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OPINION: Òkòlò, Our President’s Mad Lover
Published
2 months agoon
By
Editor
By Lasisi Olagunju
Who knows Òkòlò in Oyo? Òkòlò was a Tapa (Nupe) and a slave of the Alaafin of Oyo. His duty was to gather grass to feed the king’s horses.
The man was a slave with freeborn friends, and he had quite many. One day, one of those friends was found to be owing someone a thousand cowries –which was a hefty sum in those early days. Payment was due but Òkòlò’s friend could not find the money to repay the debt.
The debtor, accompanied by Òkòlò, went to the creditor and pleaded for time. He promised to repay the money within three days and asked that his friend, Òkòlò, be held as surety in the meantime. Òkòlò had no problem with that arrangement but the wealthy creditor looked at Òkòlò, head to toe, and hissed. He told the debtor to find someone else, not this one. Then, turning to Òkòlò, the rich man said:
“Ta ní mò Òkòlò l’Ọ̀yọ́, sebi oko esin ni o npa? (Who knows Okolo in Oyo, is he not just a grass cutter, chef for the king’s horse?)” The rich man hissed again.
The statement wounded Òkòlò to the heart. It meant he was a nobody in Oyo.
That night, while everyone slept, Òkòlò went alone to the rich man’s house and set it on fire. He did it and stayed put. He stood where he committed the crime of arson until he was caught.
Òkòlò, the arsonist, was brought before the king. Alaafin asked him why he committed the act. Okolo replied that ever since he arrived in Oyo, no one had regarded him as someone of worth. The climax was the rich man counting his nine toes before his very eyes. He said the insult that no one knew him in Oyo wounded him deeply, and that that was why he burnt the house so that the man and all Oyo people would finally know he was present and able.
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The Alaafin listened attentively and had a deep sigh. He asked the rich man if it was true he uttered those words against the poor slave. The big man looked down and said “Yes, Kabiyesi.” Alaafin rebuked the rich man for not knowing how to talk (kò mo òrò so). The king then ordered his royal workers to rebuild the burnt house of the man who had money but lacked tact and decorum. Òkòlò was not punished; instead, he became a free somebody now known all over the empire.
From that day forward, no one said again: “Ta ní mò Òkòlò l’Ọ̀yọ́, sebi oko esin ni o npa? (Who knows Okolo in Oyo, is he not just a fodder gatherer for the king’s horse?).” Across Yorubaland, the saying changed in tone, form and meaning. It became: “Ta ní mò Òkòlò l’Ọ̀yọ́ kí ó tó ti iná bo ilé? (Who knew Òkòlò in Oyo until he burnt down a house?).” It has become a song line of victory for anyone who was once overlooked or dismissed as insignificant until a bold, dramatic act brought them recognition. Read Okolo’s story in S.O. Bada’s ‘Owe Yoruba ati Isedale Won’ (1973: page 63-64).
Lesson: Whatever we do or say, we should not leave anyone behind or set their esteem on fire. The forgotten and the despised will always force their way into view; they will announce their presence.
A viral video of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s visit to Kaduna last week shows the Commander-in-Chief in the midst of a momentary scare. It is a moment of intense unease that went viral and sparked varied interpretations. The president’s online enemies said the tiger momentarily lost his tigritude. The video clip is from the president’s TVC live coverage of the visit. The Nigeria police said the video was doctored by the president’s enemies to show the breach it depicts.
The story behind the incident: A man broke through security barriers and made a dash for the president where he stood, making a speech and blowing dogo turenchi (big grammar). The video shows neither the intruding man nor his dash. Instead, what announced his drama is the footage of a frozen president and a ruffled, rattled security taking positions. Police later clarified that the man was a certain Umar Mohammed, a native of Anguwan Muazu in Kaduna and “an ardent supporter of both the President and Governor Uba Sani.” Police said the man “acted out of overwhelming excitement” because he loved the president and the governor and wanted to be near them.
We are lucky the Kaduna man did not do what Òkòlò did in Old Oyo. The man merely caused a stir with a dash; he did not set the Nigerian house on fire.
