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OPINION: Lessons For Nigeria In Real Madrid’s Impunity

Published

1 month ago

May 2, 2025

By Tunde Odesola

I’ll beat about the bush because a hunter beats about the bush for reasons, which include awakening the bush, calling attention to his presence, or coordinating an attack. By name, I’m a hunter; by profession, I’m a newshound – two synonyms for go-getter.

If you’re a wine connoisseur, do you mind coming with me to my vineyard to beat about the bush together? However, if you’re a teetotaller, you can stay in the shade of the vines and watch as we, connoisseurs, put our taste buds to use.

Taste is the difference between the teetotaller and the wine connoisseur. Since the days of yore when Ogun, the god of war and iron, stopped by in Ire-Ekiti for palm wine, brewing was a respected occupation, and taste was a must-have among the five human senses, which comprise vision, auditory, smell and touch.

In the beginning of time, ‘lati igba iwase, ti alaye ti d’aye’, when human progenitors first occupied the earth, there existed natural alcoholic drinks, which consisted of palm wine variants, before sekete, burukutu, ogogoro, otika, and their faraway colleagues such as whiskey, brandy, rum, vodka, cognac, etc., joined the party

For the connoisseur, taste is everything, and mood is adaptive. The million bubbles in a frothing beer can soothe the crankiness of a sunny day, just as the punch in vodka can provide fire for the intestines on a cold day.

Using the connoisseur-teetotaller illustration, this article intends to show the ‘beauty in divergence’ by bringing out the outcomes of a football match between Barcelona and Real Madrid in Spain to comment on Nigerian and Spanish politics. Similarly, the article’s liquor-spirit imagery is a metaphor, which sees spirit(s) as a force that seizes football players at the peak of performance and as the liquor drunk by Oyinbo but which intoxicates Kuku. Spirit(s) is the turbulent genie in a bottle.

Going by the South-West’s unmatched series of developmental initiatives among the three regional governments of the federation after independence, Nigeria’s feet would have been planted on the path of greatness if the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, had taken the reins of power in the Second Republic between 1979 and 1983. Corruption stopped Awo.

While Spain got television in 1956, Awolowo, it was, who established the first television station in Africa, Western Nigeria Television, Ibadan, in 1959. His leadership went on to record many historic firsts in the annals of the country.

What do Spain and Nigeria have to do with October 1? Please, read on.

Although Spain and Nigeria are independent countries, some regions of both nations are embroiled in the struggle for self-determination. The Catalan provinces of Spain – Barcelona, Girona, Lleida and Tarragona, have ceaselessly engaged the Spanish authorities in agitations for self-independence, just like some regions of Nigeria, such as South-East, South-West and South-South.

In 1932, Catalonia was an autonomous community within Spain, having a high degree of self-government, with its own parliament, police, and official language – Catalan. But between 1939 and 1975, the dictatorship of General Francisco Franco, upholding nationalist ideology, disrobed Catalonia of dignity and identity because the region was predisposed to republican ideology. Consequently, Franco abolished Catalan autonomy in 1938 to strengthen his grip on power during the Spanish Civil War.

According to FC Barcelona website, in 1936, the President of Barcelona FC, Josep Suñol, was arrested along with some of his colleagues when their car inadvertently “entered a zone controlled by Franco’s troops in Sierra de Guadarrama. Suñol was identified and arrested, and without trial, he and his colleagues were shot dead on the spot”.

Supported by Benito Mussolini’s Italy and Nazi Germany, Franco tightened his grip on power, using all apparatuses of coercion, including football.

Not a football lover in the real sense of it, but in an attempt to leverage the popularity of football for his fascism, Franco opened Spain’s vault to FC Real Madrid even as his army intimidated rival teams into losing matches to Real Madrid.

It was in the heat of Franco’s intolerance and the resistance of the Catalonia community that El Clásico was forged as the fiercest football rivalry ever.

General Franco laid the foundation for the sense of entitlement and cry-baby mentality displayed by Real Madrid when results do not go their way. The unsportsmanlike behaviour displayed by Real Madrid players, such as Antonio Rudiger, Vinícius Júnior, Jude Bellingham and Lucas Vázquez during their 3-2 Copa del Rey final loss to Barcelona on April 26, 2025, exposes a team whose claim to trophies has been partly aided by referees and La Liga favouritism.

A campaign to intimidate referees saw Real Madrid, midway into the 2024-2025 season, weeping like a kid resisting a bath, accusing La Liga referees of colluding to rob the club of points, but Coach Carlo Ancelotti was silent when bad officiating was made against Real Sociadad in Copa del Rey semi-final, enabling his team to go through to the final to meet their waterloo, Barcelona.

Before the 3-2 Copa loss to Barcelona, Real Madrid, with an ego larger than a football pitch, had threatened not to honour the final match, calling for a change of match officials, a request turned down by La Liga.

