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OPINION: Buhari’s Poverty Of Truth
Published
6 months agoon
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Editor
By Suyi Ayodele
Muhammadu Buhari contested the 2015 election as Mai Gaskiya (the truthful one). He promised to publish his asset declaration form. He never did for eight years. For eight years, he lived big and clean, wearing designer shoes and wristwatches. He held multi-million-naira wedding ceremonies for his children. He ate and picked his teeth and posted his posh photos for beautiful ladies to drool over. Now he says he is poor. What is the definition of poverty? Or, rather, what are Mai Gaskiya’s definitions for truth and lie?
Mrs. Mary Todd Lincoln, wife of President Abraham Lincoln, was said to have approached her husband and asked: “Does this dress make my backside look big?” Lincoln initially squirmed, shifted on his seat and hesitated before holding his thumb and forefinger slightly apart. Then he answered: “Perhaps a bit.” Mrs. Lincoln’s response was spontaneous. She “spins on her heels and exits in a huff”, the account stated.
What happened between husband and wife in that encounter? Michael Shermer, American science writer and historian, answered this question in an April 2014 paper titled, “What Science Tells us about Why We Lie”. The article was published by the Scientific American. In answering the question, Shermer quoted a fellow American neurologist, Sam Harris, who in his 2013 booky, “Lying”, said that “By lying, we deny our friends access to reality- and their resulting ignorance often harms them in ways we did not anticipate. Our friends may act on our falsehoods or fail to solve problems that could have been solved only on the basis of good information.”
Shermer projected that Mrs. Lincoln’s question might probably be to elicit compliment from her husband or to test their love and loyalty to each other. But President Lincoln ‘failed’ the test, as Harris stated by telling “little white lies’, which “often lead to big black lies”, warning those involved that: “Very soon, you may find yourself behaving as most people do quite effortlessly: shading the truth, or even lying outright, without thinking about it. The price is too high.”
Lincoln’s ‘little white lie’ to his wife is nothing compared to what a fugitive, Alexi Santana (another false identity) did to the Princeton University, New Jersey, USA, in the fall of 1989. The account, as published by the National Geographic Magazine in its June 2017 edition, as written by Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, using the title: “Why We Lie: The Science Behind Our Deceptive Ways”, says it took 18 months for the university to detect the lies.
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Santana applied for admission as a self-schooled candidate from Utah, where he claimed to have been a herder. He was admitted to study Philosophy in the prestigious university. The ‘poor’ herder – again a false impression – became the darling of the university community as he scored as in virtually all his courses.
He, however, almost betrayed his true identity when a fellow roommate noticed that Santana’s bed was always neatly made. When confronted, given the poor countryside background profile he supplied to the university, Santana explained that he usually slept on the floor – a very plausible explanation that matched his poor background.
But 18 months later, a woman, who knew Santana years back identified him as Jay Huntsman of Palo Alto High School, California. The university authority got interested and began to investigate Santana. It was found out that at different times in the past, the ‘brilliant’ student, whose real name is James Hogue, had served a prison term in Utah for stealing and had been arrested several times for similar felonies in Aspen, Colorado, where he successfully passed himself off as someone else!
The university had no option but to hand over Santana James Hogue alias Santana to the police. Thus, the end of his ‘academic’ pursuits, and possibly an end to further lies (white or black). The story of Santana is confirmation that shame is always the lot of a liar. No matter how fast lies travel, the elders say the truth catches up in seconds! Shermer says: “Most of us are not Hitlerian in our lies, but nearly all of us shade the truth just enough to make ourselves or others feel better.” When an elder has penchant for the tall tales, what does he gain? We will answer that presently. But first, we have an appeal to make.
This is a genuine appeal from me to all good-spirited Nigerians. I mean Nigerians of immense goodwill and charity. Someone very dear to us needs help. I am tempted to open a Go-Fund-Me-Account on his behalf. But he is too shy and too ‘honest’ to accept that route. Hence, this Save-Our-Soul (SOS) appeal.
General Muhammadu Buhari is broke. You can read that again. The retired General from Daura, Katsina State, struggles, nowadays, to live comfortably. That shouldn’t be! Here is a man who served this nation meritoriously, rising to the enviable rank of a Major General in the Nigerian Army. He is not a man that should be allowed to live like a common pauper, the very stage he took the citizenry to in his eight years of rudderless leadership!
Besides retiring as a Major General in the Nigerian Army, Buhari was at a time in his career, a Military Head of State. That was between December 31, 1983, and August 27, 1985. For 20 solid months, Buhari had unfettered access to our national treasury. Yet, he did not help himself.
