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OPINION: Amaechi, el-Rufai And Alákedun
Published
7 months agoon
By
Editor
When I read the common position the former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi and his counterpart from Kaduna, Nasir el-Rufai, pushed in Abuja last week about the government of President Bola Tinubu, the first thing that came to mind was the curse of instability Obàtálá placed on Alákedun. Indeed, there is no stability for the betrayer because it was pronounced: Àti ‘gi dí’gi ni ti Ìjímèrè (From one tree to the other is the lot of Ijimere-monkey)!
Rìkísí is Yoruba word for conspiracy. When two hitherto enemies suddenly find a common ground, my people say of them: Rìkísí pa wón pò wón di òré (united in friendship by conspiracy). Rìkísí has a forerunner. Before two enemies come together to pursue a common goal, both, or either of them, must have betrayed a cause. Betrayal comes before conspiracy (Ilè dídà ní sáájú òtè). Again, no betrayer goes unpunished according to Yoruba belief.
Thanks be to those who nurtured us from our cradle with moral teachings. The various moonlight tales that dominated our informal education in the days of yore are not in vain after all. One of such tales is the story of the small brown monkey, Alákedun, otherwise known as Ìjímèrè. Our elders told us the tale to show why monkeys remain ambulant to this day, jumping from one tree to the other.
Alákedun, the fable says, was a close friend to Obàtálá, the Yoruba god of creativity. One of the delicacies Obatala would not miss is palm wine. The deity was said to relish palm wine to the extent of being addicted to it. And being a generous god, Obatala always invited all other deities and his friends to share his palm wine with him.
Of all the friends, the closest to Obàtálá was Alákedun, whom the deity employed to work for him and paid him handsomely. The only secret Obatala probably kept away from Alakedun was the very minute the god of creativity would go into the inner recesses with his wife for due benevolence! They were that close.
One day, the other deities and friends, jealous of Obàtálá’s progress in life, decided to conspire against him. They went to a fake Babalawo, who made a false divination and pronounced that Ifa had banned the consumption of palm wine. Obàtálá knew that the plot was against him, and he devised a means to beat them at their game.
Obàtálá got a new pot and asked his wife to fill it with ògí (pap). When the formation got fermented, he poured the whitish water into another pot and began to drink it. Alákedun noticed that Obàtálá used to drink a whitish substance from the pot. He opened the pot and saw the whitish water inside. Without having a taste of the content, he dashed to his co-conspirators to inform them that Obàtálá had defied the instruction from Ifa as he continued to drink palm wine.
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Obàtálá was summoned and the allegation laid before him. The deity did not utter a word. He simply brought out the pot and asked everyone to taste the content. They all did. Yes, the content was whitish, but it did not taste like palm wine, nor did it have the scent of palm wine. Alákedun was ashamed.
As a punishment, Obàtálá disengaged him from his employ and placed a curse on him to wit: Alákedun will not have a stable lifestyle but will hop from one tree to the other. Whenever you see a monkey, know the source of its perpetual ambulant lifestyle. There is no stability for a betrayer!
The duo of Amaechi and el-Rufai spoke at a national conference on strengthening democracy in Nigeria, organised by the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development in Abuja. At the conference, Amaechi for instance, asked the younger generation of Nigerians to be ready to fight very hard and wrest power from the incumbent President Tinubu.
The former Minister of Transportation under the lethargic government of General Muhammadu Buhari, warned that: “The politician is there in Nigeria to steal, maim, and kill to remain in power. If you think Tinubu will give it to you, you are wasting your time.” He added that for Tinubu to be shown the way out of power in the next round of general elections, “The people should be angry. There should be protests. Not even protests against anybody but against the politicians that ‘we won’t vote.” Unless the people demonstrated that they would do the unthinkable to defend their votes, they should perish the thought of chasing the present power wielders out of power.
