with a pastor wife, and, perhaps a mix of Muslim and Christian among his children. In the Buhari case, a Muslim-Muslim ticket would have proved an electoral disaster for the APC. That ticket was redeemed with “Pastor” Osinbajo’s name on the ballot. It attenuated what the community of Christian voters would have perceived as “an extremist ticket.”

From 2015 when El-Rufai started playing Saul of Tarsus, up to the build up to the 2023 electioneering, Tinubu’s trust in the ex-Kaduna governor had grown as big as the mustard seed. It didn’t require any deep intuition for the president to see through El-Rufai’s half-hearted “on the road to Damascus” experience.

But Tinubu managed to play safe by summoning enough native wisdom in his relationship with El-Rufai when he was seeking the presidential ticket, and during the campaigns. He had observed how the then Kaduna governor switched allegiances from one presidential aspirant to another. He switched over to Tinubu when it was obvious that many of his fellow northern governors had settled for the former Lagos governor. Tinubu craftily wormed his way into El-Rufai’s heart by cajoling him and massaging his oversize ego. At his campaign stop in Kaduna, candidate Tinubu had “begged” El-Rufai not to leave Nigeria after his tenure because he would need his services for his administration to succeed. That was how a dead cat was sold and bought. Dealing with a complex character like El-Rufai required a great deal of wisdom…and gumption too.
Tinubu’s approach in disarming El-Rufai may find expression in a number of Yoruba proverbs:
Eni ma mu obo, a se bi obo. (If you want to catch a monkey, you must learn to act like a monkey). Adete o le fun wara, sugbon o le da wara nu. (A leper may not be helpful in milking a cow, but he can waste a whole bucket of milk if provoked). Bi owo eni o ba ti te eku ida, a ki bere iku to pa baba eni. (You don’t threaten to avenge your father’s unnatural death if you are holding a contested sword by the blade). Tinubu did not court El-Rufai for his electoral value. He only stooped to conquer. It was a wrong time for dissent within his party at that critical period. He could ill afford it. Even at that, he lost the majority votes in Kaduna State to Atiku Abubakar and his PDP. With the 2023 presidential election won and lost, El-Rufai spent considerable time drooling over the president-elect in the hope of securing a place in the emerging cabinet.

Tinubu’s Pound Of Flesh

Tinubu sent El-Rufai on a fool’s errand by adding his name to the list of ministerial nominees he forwarded to the Senate for screening and confirmation. Unconfirmed reports at the time, suggested that he was being considered as potential power minister. And before anyone could say Godwin Emefiele, El-Rufai had scurried to the Senate wing of the National Assembly, awaiting his turn in the screening exercise. The news hit him like thunderbolt; his screening had been put in abeyance on account of an unfavourable “security report.” The ex-Kaduna governor did not need a soothsayer to tell him that the “security report” comes in flesh and blood. Tinubu simply took his pound of flesh from El-Rufai by humbling him in the full glare of the public. The godfather never forgets. El-Rufai was caught off guard. He bleated. He brayed. He was dazed. It was a humiliating experience. He got hit by a ricochet from a bullet he had fired at the godfather.
El-Rufai had claimed that Tinubu’s role in Buhari’s 2015 electoral victory was exaggerated. But this same Buhari failed in three previous attempts. Did he mean to say that without Tinubu, Buhari would have won in the Southwest where he was rejected in three consecutive election circles? If he still insists that Tinubu’s role in Buhari’s election was exaggerated, then how would he rate his own contribution to Tinubu’s victory in 2023? Tinubu won 29.4 percent votes in El-Rufai’s Kaduna while Atiku won 40.8 percent. Check the records.
The long and short of the story, is that Jagaban outsmarted his opponent in a political chess game. It’s coup and counter coup. Tit for tat. And today, the godfather El-Rufai plotted to retire from politics, is now holding the sword by the hilt. What a thing about politics. In frustration, he dumped the APC for the Labour Party a few days ago. El-Rufai’s cat has undergone sphynx mutation. It is in desperate need of covering to shield its furless skin from the vagaries of the elements. May Shehu Sani’s wish for him never prevail.

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Legends lost! An era closes! A nation mourns!

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By Abiodun KOMOLAFE

The passing of Chief Ayo Adebanjo, a renowned elder statesman and Afenifere chieftain, and the breaking news about Chief Edwin Clark, mark the end of an era.

Focusing primarily on Adebanjo, he represented, very much like Clark, the spirit of emancipation, which arose out of the earlier stages of the agitation for an end to the colonial incursion in Africa. Indeed, Clark was actually, as a student at Holborn College of Law in London, an active member of the West African Students’ Union (WASU). Between 1952 and 1965, he was also a member of the Honourable Society of Inner Temple, London.

WASU is of great significance, for it triggered off the current of thinking, based on the progressive philosophical base, not just for dismantling colonialism but for presenting a programme of action to guide the post-colonial state. The position of WASU affected the thinking of movements such as the Action Group (AG) in Nigeria and the Convention People’s Party (CPP) in Ghana, amongst others.

Indeed, the manifesto pledge of the AG, to ‘make life more abundant’, is aligned with WASU’s affiliation with the ground-breaking manifesto of the Labour Party in 1945, ‘Let us face the future’, which has stood as the most important manifesto ever issued. Significantly, it was the AG manifesto in 1951 which persuaded Adebanjo to switch from the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) to AG. The late sage obviously felt that AG’s manifesto was in alignment with his own political philosophy.