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Fortune smiled on him again. During the reign of the expired Head of State, General Sani Abacha, a period when there was no clear-cut difference between the personal purses of our leaders and the treasury, Buhari was appointed to head the ‘richest’ agency of government, the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF). He stole no dime! Great man indeed!
Lest I forget. General Buhari was also once a Minister of Petroleum under the military government of General Olusegun Obasanjo. He maintained a clean record save for the controversial missing $2 billion oil money then. ‘Fortunately’, nobody has been able to trace the money, how it disappeared and who were responsible. The only link between Buhari and the missing money is that the Daura man was the minister of the ministry from which the money developed wings and flew into thin air!
Later in life, and in our recent past, General Buhari again found himself in power. After surmounting the initial hurdles of his inability to raise the N27 million nomination fees imposed by his All Progressives Congress (APC) party for the presidential ticket in 2025, Buhari, through the generosity of his bank in Kaduna, bought the form, contested and won the APC presidential primaries. He went ahead to ‘win’ the FeBuhari (February) 2015 general election, where he defeated the then incumbent President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
For eight years (2015-2023), Buhari was president and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces. As president, our man of high integrity lived within the emoluments of the office he occupied. He supported that with a modest farm in his Daura village where his cows refused to multiply from the initial 150 herds he declared in 2003!
Now Buhari is out of office, power and influence. He has retired to his native land, Daura to tend his cows. Life has taken a new turn for the man who once saw money and had access to money but kept faith with his avowed integrity as a man who covets nothing, steals nothing but lives a simple pastoral lifestyle. Ayi Kwei Armah, the Ghanaian novelist, probably did not project the character of Buhari when he penned his The Beautiful Ones Are Not Yet Born in 1968. The Saints live right here with us in Nigeria! Phew!
It is therefore very saddening that after all his services to the Nigerian nation, General Buhari, former Head of State, former Minister of Petroleum, former Chairman PTF and former two-term civilian president now lives from hand to mouth as he depends on the rent from one of his two houses in Kaduna to sustain himself!
This is pitiable. This is unacceptable. Nigerians cannot afford to see a man of integrity, the very definition of honesty, like Buhari live in penury when common supervisory councillors live in opulence as a result of their ‘good works’ in office. We must rescue Buhari from the jaws of poverty. Poverty here are in twofold, poverty of liquidity and poverty of truth. This is our Macedonian call for our Mai Gaskiya. Buhari must not be allowed to live in poverty.
I didn’t make up the ‘parlous state of Buhari’s fortune. He said so himself. While addressing senior members of his APC in Katsina penultimate week. Buhari told them and the entire nation that all he lives on is the rent from one of the houses he built in Kaduna. Here is how he stated it: “After my eight years as a civil president, I have only three houses; one in Daura and two in Kaduna. I have given one out for renting where I get money for feeding.”
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It is very strange in our clime that a man of Buhari’s standing would own just three houses. How come Nigerians had lived all this while with an Angel without knowing? One of the modest houses he claimed is in Daura. The remaining two are in Kaduna. Going by the vicissitudes of life, Buhari said that he had to give up one of the houses in Kaduna to tenants and use the proceeds of the rent to sustain himself.
Where is the house in Kaduna located? He did not disclose. What is its size? We would have to find out by ourselves. How much is the rent? That must be a personal information that is not for public consumption. Again, what is the expenditure of Buhari like after office? We can guess from his ‘modest’ lifestyle! If he lives permanently in Daura, how much does he need to feed, take care of his health and other dependents? These are the issues charitable Nigerians should consider and come to the rescue of Buhari. A man who was once used to the luxury of Aso Rock Villa and other high offices he had occupied in the past should not be allowed to suffer the fate of a landlord who lives on the irregular rents paid by his tenants!
Buhari probably thinks that Nigerians have a short memory. He never reckons with the fact that we know that as a retired Major General in the Nigerian Army, his pension is almost the equivalent of his salary while he was in service with the deduction of some negligible allowances.
The retired General failed to admit, while telling his transition from presidential opulence to rent-to-feed tale, that the Military Pension Board only stopped his pension when he was elected president in 2015 because the law does not allow him to earn salary and pension at the same time. Or is he saying that the Military Pension Board deleted his name from the pension roll? What about the N6.345 billion paid as severance allowance to all political office holders whose tenure ended on May 29, 2023? How much was his share of the money? Or he didn’t get a dime?
