Connect with us

News

OPINION: Ifa’s Message For Our President

Published

on

By Suyi Ayodele

At the very beginning of time when the deities lived among human beings, Òrúnmìlà, the father of Divination, occupied a prominent space. He attracted many people to himself, friends and foes alike. He assisted many people to achieve their ambitions. Òrúnmìlà was instrumental to many becoming wealthy. He made nobles of not a few. He crowned and assisted in dethroning kings. He was powerful, influential and generous. But he has hubris. He was always ruthless whenever he saw any obstacle to his ambition.

A time came when Òrúnmìlà wanted to take the highest title among the deities. Of course, many rose in his support; those who wanted to repay his past good deeds. Likewise, some others who had felt cheated or ill-treated by Òrúnmìlà, also lined up against him. To these people, it was payback time. Two Òrúnmìlà’s partners in divination were ferocious in their opposition to Òrúnmìlà’s aspiration. What went wrong between them, only the gods could tell. But Òtúrúpòn and Òkàràn swore that Òrúnmìlà would not attain the position he sought. While Òkàràn was ready to shift ground if certain conditions were met, Òtúrúpòn was so determined, and nothing would persuade him to be soft on his erstwhile friend. The duo approached Èsù (the trickster deity) to assist them in their mission against the great diviner. Èsù kept them in his shrine, waiting to see what Òrúnmìlà would do.

Advertisement

At his wits end, Òrúnmìlà summoned his diviners to find a solution. Ifa revealed to Òrúnmìlà that his two enemies were waiting in ambush for him at the shrine of Èsù. Òpèlè equally told him that it was only Èsù that could save him and get him to the position he so desired. Sacrifices were prescribed. Among them was that Òrúnmìlà must carry 700 empty gourds and 4,000 cowry shells to the shrine of Èsù. How would one man carry those items at once? Ifa simply asked Òrúnmìlà to make the poor in the town to be happy. He was asked to attend to the needs of the masses reasonably.

For seven days, Òrúnmìlà took care of the needy. He fed them, divined for them pro bono, attended to every of their needs and asked the king to initiate policies that would make life bearable for the poor. The people were happy. On the eighth day, Òrúnmìlà brought out the sacrificial items and began to carry them. The people who came to thank him for the way he had treated them in the past one week saw his struggles with the items. They offered to assist Òrúnmìlà. The masses shared the items among themselves and Òrúnmìlà led the way to the shrine of Èsù, otherwise known as Elégbáa.

The noise from the items as the empty gourds and cowry shells knocked one another was terrifying. The noise produced a music, which according to the Odù, says: A ó pa Òtúrúpòn/A ó kan Òkàràn lésè (We with kill Òtúrúpòn. We will break the legs of Òkàràn). On hearing the music, which was just coincidental, the duo thought that it was a battle cry, and took to flight. Òrúnmìlà and his party arrived at the shrine, offered the items to Èsù. He was instantly proclaimed the head of all deities. Òrúnmìlà defeated his enemies without shooting a single arrow. The masses who made up his team were his strength. When a dog has the people behind it, even the monkey on a high tree becomes a meal!

Advertisement

MORE FROM AUTHOR: OPINION: ‘Protest’ That ‘Restructured’ Nigeriass

Today is barely three days after the Annual Convention of my church, The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), with the theme, “Heaven”, ended. For those my fellow heaven-bound brothers and sisters, who may be wondering why I chose the path of divination early this New Year in the RCCG, I refer you to my new position in the cabinet of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as Senior Special Adviser, Culture and Tradition (See “Dangote Refinery: Blind man and his yam scrapers”, published on July 30, 2024). It is in pursuant of that new office that I offer this ‘advice’ free of charge! But like the deity, Olúa, in my town is wont to say: I wish Tinubu not to accede to my divination so that at the fullness of time, he would say the Oracle warned!

The year 2027 is going to be a decisive year for Nigeria, Nigerians, and particularly for President Tinubu. It is the year that Tinubu will be seeking to be the head of all principalities and powers in the corridors of power as the ‘number one citizen’ of Nigeria. Tinubu will seek his second term in office, no doubt. Many will support him, just as many will be up in arms against him. The battle will be fierce, mean and bloody. The opposition camps will give all it takes for the president not to realise his second term ambition. President Tinubu should have no doubt in his mind that the Òtúrúpòns and Òkàràns of the nation’s political firmament will assemble all arsenals at their disposals to see the end of his political career. We will be on the fringes to observe events and lend our voices here and there, and from time to time, by God’s grace. However, the battle will rage most fiercely, in Tinubu’s camp. What should the president do? We shall come to that.

Advertisement

But first, let us establish this fact. With the way the #EndBadGovernance ‘protest’ was prosecuted and ended in the North, it is clear, even to the blind, that the Òtúrúpòns and Òkàràns of the North have parted ways with Tinubu’s Òrúnmìlà. What happened between President Tinubu and his old friends and allies from the North is left at the imagination of the deities as it happened in the divination above. The North, we all have come to realise, did not ‘protest’ hunger, inflation and the general pains in the land during the August1-10, 2024 EndBadGovernance ‘protest’. What ails the North most in the last 15 months of President Tinubu’s administration is the loss of power to the South.

