Bola Tinubu Should Resign!

 By Casmir Igbokwe

Three videos which trended on the social media last week brought home the current reality of life in Nigeria. The first one happens to be a group of young women struggling to scoop rice from the pot of a rice vendor in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. The big pot of rice was still on fire, steaming hot. But the women were not bothered with fire or any other thing. All they wanted was to quench the fire of hunger ravaging their stomachs.

*Tinubu

In the second video, a group of people, mainly youths, were struggling to collect loaves of bread said to be N100 each. It was on February 14, 2024, being Valentine’s Day. As the youths were pushing and shoving one another, the organisers, who had a tough time controlling them, resorted to whipping them to be orderly. This particular incident reportedly happened on Lagos Island.

For Tinubu’s Nigeria, It’s From Frying Pan To Fire

 By Emeka Alex Duru

A friend called the other day from Germany to get a true picture of situations in the country. The initial attempt was to pretend that all was well, that, apart from the dust of the February/March elections, there was not much to worry about. But that seemed a big error, in fact, a terrible one. He blurted: “Old Boy (as we address ourselves), you got it wrong on this. Reports I get every day from people at home indicate that things are not working. The emergence of Bola Tinubu has not helped matters. Except those in the corridors of power, every other citizen is panting. What I get is that, for Nigerians, it’s from frying pan to fire.”

*Tinubu

There was nothing to argue with him. Perhaps, at no time have Nigerians had it as rough as they are going through currently. And to think that this is a country that is not at war, yet the citizens are literally passing through hell in the hands of their leaders. It rankles exceedingly. The cost of every basic item in the land has hit the rooftop. Nigerians are hungry and angry! Minor issues that would have been overlooked can now result in fisticuffs. People wear frowns on their faces as if they woke up to continue with unfinished quarrels.

Why Do Nigerian Governors Swear Allegiance To The President?

 By Olu Fasan

This is a subject I have long wanted to address. It first caught my attention when I watched the inauguration of Professor Charles Soludo as governor of Anambra State in March 2022. As he recited the oath of office, I was struck by how many times he mentioned the words “Federal Republic of Nigeria”, “President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria” and “Federal Government of Nigeria”, while he only directly mentioned “Anambra State” once; yes, once!  

*Tinubu meets governors 

The words quoted above, bar Anambra State, are in the governor’s oath set out in the Seventh Schedule of the 1999 Constitution. For instance, it says a governor must exercise the authority vested in him “so as not to impede or prejudice the authority lawfully vested in the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”, and “so as not to endanger the continuance of the Federal Government in Nigeria”. It goes on: a governor must “devote” himself “to the service and well-being of the people of Nigeria”. Really? Why?

Tinubu’s Minority Government Faces A Legitimacy Challenge

 By Olu Fasan

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the newly installed president of Nigeria, is a product of two great institutional anomalies. One is a deeply flawed Constitution designed to delegitimise the presidency of Nigeria. The other is a Might-Is-Right state that manipulates state agencies to impose its will on the people. These anomalies deny Tinubu’s presidency the strong mandate and legitimacy it badly needs to govern.

*Tinubu

Let’s start with the constitutional anomalies. Under section 134 (2) of the 1999 Constitution, a candidate is deemed elected as president, where there are more than two candidates, if: (a) he has the highest number of votes cast at the election, and (b) he has not less than one-quarter of the votes cast at the election in each of at least two thirds of all the states in the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

2015-2023: The Years Of Pestilence

 By Adekunle Adekoya

When the All Progressives Congress, APC, came up to challenge PDP’s hold on power since 1999 in February 2013, not a few Nigerians incubated the hope that something refreshingly different will happen to Nigeria. Formed as a merger of three parties — the Congress for Progressive Change, the All Nigeria Peoples Party, and the Action Congress of Nigeria, the APC went ahead to field Major-General Muhammadu Buhari as its presidential candidate against Dr. Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP in the 2015 elections. The rest, as they say, is now history.

*Buhari's 73rd Birthday Dinner - December 17, 2015

Before and after the 2015 elections, Buhari and the APC made a lot of promises about how they would work to ensure that life and living gets on the upward swing for Nigerians. In fact, ahead of the elections, Buhari was at Chatham House, the UK think-tank where he made a lot of proclamations regarding what he would do if elected president. In the opening paragraphs of the Chatham House speech, Buhari said: “When speaking about Nigeria overseas, I normally prefer to be my country ’s public relations and marketing officer, extolling her virtues and hoping to attract investments and tourists.” 

Soyinka, Chimamanda And Obi-Dients: When Does Opinion Cross The Line?