MORE FROM THE AUTHOR: OPINION: Letter To Alaafin Abimbola Owoade

This psychological assault led the centre referee in the Copa del Rey final, Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea, to weep during a press conference, saying his son was told in school that his father was a thief. Bogged down by the psychological trauma inflicted on him by Real Madrid, Bengoetxea wasn’t courageous enough to award, at least, two obvious penalties to Barcelona.

There’s a lesson Nigerian separatist groups can learn from the Catalonia community. The Catalonian province of Barcelona has a symbol in Barcelona FC, and it has weaponised the symbol as an agent of socio-cultural and political change.

The Catalonian province of Barcelona knows that the separatist struggle is not a tea party. Therefore, it laid a solid foundation for the breeding of talents through its youth academy, La Masia, which, in 2010, became the first football academy to churn out all three finalists for the Ballon d’Or in a single year.

Conviction, consistency and courage are virtues Catalonian autonomy agitators have in large supply, unlike most Nigerian self-determination groups, whose struggles are fuelled by corruption.

On October 1, 1960, Nigeria attained independence. On October 1, 2017, the Catalonian community declared self-autonomy. Nigeria has continued to grope in the dark for almost 65 years. Catalonia had its declaration crushed, but it has remained an economic nerve to Spain.

Beaten to Super Copa and Copa del Rey trophies by Barcelona, and already bundled out of the Champions League, the shenanigans of Real Madrid have failed to deliver real results this season.

Despite the 3-3 draw in the first leg of the UCL semifinal at Barcelona, Inter Milan coach, Simon Inzaghi, knows that the fear of Hansi Flick is the beginning of wisdom. Inzaghi knows Paris will fall. Ancelotti failed to realise a new lord has taken over the manor, thinking abracadabra would save him and Real Madrid. Carlo is now on the way to Brazil. So sad.

Forca Barca!

News

Okpebholo Launches 1bn Interest-free Loan For Edo Traders

Published

4 hours ago

June 14, 2025

Editor

Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, has officially launched a ₦1 billion interest-free loan scheme, as part of the fulfilment of his campaign promises.

The governor at the launching also said it was a direct alignment with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for national progress.

Okpebholo, addressing market women and men, described the initiative as a beacon of hope for over 5,000 farmers and small business owners across the state, adding that it would inject vitality into grassroots commerce.

He said “There is an adage: follow who knows the road. That is why we decided to follow the footsteps of our President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

He added, “Today, what we are doing in Edo State is the implementation of the agenda of the President. We thank God for the kind of leadership He has given to Edo State and Nigeria. Now, it is time for the progress for our people.”

The Governor underscored the personal commitment behind the scheme, recalling his campaign promise to provide soft loans.

He emphasized that this N1 billion fund was the fulfillment of that pledge, but with a crucial safeguard.

“I just wanted to be sure that this money will not go into the wrong hands. That is the essence of this gathering. Because, with my past experience, whenever the Executive gives out loans, the money does not get to the grassroots,” Okpebholo noted.

“If you do not get this, come back to me and report.” He also revealed that this initial rollout is a “pilot test,” with its success paving the way for future replications of the scheme.

In his statement, Honourable Commissioner for Finance, Emmanuel Ehidiamen Okoebor, said: “It is with great pride and a sense of responsibility that I stand before you today to welcome everybody to this occasion of the launching of the N1 billion interest-free loan to Edo people, our traders, our market women, our brothers and our fathers in the state,” he declared.

Okoebor said the scheme would “boost the economy of our rural areas and semi-urban areas, create jobs, and reduce poverty.”

He added, “Now, he has come to empower the people.” Crucially, he explained the zero-interest feature that sets this loan apart. “Before now, our mothers collected loans and paid 10% on N200,000. For this, there is no interest. You pay back what you borrowed.”

“Each of the 5,000 beneficiaries will receive N200,000, with a generous 12-month repayment period and a one-month moratorium, offering vital breathing room for businesses to stabilize.”

News

Open Letter To The Speaker, Parliament Of The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide

Published

5 hours ago

June 14, 2025

Editor

The writer, Mr Godswill Doubra Wuruyai (Right) andHon. Gabriel Allen Tomoni

Date: 14th June 2025

To:
Rt. Hon. Gabriel Allen Tomoni
Speaker,
Parliament of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide

Dear Mr Speaker,

RE: THE STATUS OF OPTION A4 AS VOTING MECHANISM AND MATTERS ARISING

I bring you warm greetings of solidarity and unwavering commitment to the Ijaw struggle.