The folks up the Niger River have not been able to reconcile themselves with the fact that they are no longer in charge. They find the prospect of a Tinubu second term too difficult to bear. So, when the opportunity came for them to ‘protest’ hunger, the North sent their youths to do it peculiarly. That region is ready to do anything, ready to give anything and ready to allow anything, for power to return to it. The prospect of a military intervention is a welcome development! They openly canvassed it! Sad! But it is understandable, anyway. When a region has no other business apart from the government, the loss of power, no matter how temporarl, can never be palatable.

MORE FROM THE AUTHOR: Dangote Refinery: Blind Man And His Yam Scrapers [OPINION]

Advertisement

During the build-up to the 2023 general election that produced the Tinubu presidency, many of us warned Tinubu then that it was fatal for the dog to make the tiger its best man. Such a relationship comes with a huge price. But when a man sets his eyes on the throne of his forebears, it is useless to caution him to tread softly. In the course of realising his ambition, everything, no matter how deadly, got a warm embrace from Tinubu. While one is tempted to salute his dexterity at executing all his political battles, one cannot but shrug at the tendency of Tinubu to throw caution to the winds. He befriended his most arch enemies. One of them was Nasir El-Rufai, the immediate past governor of Kaduna State. The public insults El-Rufai heaped on Tinubu prior to the 2023 race paled into insignificance as the same diminutive governor became the arrowhead of Tinubu’s campaign. That is what our politics is all about; no clear-cut ideology.

In power, Tinubu has made so many concessions to his ‘friends’ in the North. He has done everything he could to pacify them. With numerous appointments, to even creating a full ministry for the cows of the North, President Tinubu has demonstrated that he is a man ready to give in anything for his own personal comfort and ambition. But despite what he has done for the North, the same people came out during the EndBadGovernance ‘protest’ to show that they are implacable. The only thing that will pacify the North is a return of power to the zone. If you are wondering why the North behaved the way it did during the ‘protest’, you need to know the fable of the insatiable bird called Àlúkèrè. Here is the story.

Children, especially those from the countryside, love to play with birds. Growing up then, our parents caught birds for us to play with. We tied a tiny thread on the legs of the birds and made them take flight, while we pulled them back. It was fun. On our own too, as children, we set traps for birds and whenever we caught any, we brought it home to the elders. But there is this tiny bird that we were never allowed to keep and play with. The bird is very easy to catch because it finds it difficult to take its eyes off the baiting grains in our traps. But despite catching many of them, we were asked to release them back into the wild without hesitation. Àlúkèrè is never a domesticated bird. It ruins every home it is kept in. Its needs cannot be satisfied. No matter what the keeper does to make it happy, Àlúkèrè keeps singing that its life is better off in its own home where it is the lord. Incidentally, Àlúkèrè lives in lack, want and deprivation in the wild. The same reason it keeps wandering into traps, seeking food. But take it home to feed it good rations, it keeps singing:

Advertisement

Ebi á pa Àlúkèrè Ku/Hunger will kill Àlúkèrè

Response: Àlúkèrè

Kó bá sulé honi/ If one were to be in his own house

Advertisement

Response: Àlúkèrè

Honi a dáná a jeun/One will cook and eat

Response: Àlúkèrè

Advertisement

Honi adúgbà some mu/One will once in a while drink water

That is exactly the North Tinubu has been trying to pacify all because of 2027. President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan did the same. Rather than establish a Ministry of Cows for the North, Jonathan established nomadic schools for the ambulant pastoralist populace of the North. But that did not pacify them. They ensured he was practically chased out of power! Anything short of power is nothing for the region. It doesn’t matter the huge difference between the number of years the North has been in power and the alarming backwardness of the region, the zone still wants power and nothing more. Those children on the streets during the ‘protest’ are products of the wickedness of the elite class up there! That should get any rational mind worried. And this is why nobody up there appears to appreciate Tinubu’s rapprochement with the North! Come 2027, the North will queue behind any northerner that stands against Tinubu at the election. The only bragging right they have is the population. That itself is a ruse! In all this, Tinubu can change the narrative. He can do something that will make 2027 an easy ride. What do I think President Tinubu should do?

MORE FROM THE AUTHOR: OPINION: Supper For Nigeria’s Àkébàjé

Advertisement

I refer the president back to Ifa’s counsel to Òrúnmìlà in the above divination. Nigerians, I have come to realise, don’t really bother about who rules them as long as life is more abundant. We demonstrate that in sports. Nobody cares if our National Team is populated by the Okechuckwus of this world or by the descendants of Ahmed Musa, or the offspring of Segun Odegbami. All they want is the gold medal!