To be honest, there is nothing the former Rivers State governor said at that event that is not true. Even his account of how the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) intimidated former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) out of power is also correct. The only snag in his submissions is why Rotimi Amaechi is bitter about the Tinubu administration. Why did he, for the terrible eight wasteful years of the Buhari administration, not come out forcefully to encourage Nigerians to ‘rescue’ their country?
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The answer to the above posers is also in the tale of the Hyena and the mangoes. Hyena, by nature, is not gifted with the talent of jumping heights. So, the tale has it that one day, the Hyena was hungry. It appeared that all the lesser animals in the jungle that could have served as good lunch were holding a prayer session. The Hyena eventually got to a mango tree with ripe fruits. It decided to have some to keep its belly warm pending when any animal would stray to its path.
Hyena made several unsuccessful attempts to pluck the ripe mangoes. When it dawned on it that it was a mission impossible, it looked up at the mangoes, hissed and intoned: “Why am I even wasting my time over these unripe mangoes” That is exactly the frustration Amaechi is suffering over the Presidency he sought and did several rounds of sprinting at the Port Harcourt Stadium in 2023 to show that he is fit, but failed to accomplish!
Nobody can successfully defend the cluelessness in the Tinubu administration without sounding witless. Be that as it may, it is equally not in the place of Amaechi to criticise this government if he could tolerate the vapid administration of Buhari for eight years without a mewl from him!
The Buhari government under which Amaechi served as a minister and the current docile Tinubu administration are like leprosy and third-degree scabies. Both destroy the skin of the afflicted. It is an insult to our sensibilities if Amaechi is now projecting himself as our moral compass to judge anyone in power. From the time he left the university till he left government in 2023, Amaechi has remained an over-pampered child of government (Akebaje omo Ijoba). If there is any protest in the league of the one he advocated in Abuja, the former governor should be told that he will not escape the wrath of the people. It is better that he knows the fire he intends to kindle with his call to action!
The same applies to el-Rufai and his sanctimonious propensity, when he said that: “You cannot afford to have illiterates, semi-illiterates, and cunning people as your leaders. This is why we end up with the poor leadership we have today.” The question to ask is: who assisted the “illiterates, semi-illiterates, and cunning people” to get to power in the first instance?
If el-Rufai is so concerned about the quality of leadership Nigeria deserves, was Tinubu the best among the lots that contested the APC presidential primaries? Why, for instance, did he rally all northern elite in the APC, and blackmailed the Presidency then into supporting the Tinubu agenda? At what point did he realise the ‘illiteracy’ and ‘semi-illiteracy’ in this administration? After his failed attempt at becoming a minister?
And talking about the non-existent stance of opposition, or attempt to cripple the opposition by the APC, who will help us to tell el-Rufai that he is the chief architect of the death of opposition in the current dispensation? Why would he not realise that he joined forces with others to decapitate the PDP when he abandoned the party to join the current “illiterates and semi-illiterates” to form the APC all in a bid to wrest power at all costs!
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If it is true that “The problems that led to the creation of the APC remain unresolved” and he “…no longer believe the APC is interested in addressing them”, as he claimed, why is it difficult for el-Rufai to understand that APC is a child of conspiracy and that the party only came to wrest power and nothing more?
Is el-Rufai not old enough to know that whatever is established on the quicksand of conspiracy would not last? That conspiracy does not birth any good child? This is why his romance with Amaechi, and other politicians in the PDP, to ally will also not stand. There is nothing altruistic about the whole gang-up!
It is most unfortunate that President Tinubu is not giving one the opportunity to defend him. How I wish that the man who was said to have “built Lagos” was living up to his billing as a ‘builder’! One would have used some unkind words to qualify the el-Rufais and Amaechis of this era!
The only takeaway from the rantings of these two folks is that there is nothing conspiracy cannot, sadly, breed! When Rotimi Amaechi indicated interest to become president in 2023, el-Rufai was at the forefront, leading the foot soldiers of President Tinubu. Today, Amaechi and el-Rufai have found a common ground in the lacklustre performance of Tinubu to sermonise on good governance; the same they could not offer the people of Rivers and Kaduna States, when they held sway as governors. Pity!