By the time the foremost nationalist switched to AG, the NCNC had undergone a significant shift in its ideology. Following the death of Herbert Macaulay, the party abandoned its initial stance on a federalist post-colonial state and adopted a highly centralized ‘unification’ position. This drastic change had far-reaching consequences, leading to disastrous effects that still plague the country today.

Adebanjo’s shift in allegiance revealed the politics of an era which was based on philosophical ideas and ideological thrusts. This is in marked contradistinction to today’s trend of ‘decamping’ for purely personal advancement and pecuniary benefits. He remained steadfast in his progressive beliefs from his early 20s until his passing at 96. This is why an era has passed, and the passing of that era should be treated with deep regret. The highly respected Nigerian did not shift from his ideological position, through tribulations, setbacks and defeats, including the prospect of going to jail.

During the 1962 treasonable felony trial, Adebanjo faced a choice: abandon his principles and gain a lucrative appointment by testifying for the prosecution, or stand firm. He chose the latter! Today, the political atmosphere is in direct contrast to the faithfulness exhibited by the Isanya Ogbo, Ijebu Ode-born leader and the nation is financially and morally poorer for it. Nigeria is today mired in the ’development of the underdevelopment’, underachievement and an alarming slide into the fringes in the world pecking order.

In my January 6, 2009 article, ‘Afenifere: Once upon an identity’, I wrote that many Yorubas believed the once-revered body had become extinct, with its relevance dying even before the passing of notable figures like Bola Ige and Abraham Adesanya. Fast-forward to today, and the question remains: how relevant is Afenifere in the face of widespread crises, including security concerns and rampant unemployment in the Southwest?

If a country’s politics is not ideologically driven, there are always consequences. In other words, if Nigeria had continued to produce people who believed in the ideological current and stayed faithful, the country could have lived to be at par with Brazil, which is the world’s 10th largest economy; if not, with India, which is the 5th largest.

Instructively, there was a clear ideological mandate of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that, in his first coming, that translated into practice moved forty million Brazilians out of poverty and built one million housing units annually for eight years. Nigeria could have achieved similar progress, and more, if it had continued to create the atmosphere that produced Ayo Adebanjo and people like him, such as Edwin Clark.

Speaking generally, Nigeria’s biggest problem is the attitude of its leaders and the popular. Imagine the plight of the average citizen! As fate would have it, Nigeria now has one of the highest poverty rates in the world, with significant spatial and socio-economic inequalities, exacerbating social unrest and instability. The living standards are going down, and there’s mass unemployment, with large trade deficits and dependence on oil exports not only resulting in economic stagnation but also hindering development. Here, corruption is a fair game.
Bribery is also a fair game. The trouble is that either is a seed; once it is sown, it will surely germinate,
then bear fruit. After that comes the harvest season.

The reality is unambiguous: many families survive on less than N5,000 per week, while the minimum wage barely covers the cost of a bag of rice. Soaring gasoline prices, inadequate education, healthcare and nutrition have all contributed to a vicious cycle of poverty and underdevelopment. To make matters worse, the inflation rate has skyrocketed to an all-time high, exacerbating the country’s economic challenges; and it is as if the gods are angry!

With these pressing issues staring us in the face, what concrete solutions is Afenifere proposing, and how is it engaging with organizations like the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) to address these challenges? Furthermore, as Afenifere’s stance seems to swing and swerve depending on the whims of its leaders, is the organization presenting solid position papers and working collaboratively with others to drive meaningful
change? The fall of giants like Ayo Adebanjo serves as a poignant reminder that the baton of leadership must be
passed to a new generation of Nigerians who are equally committed to the ideals of democracy, social justice, and federalism. In saner societies, Afenifere is supposed to have evolved into a research institute powerhouse for Southwest Nigeria, proffering ironclad solutions to state and local governments on education, internal security, food security and health challenges. But is in doing that?

How many people relate to Afenifere these days, apart from a tiny segment of the elite? Again, if one may ask, what’s the continued relevance of Afenifere? Its influence has waned, and its connection to the average person, particularly outside the elite circle, is tenuous at best. If you talk to somebody in Ijebu-Jesa, my Native Nazareth, what is his concern with Afenifere? Does he know what it stands for? With the last of the titans finding their way to their Creator, will Afenifere still be relevant in decades to come?

Adebanjo was once here! Now, he belongs in history! He has done his bit and he has left the stage. He fought tirelessly for his principles, unyielding in the face of adversity, and uncompromising in his pursuit of a more just and equitable society. His legacy, now forever entwined with the fabric of Afenifere, stands as an inspiration, illuminating the enduring importance of equity, good governance and social justice – timeless ideals that transcend the boundaries of mortality.

Adebanjo’s passing represents what we have lost and what might have been. The lesson from the passing of people like him should be taught in schools and documentary dramas made about their lives in order to instruct, guide and guard. Perhaps, it’d still be possible to rekindle that era!

May the beautiful souls of Chief Ayo Adebanjo and Chief Edwin Clark find rest in the bosom of their
Creator!

May the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world, grant us peace in Nigeria!

*KOMOLAFE wrote from Ijebu-Jesa, Osun State, Nigeria ( ijebujesa@yahoo.co.uk )

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