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The police did not stop at saying the unruly was the president’s man. They announced that Umar had a psychiatric disorder but was allowed into the venue like other APC supporters, dressed in party regalia and waving banners of his heroes. All political parties have enthusiastic supporters, the ruling party has, and they came out to receive their president in Kaduna. But, unlike others, the “mad” Òkòlò man of Kaduna did not stay in his lane; he crossed into the protected zone uninvited so that he would be unmissable by his idols. His leap over the protocol barriers at the venue of the presidential event was a symbolic act that echoed louder than any shout, and was shriller than any chant or cheer from his peers. He made a difference.
The man made a splash but the police said no weapon was found on him; what he was longing for was just the recognition by his two heroes and by all of us who would read his ‘heroic’ story. And he got what he wanted – if that was all he wanted.
The police suggested that the ‘innocent’ disruption was weaponised in online spaces by dark forces. It declared that the viral video had been doctored to misrepresent the man’s actions. The police frowned on the “distortion” of the footage into narratives of conspiracy and danger. It warned against such politicisation and announced that a probe was on. We will be happy to report the findings.
“Is that a threat?” asks Henry Ian Schiller in a 1975 article of that title where he interrogates the various categories of threat. It is Schiller’s position that sometimes, the presence of those who should not be present is a threat. Umar’s Kaduna obtrusion was. But I will be shocked if the desperate trespasser and his street mates cared about our concerns. Those in power who should care are also spinning the threat into the echo chambers of nonsense. There may be many more like that man where he leapt out from. I read the intrusion as not merely a disruption; I see in it a desperate performance of visible proximity for whatever reason.
I am an uninvited guest in this matter; now I am about to ask some uninvited questions on this case: If the Kaduna intruder was “mad” as the police claimed, who then gave the insane the party dress he reportedly wore? Chinua Achebe in his ‘The Madman’ parallels a mad man who is dressed up with a sane but naked Nwibe. Exactly like that pair, who should we say is really mad between the Kaduna clothier and the clothed who created a scene? How many more psychiatric patients were in those party dresses and in that crowd?
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The police said the ‘mad’ man simply wanted to see his leaders up close. But in a society where the ill, the ignored, and the socially marginalised often blend into the background, his act of breaking into the elite cordon was a poignant daring demand for restitutory performance by the state. Those at the fringes must, sometimes, disturb and assail order to be seen and to be counted.
To dehumanise is to deprive of positive human qualities. A failed Nigeria has created many Òkòlò and Umar, desperate men of dehumanised existence. They fiddle with match boxes and hold dangerous torches in search of their stolen destiny. Some other mad people in that same North were filmed tearing down the president’s billboards. How bad is their own ‘madness’? What does all this tell about the future and the dreaded, high-stake elections that are coming?
In breaching the protocol in Kaduna, Umar Mohammed became a symbol of the invisible seeking recognition. His story is a reminder that those whom society overlooks, the voiceless, the deprived, have their own ways of announcing their presence. And often, their cries do not come through official microphones which are too far from the reach of their ‘dirty’ beings. Their cries barge in through unfiltered acts of yearning that disrupt polished stability. They always force a second glance by lighting a flare in the dark. Òkòlò did it in Old Oyo; Umar did last week in Kaduna.
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The National Youth Service Corps resumed payments for arrears on Wednesday, marking the first disbursement since the last payment on June 3, following a two-month break.
This payment relates to the new N77,000 monthly allowance recently approved by the Federal Government.
Recall that on April 5th, the Director-General of NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, assured that corps members who recently completed their service will receive the new N77,000 monthly allowance approved by the Federal Government.
Speaking during the Batch A 2025 Pre-Mobilisation Workshop in Abuja, Nafiu said, “Once funds are released to us to offset the arrears, we will pay them. Even our corps members who passed out recently will benefit. We have their bank details.”
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He emphasised the government’s commitment, adding, “Nigerians should not fret about that because the government is both responsible and responsive to their needs.”
This development was confirmed by PUNCH, by a previously serving corps member who chose to remain anonymous, who said, “After waiting for two months, I didn’t expect to see another payment alert. But honestly, it’s not just about the money; it’s about feeling like our efforts actually count.