So, if I were President Tinubu, I would, like Òrúnmìlà did, make food available for the masses by ensuring that farmers are no more molested by herders and bandits. I would ensure that Nigerians can travel on the highways without any fear of being kidnapped. As the president, I would take a look at the power sector and ask questions as to why the Power Generating Companies (GENCOs) generate so much but the Transmission Companies (TMs) could not transmit the megawatts generated for the Distribution Companies (DISCOs) to sell to the populace. I would address the issue of over-bloated cost of governance by cutting down on the number of political appointees and stem other profligacies. I would also not forget to look at the NNPC and its moribund refineries and do a decisive surgical operation there. In all the juicy pies where my family members, cronies and I have our hands, I will become more transparent and be above board. If indeed I were him, I would devote more time to good governance and leave politics for a while. I take a bet, if President Tinubu makes the welfare of the people the cornerstone of his administration today, when 2027 comes and the Òtúrúpòns and Òkàràns all gather, the masses will carry his sacrificial items to the shrine of Èsù with the battle cry: A ó pa Òtúrúpòn/a ó kan Òkàràn lésè (We with kill Òtúrúpón. We will break the leg of Òkàràn)! May the president hear and understand what the Oracle says!

Advertisement

News

NiMet Predicts Three-day Rain, Thunderstorms From Monday

Published

on

Continue Reading

News

JUST IN: Ooni Visits Olubadan-designate Ladoja In Ibadan

Published

on

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, on Sunday, paid a visit to the Olubadan designate, Rashidi Ladoja, at his Bodija private residence in Ibadan, Oyo State.

The PUNCH reports that Oba Ladoja will be installed as the 44th Olubadan on Friday, September 26, 2025, following the demise of the 43rd Olubadan, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, who joined his ancestors on Monday, July 7, 2025, at the age of 90 years.

READ ALSO:Ladoja Coronation Date As 44th Olubadan Revealed

Advertisement

The two paramount rulers are currently exchanging pleasantries.

Details later…

 

Advertisement
Continue Reading

News

JUST IN: FG Revokes 1,263 Mineral Licenses Over Unpaid Fees

Published

on

The Federal Government through the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development has announced a fresh revocation of not less than 1,263 mineral licenses.

These licenses, which will now be deleted from the Electronic Mining Cadastral System portal of the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office, include 584 exploration licenses, 65 mining leases, 144 quarry licenses, and 470 small-scale mining leases.

The minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, gave the revocation announcement in a statement issued by his special assistant on Media, Segun Tomori, on Sunday in Abuja.

Advertisement

The minister explained that the directive was issued due to the companies’ failure to comply with the requirement of paying their annual service fees.

The latest revocation brings the total mineral titles revoked under the current administration to 3, 794 including,619 mineral titles revoked for defaulting in paying annual service fees and 912 for dormancy last year.

READ ALSO:FG Introduces Chinese Language Into School Curriculum

Advertisement

By opening up the areas formerly covered by these licenses, the revocation is expected to spur fresh applications by investors looking for fresh opportunities.

The statement read, “Not less than 1,263 mineral licenses will be deleted from the portal of the Electronic Mining Cadastral system of the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office, MCO, following their revocation by the Federal Government.

“These include 584 exploration licenses, 65 mining leases, 144 quarry licenses, and 470 small-scale mining leases.”

Advertisement

Approving the revocation following the recommendation of the MCO, the Minister said applying the law to keep speculators and unserious investors away from the mining sector would make way for diligent investors and grow the sector.

The era of obtaining licences and keeping them in drawers for the highest bidder, while financially capable and industrious businessmen are complaining of access to good sites, is over.

READ ALSO:FG Gives Mining Firms Deadline For Community Agreements

Advertisement

“The annual service fee is the minimum evidence that you are interested in mining. You don’t have to wait for us to revoke the license because the law allows you to return the license if you change your mind,” the minister said.

He warned that the revocation does not mean the Federal Government has pardoned the annual service debt owed by licensees, adding that the list will be forwarded to the Economic & Financial Crimes Commission to ensure that debtors pay or face the wrath of the law.

This is to encourage due diligence and emphasise the consequences of inundating the license application processes with speculative activities.”

Advertisement

In the recommendation to the minister, the Director-General of the MCO, Simon Nkom, disclosed that there were 1,957 initial defaulters when the MCO published the intention to revoke licences in the Federal Government Gazette on June 19, 2025.

He informed the minister that the gazette was distributed to MCO offices nationwide to sensitise licencees and encourage them to comply within 30 days in compliance with the Minerals and Mining Act 2007 and relevant regulations.

READ ALSO:FG Gazettes New Tax Reform Laws

Advertisement

He observed that the delay in the final recommendation was due to complaints of several licensees who claimed to have paid to the Federal Government through Remita and had to be reconciled.

Earlier this month, the DG MCO had hinted that more mining licences would be revoked as part of ongoing efforts to sanitise the solid minerals sector and protect investors from fraudsters.

According to Nkom, the clean-up exercise, which covers expired, speculative, and inactive titles, is necessary to make room for genuine investors and ensure compliance with the law.

Advertisement

This is part of ongoing efforts at sanitising the sector since the inception of the Tinubu administration, and the salutary effects of the reforms are massive and manifest despite the attempts to push back by defaulters and their agents.

Continue Reading

Trending