Can we also remind General Buhari that by the provisions of the Remuneration of Former Presidents and heads of state (And Other Ancillary Matters) Act, 1991 (no 32) sub-section (i), he is “entitled to be paid the sum of N350,000 per month as up-keep allowance; and (ii), entitled to the perquisites of office specified…?” if he has not been receiving that, can we know how long so that we can ‘beg’ the authorities concerned to do the needful?
image.pngFour Russians, Evgeny Nesmeyanov, Yulia Petrova, Nazhavat Abueva, Aliya Ismailova, in January 2019, published an article: “The Theory of Lie: From the Sophists to Socrates.” In the abstract of the piece, they submit that the concept of lie in European culture and social life dwells more “on the preservation of the state, the family, and the implementation of the real practice of human communication…”
Oxford Academy, in an earlier publication in 2010, entitled: “Lying and Deception: Theory and Practice”, says: “a lie is a deliberate false statement that the speaker warrants to be true”. The paper goes further to state that: “…in order to tell a lie, one must make a statement that one warrants to be true…. any lie violates an implicit promise or guarantee that what one says is true. The definition makes sense of the common view that lying involves a breach of trust. To lie, on this view, is to invite others to trust and rely on what one says by warranting its truth, and at the same time to betray that trust by making a false statement that one does not believe to be true”.
I don’t know how many of Buhari’s fans still hold the view that the man can be trusted based on what he says and what we all know to be the true picture. On a personal note, I have a difficulty here because of my upbringing. How do you tell an old man that he is not telling the truth without calling him a liar?
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News
NELFUND Receives 745,000 Student Loan Applications, 2,700 In 24 Hours
Published
46 minutes agoon
August 8, 2025By
Editor
The Nigerian Education Loan Fund said it received over 745,000 applications for its interest-free student loan scheme, with 2,700 of the requests submitted in the last 24 hours.
Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NELFUND, Akintunde Sawyerr, disclosed this at the two-day Renewed Hope Student Leaders’ Engagement, organised by the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students’ Engagement in partnership with the Rivers State Government, held at the University of Port Harcourt on Friday.
He said, “So far, we have over 745,000 Nigerians who have applied for this loan. Out of this number, we have over 400,000 students who are benefiting from this loan.
“They have their school fees paid at the tertiary level, and some of them who have applied for upkeep are receiving N20,000 per month, per session.
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“So far, we have disbursed over N80 billion to Nigerian institutions and Nigerians who are benefiting from the loan.
“We are receiving applications. In the last 24 hours, we had 2,700 applications. We are processing them.”
Sawyerr further said the law establishing NELFUND was recently repealed and re-enacted to allow funding from non-governmental sources.
“In other words, people who want to contribute to the fund from outside government, whether they are philanthropists, general donors, NGOs, people with special interest in education, they can bring their money into that fund for it to be dedicated to the provision of loans or even grants, if they want, to the students,” he explained.
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The NELFUND boss noted that the scheme offers two categories of loans — institutional loans to cover tuition and upkeep loans to support living expenses, saying both are interest-free, with repayment starting two years after completion of the National Youth Service Corps programme.
“If the payment is not complete and you lose your job the payment stops,” Sawyerr said, adding that employers have a statutory duty to deduct 10% from beneficiaries’ salaries once repayment begins.
“The only exception is that if you have your own business and you are paying yourself a salary, you are obliged to put the business or company that you set up to make those payments back to NELFUND,” he added.
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In his remarks, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Students’ Engagement, Asefon Dayo, said the event was a platform to bridge the gap between the government and students.
“Our mission is clear: to engage student leaders meaningfully, inform them about the far-reaching reforms of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in education and youth development, and hear from them directly,” Dayo said.
He further said NELFUND has significantly reduced the rate of dropouts in tertiary institutions and announced that the President had approved funding for 15 colleges of education, polytechnics, and universities to establish innovation hubs and entrepreneurship centres, including robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and electronics labs.

The Lagos Rail Mass Transit Blue Line will from Monday, August 11, 2025, operate every 10 minutes, cutting the Marina to Mile 2 journey time to just 10 minutes. This represents an eight-minute reduction in travel time.
According to a press statement by the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, the reduction in train headway will save commuters about 44 per cent in time and improve overall journey experience.
With the new schedule, Blue Line trips will increase to 90 from the current 72 on Mondays through Saturdays, while Sunday trips remain unchanged at 22.
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The Managing Director of LAMATA, Abimbola Akinajo, attributed the achievement to new rolling stock procured by the Lagos State Government with Federal Government support.
Akinajo said, “We are excited to facilitate the increase in the number of trips since our commitment is to have a world-class, sustainable transport system that satisfies stakeholders and drives the growth of Lagos.”
She explained that the “increase in the number of trips and rolling stock foreshadows the operation of the entire Blue Line when the infrastructure is completed to the terminal point at Okokomaiko, in the last quarter of 2026.”