It has become necessary to issue this Open Letter in response to your recent communication dated 13th June 2025, titled “Clarification on Applicable Constitution Guiding Electoral Activities in Lagos Chapter”, and to set the record straight regarding the status of the Option A4 voting mechanism as duly adopted by the Convention of Ijaw Youths at the Odi Constitution Convention 2024.

Permit me to respectfully state from the outset that the matter of Option A4 is neither open to debate nor subject to discretionary legislative ratification by Parliament, the NEC, or any Zonal or Chapter organ of Council. It is a constitutional matter, having been overwhelmingly adopted at the Odi Constitution Convention 2024—the supreme legislative convention of the Ijaw Youth Council, which carries the highest constitutional authority within our organisation.

The Convention is the apex legislative authority on matters of constitutional amendment and review. By both precedent and constitutional logic, once a Constitutional Convention concludes with the majority adoption of any provision, it becomes valid and binding immediately upon adoption by Congress—the highest sovereign body of the Ijaw Youth Council. The notion of “presidential assent” is ceremonial in nature; it does not possess the force to invalidate or delay the decisions of Congress. Signing ceremonies remain symbolic, not constitutive, in effect.

It is, therefore, anomalous and potentially unconstitutional for Parliament, or any of its officers, to purport to subject the decision of Congress to further parliamentary debate, rectification, or ratification. This represents not only a fundamental misreading of the IYC’s constitutional architecture but also a dangerous precedent that could undermine the very foundation of our collective legitimacy.

Furthermore, no Zonal structure, Chapter, or stakeholders’ forum possesses the jurisdiction to review, reject, or suspend a decision reached by a duly convened Constitutional Convention. The only valid forum that can revisit the matter of Option A4—or any other constitutional provision—is another Constitutional Convention convened specifically for that purpose.

The role of Parliament as a stabilising institution within the IYC structure is to promote order, not to precipitate constitutional crises by attempting to override the sovereign will of Congress. Should Parliament insist on such actions, it risks dragging the IYC into an avoidable constitutional conflict that could jeopardise the unity of our noble Council.

The Lagos Chapter, like all other organs of Council, is bound by the supreme decisions of the Constitutional Convention and must conduct its electoral processes in strict adherence to Option A4, as adopted.

Accordingly, I call on you, as Speaker of Parliament, to respect and uphold the supremacy of Congress and its resolutions. Anything short of that amounts to an attempt to overturn the will of the Ijaw people through administrative fiat, which must be firmly resisted by all well-meaning Ijaw youths.

Let me conclude by reminding all concerned that we must not allow petty personal interests or ego-driven conflicts to derail the hard-earned democratic processes within our Council. This is not a time for power tussles, but a time for unity, maturity, and constitutional discipline.

I trust that you will act in accordance with the Constitution and in the enduring interest of the Ijaw nation.

Yours in service of the Ijaw struggle,

Mr Godswill Doubra Wuruyai
Stakeholder/Member
Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide

Cc:
Comr. Williams Ayoromiegha Junior, Clerk of Parliament
All Members of Parliament, IYC Worldwide
The President, Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide
NEC Members, Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide
All Zonal and Chapter Chairpersons, IYC
Ijaw Youth Stakeholders Nationwide

News

Reps To Quiz Edun, Cardoso Over Non-compliance With Fiscal Responsibility Act

Published

6 hours ago

June 14, 2025

Editor

The Joint House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts and Public Assets has invited the Minister of Finance, Mr Olawale Edun, and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Olayemi Cardoso, to appear before it on Monday over allegations bothering on non-compliance with the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007.

The duo are also expected to respond to the 2021 audit queries relating to internal control weaknesses identified by the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation (oAuGF).

In a letter jointly signed by the Chairmen of the House Committee on Public Accounts, Rep. Bamidele Salam, and the Committee on Public Assets, Rep. Ademorin Kuye, the lawmakers requested the Finance Minister and the CBN Governor to provide details on the remittance of operating surplus to the Federation Account by the apex bank in line with the provisions of relevant laws and regulations.

The Fiscal Responsibility Commission and the Auditor General for the Federation had, in reports submitted to the joint committees, accused several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), including the CBN, of failing to remit or under-remitting their operating surpluses as required by extant financial laws and regulations over the last six years.

According to the Public Accounts Committee Chairman, “these violations have negatively impacted the liquidity of the federal government and constitute a hindrance to effective implementation of the budgets passed by parliament.”

The committees stated that both the Finance Ministry and the apex bank had been given ample opportunity to reconcile their accounts and present their positions in order to determine the degree of financial liabilities involved, hence the need for a final hearing to resolve the issues.

The committee is equally reviewing a report in the Auditor General for the Federation’s statutory report which suggests that a number of public assets, which had been fully paid for, have not been completed or put into use for many years.

“Some of these projects in Dutse, Abeokuta and other locations were awarded between 2011 and 2016 but yet to be completed according to audit reports.”