 By Jideofor Adibe

In recent weeks Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, multiple award winning writer, Chimamanda Adichie, and supporters of Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the February 25, 2023 presidential election  (otherwise known as Obidients), have been trending. The backgrounds were an interview granted by Datti Baba Ahmed in which he was quoted as saying that whoever “swears in Mr. Tinubu has ended democracy in Nigeria”. Elsewhere, Dr. Datti Baba- Ahmed was also quoted as saying that Nigeria does not have a President-elect.  

*Chimamanda and Soyinka 

The conversation took a different turn when Soyinka criticised the comments by Dr. Datti Baba-Ahmed, saying: “I have never heard anyone threaten the judiciary on television the way Datti did I heard the kind of menacing, blackmailing language that we were treated to by Datti. That kind of do-or-die attitude and provocation is not what I think we have all been struggling for.”

Four Biggest Losers Of 2023 General Elections

 By Michael Owhoko

Real losers of the 2023 Nigerian general elections are not the electorate who were deprived of their rights to freely choose candidates of their choice nor the first-timer youth who were disappointed by the Nigerian state nor the candidates who lost or won as declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

*Yakubu and Buhari 

The biggest losers are President Muhammadu Buhari; INEC Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu; President-elect, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu; and Nigeria as a political entity. Except for Bola Tinubu who carries the burden of legitimacy arising from what is perceived as a flawed process and total miniature votes garnered, the others will live with the scar and collective guilt slammed on the country by ethical deficit in the delivery process of the elections.

Pyrrhic Victory: Tinubu Lacks Legitimacy To Govern Nigeria

 By Olu Fasan

Last year, in his speech at Chatham House, the London-based international affairs think tank, Bola Tinubu made a profound statement that has come back to haunt him, casting a cloud over his declaration by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, as the winner of February’s presidential election.

*Bola Tinubu

In the speech, Tinubu said the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, required under the Electoral Act 2022, would deliver “the fairest and freest election” in Nigeria’s history. His words: “This is particularly important because the next president of Nigeria have some tough choices to make and will not be able to do so with questionable electoral mandate.”

Politicians, Foreigners And Nigeria’s Elections

 By Paul Ejime

The call, the other day, by President Muhammadu Buhari on foreign ambassadors posted to Nigeria to desist from interfering in the country’s forthcoming election is both timely and imperative. The president spoke while receiving Letters of Credence from the Ambassadors of Switzerland, Sweden, Republic of Ireland, Kingdom of Thailand, Republic of Senegal and Republic of South Sudan. He reiterated his call to foreign government representatives in Nigeria not to interfere in the country’s internal affairs, especially the electoral process.

*Tinubu

“I urge you to be guided by diplomatic practice to ensure that your activities remain within the limits of your profession as you monitor the build-up to the elections and the conduct of the general elections itself,” presidential spokesman Femi Adesina said in a statement.

Tinubu’s Chatham House Farce And Attack On Free Press

 By Olu Fasan

About two months ago, I received a call from a loyalist of Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress, APC. The caller, an old acquaintance, asked if I could advise on how Tinubu could secure a meeting with the new British monarch, King Charles III. I was flabbergasted, stunned!

*Tinubu

Okay, I was a UK Government adviser but advising on how a foreign politician could meet the monarch was well above my paygrade. Besides, was he not reading my columns? Did he not know I believed, still believe, a Tinubu presidency would be monumentally disastrous for Nigeria? 

A Chatham House Of Horror

 By Don Pedro Obaseki

Chatham House, while trying to repackage and market Bola Ahmed Tinubu, ended up de-marketing itself. While trying, albeit strenuously, to rebrand Tinubu, Chatham House ended up eroding its own brand persona. Its brand equity went bearish, like a bad stock cascading down the index on a bad day on the FTSE or the New York Stock Exchange.

*Tinubu

Tinubu’s handlers not only trashed Chatham House, but also ridiculed the Nigerian nation and her people before the global community. At best, Tinubu’s Chatham House odyssey was a public relations  disaster!

His legendary gaffes got amplified before a global audience that either watched the horrid display on television or via live streaming on the internet. Tinubu’s infamous, yet half-expected comedy of errors turned an otherwise revered platform into a “Chatham House of Horror” or(to bring the adjective closer to home), the “Chatham House of Commotion”.

Political Loyalists: Let Tinubu Be Himself

 

By Tonnie Iredia

Each time I come across a statement by the different support groups and campaign managers of some political parties, I am immediately reminded of certain issues that are yet to change in politics and elections in Nigeria.