If one’s masquerade dances well at the arena, one cannot but be elated. But how does one chant the praise names of this Tinubu’s Egúngún that is missing every step of the choreography at the arena? Why won’t the frogs of Amaechi and el-Rufai urinate on the white costume of Tinubu’s masquerade when the only visible achievement of the 20-month-old administration is the pain it inflicted on the people at its inception?
Unfortunately for the hapless masses, with the way the PDP is standing today, and the back-and-forth locomotion from Peter Obi and his Labour Party, the tendency that Tinubu would refine his 2023 winning ‘strategies’ and foist another term on us all is very high! Sad, and at the same time terrifying, but the Rìkísí from Amaechi and el-Rufai is not strong enough to dislodge Tinubu from Aso Rock Villa. I wonder how many Nigerians would pay attention to the duo with their tendency to jump into any political bed as long as their insatiable personal interests are concerned! It appears that Òjé (lead) has been fixed on the chief priest’s finger. Who will remove it?
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The Pioneer Head of the Civil Service of the Federal Capital Territory, Mrs Grace Adayilo, is dead.
The late Adayilo reportedly died in the early hours of Monday, 1st of September, 2025.
The Special Assistant on Media to the HoS, Anthony Odey, confirmed the reports to our correspondent in a short text.
“Yes, please,” the text message read.
READ ALSO:BREAKING: Former Inspector-General Of Police, Solomon Arase, Is Dead
Odey, however, gave no further details surrounding the circumstances of her death.
Recall that President Bola Tinubu approved the appointment of Grace Adayilo as the Head of the Civil Service of the FCT on the 6th of October 2024, with the appointment taking effect immediately.
She made history as both the first HoS and the first female HoS of the FCT.
Before her appointment, Adayilo served as the Permanent Secretary of the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat.
As of the time of filing this report, no official statements have been made by the family or the FCT Administration.
News
JUST IN: Finnish Court Jails Simon Ekpa Six Years For Terrorism Offences
Published
5 hours agoon
September 1, 2025By
Editor
The Päijät-Häme District Court on Monday sentenced Nigerian-born Finnish, Simon Ekpa, to six years in prison for terrorism-related crimes and other offences, according to official court documents seen by BBC News Pidgin on Monday.
The 40-year-old former municipal politician from Lahti was convicted on multiple charges, including participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation, incitement to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, aggravated tax fraud, and violations of the Lawyers Act.
The court ordered that Ekpa remain in custody.
According to the judgment, between August 2021 and November 2024, Ekpa attempted to promote the independence of the so-called Biafra region in southeastern Nigeria through illegal means.
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“He used social media to gain a politically influential position and took advantage of the confusion within a key separatist movement in Nigeria to play a significant role in it,” the court statement stated as reported by BBC News pidgin.
Ekpa denied all the charges against him.
The court also found that Ekpa was instrumental in founding and developing the separatist movement into a more organised structure, working alongside others.
It was revealed during the trial that armed groups were established under the movement, which the court classified as terrorist organisations.
READ ALSO:Biafra: Simon Ekpa Released By Finnish Police After Hours Of Questioning
“Ekpa equipped the groups with weapons, explosives and ammunition through his contact network. He also urged and enticed his followers on X (formerly Twitter) to commit crimes in Nigeria,” the court said.
The trial was conducted over 12 sessions between May 30 and June 25, 2025, with a panel of three judges unanimously delivering the verdict.
Finnish authorities arrested Ekpa in December 2024 on charges linked to terrorism.
He was held on probable cause and suspicion of publicly inciting people to commit crimes with terrorist intent.
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The alleged offences were said to have occurred between August 23, 2021, and November 2024, primarily in the city of Lahti.