The payment of arrears, covering the period from July 2024 to March 2025, follows widespread frustration over delayed implementation after the Federal Government approved the allowance increase as part of its commitment to easing economic hardship for Nigerian youth.
News
FCTA Withdraws Park Licences, Directs Fresh Screening Of Operators
Published
3 hours agoon
September 3, 2025By
Editor
The Federal Capital Territory Administration has withdrawn all park licences in Abuja, directing operators to resubmit their documents for a fresh screening exercise, with a possibility of reallocation.
The Director, Department of Development Control, Murktar Galadima, disclosed this in an interview with newsmen on Wednesday, while explaining the reasons for the demolition of Boulevard Park, Maitama, Abuja.
The FCTA carried out the demolition of Boulevard Park in Maitama on Tuesday, over violations of park policies and distortion of the Abuja Master Plan.
Assistant Director, Department of Development Control, and Sector Head for Maitama and Wuse, Sherif Razak, explained during the exercise that the park, originally designated for recreational purposes, had been overbuilt and misused.
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He said the park had been converted to worship centres, revival grounds, and restaurants, operating under unhygienic conditions.
Galadima explained that the decision to withdraw park licenses followed a memo jointly submitted by the Directors of Parks and Recreation and Lands to the Minister of the FCT, highlighting several inadequacies and violations associated with parks management in the FCT.
He said the new directive offers park operators the opportunity to resubmit their documents to the Department of Parks and Recreation for review.
“If they meet the terms and conditions, they can be reallocated. Owners of parks should respond to the call, submit their documents, and if they meet the requirements, they will return to their parks,” he said.
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The Director stressed that the decision was not taken to deliberately witch-hunt park operators, but is part of efforts to restore order and compliance with existing policies.
“There’s nothing like witch-hunting. All park allocations have been withdrawn following a series of violations, and the Minister is at liberty to do whatever he wants to do with land in the FCT, parks inclusive,” he stated.
On the recent demolition of Boulevard Park, Galadima clarified that operators were duly notified before enforcement, pointing out that the park had long violated its terms of allocation, operating in direct contravention of recreational policy.
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“Boulevard Park was allocated for recreational purposes, but the activities taking place there are a total violation of the park policy in terms of operation. Boulevard has violated all the terms and conditions,” he said.
He noted that monitoring park operations was the primary responsibility of the Department of Parks and Recreation, adding that parks were expected to submit concept designs for approval before operations commenced. However, lapses in monitoring had led to widespread abuse.
“The FCT is a creation of law, and lawlessness will not be tolerated. The development of the city is guided by law, and every operator must comply with the terms and conditions of their allocation,” Galadima said.
He stated that a ministerial committee had been set up to review all allocations and uses of parks, to ensure they were serving their original recreational purpose.
News
Tinubu Names New VCs For Education Varsities In Zaria, Kano
Published
4 hours agoon
September 3, 2025By
Editor
President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday named Prof. Yahaya Bunkure as the new Vice Chancellor of the Federal University of Education, Zaria, Kaduna State.
The President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement he signed on Wednesday titled ‘President Tinubu appoints Nakore, Kodage into governing council of Federal University of Education Kano, Bunkure, names VC Federal University of Education Zaria.’
Bunkure is a renowned academic specialising in science education.
He is currently the Vice Chancellor of Saadatu Rimi University of Education in Kano.
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Tinubu also appointed Abdurrazaq Nakore, an engineer, as Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of Yusuf Maitama Sule Federal University of Education, Kano.
He named Prof. Abdullahi Kodage as Vice Chancellor of the university.
Nakore, a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, was Executive Secretary of the Rural Electricity Board in Jigawa State.
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The Federal University of Education, Zaria, and the Yusuf Maitama Sule Federal University of Education, Kano, were among the four Colleges of Education upgraded into full-fledged universities between 2022 and 2023.
“In accordance with the institution’s governing laws, the pro-chancellor will serve a term of four years, while the Vice-Chancellors will serve for five years,” the statement added.
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