One of them is the ease with which the closest sect of loyalists to Nigerian leaders complicate their tenures. It has become the practice for candidates who had during electioneering campaigns rolled out numerous programmes and policies to renege on or deemphasize them once they assume office. 

Reflections On Tinubu’s Drama At Chatham House

 By Tunde Olusunle

Signs that the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will run a government by proxy if elected, emerged at his outing at Chatham House, London, earlier in the week. Tinubu, who has made a tradition of avoiding public speaking events in the run-up to the February 2023 elections, jettisoned the Arise Television “Townhall Meeting” organised for the major presidential contenders, Sunday, December 4, 2022. It was the latest in Tinubu’s non-appearance at similar engagements since he won the presidential ticket of his party last June. 

*Tinubu

Last August, Tinubu was conspicuously absent at the annual conference of the Nigerian Bar Association, (NBA). Presidential candidate of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and the candidate of the Labour Party, (LP), Peter Obi, honoured the invite at the conference held in Lagos. Tinubu’s running mate, Kashim Shettima, stood in for him. In September, Tinubu was again absent when presidential candidates of all the political parties endorsed the “2023 election peace pact.” 

Bola Tinubu’s ‘Teamship’ Doctrine Is A Scam!

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

“Let me demonstrate here one of those philosophies, doctrines that I believe firmly in – teamship – unbreakable team. To demonstrate that, I will choose the first question and assign to Dele Alake and the second question assign to Nasir el-Rufai and the third question assign to Ben Ayade.”

*Tinubu 

Those were the words of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the 2023 elections, at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, London known as Chatham House on Monday, December 5. In the spirit of Tinubu’s teamship, questions posed to him directly following a paper he presented at the think-tank were farmed out by fiat to surrogates.

Reactions, expectedly, were fast and furious. While well-meaning Nigerians termed, correctly, his “teamship” doctrine an abdication, the APC spin doctors went on overdrive. Alake, former Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Director of Strategic Communications of the APC presidential campaign council, said delegating questions to team members is one of Tinubu’s innovations.

Paradox Of Poverty In The Midst Of Plenty

 By Ayo Oyoze Baje

“While other nations are faced with the challenges of the 21st Century,we are bogged down by the avarice of the elite. Every time we believe we have seen the worst from our country, the shameless, opportunistic power grabbers take us back to a new low” – Nigeria Democratic Liberty Forum, NDLF New York (June, 2010)

Looked at, over the past six decades the statistics have been simply scary, shocking and scandalous! One is talking of course, about the inexcusable social inequality and injustice that still persist between the few rotten-rich citizens and the long-suffering led majority, here in my dear fatherland, Nigeria. With the knowledge that we live in a country abundantly blessed by God with vast and varied natural resources, it is a crying shame that we are still enmeshed in the deepest pit of pitiable poverty, globally.

Why Restructuring Is A Win-Win For All Nigerians

By Written by Ifeanyi Izeze

When the former Vice President and presidential hopeful on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, recently addressed the London’s Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), on the importance of strengthening the economic management system of the federating states in Nigeria, the major takeaway was that we have lived on a dangerous structural fault line for too long and pretended all was well.

Southern Nigerian Leaders: Advocates for Restructuring 

Though the former vice president used the auspicious opportunity of his speech at the Chatham House to harp on some of his economic programmes and policies as a presidential candidate, the emphasis was heavily on the ills of our defective federal system of government.

Where is Muhammadu Buhari?

By Chuks Iloegbunam 
Yes, indeed. That is the question. Where is the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC)? The man left Nigeria in mysterious circumstances sometime between February 15 and 19, 2015. His manner of disappearing raised eyebrows across the country, for he suddenly melted into ether. To divert the attention of the curious, his handlers posted numerous false pictures on the Internet and planted same in national newspapers. There, suddenly, was Muhammadu Buhari, confidently emerging from airport formalities at either Heathrow or Gatwick! There, suddenly, was a relaxed Buhari in some well-appointed London studio, granting a press interview. 

*Muhammadu Buhari 

It didn’t take a century for the pack of lies to crumble. It turned out the pictures released of Buhari by his handlers were of the man on a UK visit during 2013. It turned out that the Buhari interview was years old, and had been conducted not anywhere in Europe but inside an Abuja Transcorp Hilton suite. Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose personally visited the suite and demonstrated beyond every iota of doubt that it was the venue of the so-called interview the APC claimed its presidential candidate had granted in London. Eagle-eyed journalists supported Fayose’s findings by detailing features of the interview picture that pinned its origin to the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.