The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation also initially arrested four other men in connection with the case. However, charges against them were later dropped due to insufficient evidence.
Ekpa, who previously served as a municipal councillor in Lahti, is widely known for his controversial role in the Biafran separatist movement.
His online broadcasts and social media activity have drawn both support and condemnation within and outside Nigeria.
News
JUST IN: Doctors Issue 10-day Ultimatum, Threaten Strike
Published
6 hours agoon
September 1, 2025By
Editor
The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors issued a 10-day ultimatum to all relevant government agencies on Monday, warning that its members would embark on a nationwide strike if the demands were not met.
NARD disclosed this in a communiqué signed by its President, Dr. Tope Osundara; the General Secretary, Dr. Oluwasola Odunbaku; and Publicity and the Social Secretary, Omoha Amobi, issued after its Extraordinary National Executive Council meeting, which was held virtually on Sunday.
In July, NARD had issued a three-week ultimatum, but in the interest of industrial harmony, the NEC granted the National Officers’ Committee an additional three weeks to engage with all relevant stakeholders, after which it would reconvene to reassess the extent of implementation of its demands.
In Sunday’s meeting, the E-NEC condemned the failure of the Federal Government to fulfil its promises, noting with dismay that a substantial number of resident doctors remain unpaid for their 2025 Medical Residency Training Fund, and the refusal to pay the outstanding five months’ arrears arising from the 25 per cent/35 per cent Consolidated Medical Salary Structure review, as well as other longstanding salary arrears.
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It also condemned the government’s failure to pay the arrears of the 2024 Accoutrement Allowance.
“The E-NEC expressed displeasure over the unjust downgrading of the membership certificates of the West African Colleges of Physicians and Surgeons by the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria, as well as the persistent non-issuance of membership certificates by the National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria.
“The E-NEC condemned in strong terms the failure of the Kaduna State Government to honour its commitments to members under ARD Kaduna and Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital, despite earlier agreements and signed Memoranda of Understanding. The E-NEC condemned the failure of the Oyo State Government to address the challenges faced by members of ARD LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Ogbomosho, despite an ongoing indefinite strike action in the hospital,” it noted.
It, however, commended state governors who have demonstrated commitment to the welfare of doctors by paying the 2025 MRTF.
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Meanwhile, the doctors said that if their demands are not met by September 10, 2025, they would embark on a nationwide strike.
E-NEC, however, demands the immediate payment of the outstanding 2025 MRTF to all eligible resident doctors by the Federal Government, as well as the settlement of the outstanding five months’ arrears of CONMESS, alongside other longstanding salary arrears.
The Council also demands, “The immediate payment of the arrears of the 2024 Accoutrement Allowance. The E-NEC demands the commencement of payment of specialist allowances to all doctors without further delay, given their indispensable role in delivering specialist medical care across the nation. The E-NEC demands that the MDCN immediately restore the recognition of the West African postgraduate membership certificates to their rightful status and calls on the NPMCN to commence without delay the issuance of membership certificates to all deserving candidates, in line with international best practices.
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“The E-NEC demands the immediate implementation of the 2024 CONMESS and resolution of all outstanding welfare concerns in Kaduna State, noting that the indefinite strike by our members has already resumed and will continue until these demands are met. The E-NEC demands that the Governor of Oyo State, His Excellency Governor Seyi Makinde, immediately resolve the welfare concerns of resident doctors under the employment of the state government, particularly those at LAUTECH Teaching Hospital, Ogbomosho.
“The E-NEC urges all State Governors to prioritise the welfare of doctors in their state-owned hospitals and training institutions, ensure the timely payment of MRTF to their resident doctors, and take proactive steps to curb emigration while maintaining industrial harmony.
“The E-NEC extends the ultimatum by a final 10 days to all relevant government agencies to meet these demands. Failure to do so within this period (expiring on Wednesday, 10th September 2025) will leave the NEC with no other option than to embark on a nationwide strike action.”
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