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The statement added that the Blue Line, which commenced passenger operations on September 4, 2023, has so far transported over five million passengers.
It also noted that the second phase of the Blue Line, currently under construction, is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, with passenger operations beginning in the first quarter of 2027.
News
US Envoy, Minister Address Visa Policy Changes, Urge Compliance
Published
4 hours agoon
August 8, 2025By
Editor
The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Ambassador Richard Mills, and the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Idris Mohammed, on Friday addressed the recent changes to US visa policies and jointly called for increased awareness and compliance among Nigerian citizens.
The US had earlier imposed tighter visa restrictions on Nigerians. It revised its visa reciprocity schedule for Nigeria, limiting the validity of certain non-immigrant visas — including B1/B2 (business and tourism), F (student), and J (exchange visitor) categories — to just three months with single-entry access.
Speaking during a press briefing in Abuja, Mills clarified that the new visa measures announced by the US Mission are not punitive, but rather part of a global effort to tighten security, enhance service delivery, and ensure compliance with US immigration laws.
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“Myself and the minister just had a very useful and productive discussion about US visa laws and how to communicate to the Nigerian people the importance of compliance with US visa laws,” Mills said.
The envoy underscored the enduring and strategic relationship between the two countries, emphasising that the US continues to welcome Nigerians for study, business, tourism, medical visits, and family reunions—but with the clear expectation that visitors respect visa regulations.
“Let me be clear, the United States values its very strong relationship with Nigeria and the many kinds of connections that exist between our two countries.
“US visas play a vital role in keeping these countries going and strengthening them
“Both governments want visitors to respect our national laws and regulations,” the ambassador said.
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Mills warned that visa misuse—such as overstaying or providing inaccurate information—undermines trust and can lead to severe personal consequences, including deportation or a lifetime travel ban.
“If you overstay, it can result in deportation and a lifetime ban on future travel to the US, which we don’t want to see Nigerian citizens face,” he said.
He urged applicants to be honest and transparent, stressing that “visa compliance is a cornerstone of mutual trust and respect between our two nations.”
Addressing concerns about the processing system, Mills revealed that the recent changes reflect the US administration’s security-focused review of global visa operations.
He noted that the US government requires more rigorous background checks, including access to Nigerian criminal records, to ensure applicants are properly vetted.
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“We needed to address some of the security vulnerabilities that we saw in our visa processing.
“The Nigerian government is working to find a mechanism so that we can have a better understanding of who’s before us when they apply for a visa,” Mills explained.
In addition, the ambassador stressed that compliance also applies to student visa holders.
“If you skip classes, if you leave your programme of study without informing your school, your student visa could be revoked,” he warned.
He concluded by encouraging Nigerians to visit the US embassy website for official guidance and support.
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“If you have any questions about our visa regulations or policies, don’t hesitate to go to our website. All Nigerians have access to it,” the envoy added.
The minister, in his remarks, praised the US embassy for taking the initiative to clarify its position directly with the Nigerian public.
“This brings me to believe that we need to come together at times like this to have a common position so that Nigerians can be better informed about what we do,” he said.
The minister described Nigerians as global travellers who frequent the United States more than almost any other destination and emphasised the importance of clear, accessible information about visa processes.
“Nigerians visit almost all parts of the world, and because we engage and we travel a lot, we feel that it is necessary to have information shared with us from time to time as it affects the travels amongst our people,” he said.
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Mohammed reaffirmed that the ministry will continue to work closely with the US Mission to ensure transparency, understanding, and public education on all consular issues.
“Let me recognise the mutual respect and partnership between Nigeria and the United States and its embassy to keep Nigerian travellers well informed about its visa and consular services,” he said.
He also dismissed the notion that the new visa processes were discriminatory, quoting the ambassador.
“Before coming to this office, we had engagements with Amb Mills, and what he has told me is that this is in no way punitive. It’s just to enhance service delivery between the two countries.”
The minister echoed the US position on the importance of complying with host country laws and urged Nigerians to uphold the country’s image abroad.
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“When someone comes into Nigeria, we expect that person to also comply with our laws here. So what I want to say here is that Nigerians must continue to demonstrate, as they do, a better sense of patriotism about their country and also show better compliance with not just our laws, but laws of other countries,” he said.
Mohammed added that the renewed engagement with the US mission reflects the Federal Government’s “New Hope Agenda,” aimed at fostering partnerships that benefit Nigerians at home and abroad.
“This is a new way of forging a better partnership and collaboration between the two countries.
“And the more we engage, the better it is for the two nations,” he said.
“The most important thing is that we remain two countries trying to forge better relationships for the benefit of both nations,” the minister concluded.
(PUNCH)
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