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OPINION: On El-Rufai, Aláròká And Terrorists

Published

4 months ago

September 8, 2025

By Lasisi Olagunju

Why did Bola Tinubu offend Nasir El-Rufai? He should have kept him. There are three principalities the Yoruba dread to offend: The first is Osó (wizard), the second is Àjé (witch); the third is the most dreaded, their name is Aláròká. How do I translate that into English? I cannot, but you will get to know what it means when you hear the Yoruba say: Eni gbé adìẹ òtòsì, ó gbé ti aláròká (Whoever steals a poor man’s chicken has stolen from the one who will shout about it from street to street). The proverb is a warning against having as enemies those who have legs, and have mouths and who thrive on noise.

On Sunday last week, El-Rufai was his oppositional best on Channels Television, levelling allegations, issuing threats and giving assurances. The state breeds and feeds terrorists and bandits for political gain, he claimed. That was on Sunday. On Friday, he went one step further. If he had been told two years ago that he would be in a church against his Muslim brother, the president, El-Rufai would have said “A‘ūdhu billāhi mina sh-shayṭāni r-rajīm (I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed devil).” But he was in a church in the South-East last Friday doing just that, suited up like a pastor, preaching sermons of democracy and deliverance and promising to lower the flag of today’s lord in the Villa. That is the problem with all aláròká; once they start, they don’t stop unless and until they are done. This one will not stop. Where he will be today, and tomorrow and what message he will carry depends on what the Nigeria police do with him. He has been asked to submit himself to the law allegedly for being rude to the law.

The government will soon learn that neither police invitation nor detention can sew up the honker’s lips. In my part of the country, we say there is no armour against the bullets of aláròká. Never fight or underestimate the aláròká; he is the one whose voice multiplies and complicates a quarrel until the whole village hears. Huffing and puffing, and talking and threatening are El-Rufai’s strongest weapon against his victims. His present noise and the threats his cries contain are the consequences for Tinubu’s ditching of Nasir, his friend and ally. When you offend someone who looks small, you may in fact have provoked the person who has the loudest voice.

The police inviting him won’t shut him up. That was exactly the undertone when Nasir said on that TV programme: “I am not afraid of anybody. I say my mind and I don’t look back.” In those words, he defined himself as the quintessential aláròká, the one whose voice ensures that an injury does not die in silence.

So, President Tinubu and his minders would be mistaken if they thought a cheap police invitation would defeat ‘small-body-big-engine’ Nasir. Whoever has crossed El-Rufai has not just taken a poor man’s chicken; the person has, knowingly or unknowingly stirred up the town-crier who will not stop shouting until everyone knows the story of the soup that burnt down the whole house.

Now, jilted El-Rufai is determined to undo what he did for Tinubu in 2023. That is the role he has chosen for himself. He does this street to street, city to city dismantling the myth of Tinubu’s invincibility. He now waxes prophetic: “In the 2027 elections, the worst-case scenario is a runoff, and Bola Tinubu will not be on that ballot. At best, he will place third. He has no viable pathway to victory. I’ve done the maths, I’ve done the analysis; it’s simply not there.” He said that and then added the dagger: “He can continue deceiving himself, thinking, ‘I have money, I have INEC, I have the police, I have the army.’ Well, President Tinubu, go and invite ex-President Goodluck Jonathan for a chat. Ask him if he didn’t also have all these in 2015, and yet we removed him. Is the situation similar today? It’s worse.”

But, I am worried. And you should be, too. How innocent is El-Rufai in the rottenness of the system he is complaining about? He could be genuinely clean; he could be genuinely filthy. But if his hands are not clean, shouldn’t he first confess and seek forgiveness before wearing the tunic of the messiah? The Bible’s St. Luke (18:10-14) tells of “Two men (who) went up into the temple to pray: One said, ‘God I thank thee that I am not as other men’; and the other smote upon his breast, saying, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner.’” What was God’s response to the two sinners? Reading it is so instructive as we navigate the dangerous waters of Nigeria with its feuding political elite.

These days, the jilted are rebelling with daring moves and statements. The government is reacting, it is blocking rallies, north and south, and issuing summons. For now, we hear charges of betrayal; tomorrow it may be treason. These things are not new. People in government have historically seen opposition to them as either an act of betrayal or treason or both. They can be both right and wrong; most times wrong. We learnt from ‘Tyranny of The Minority’ authored in 2023 by Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, Harvard professors of government, that in the early years of the United States’ democracy, “the very existence of partisan opposition was regarded as illegitimate. Politicians, including many of the founders (of America) equated it with sedition and even treason.” Indeed, in 1798, the US Congress passed the Alien and Sedition Acts “which were used to jail opposition elements and newspaper editors.” The jailed were labeled betrayers. But the repression did not last. It, in fact, blew up in the face of its makers in 1800, just two years after that law was enacted. You ask how? The government lost the 1800 election; the disgusted American voter, for the first time, elected the opposition Democratic-Republicans. You can try, like me, to read that book, particularly Chapter One; its title is: ‘Fear of Losing’. If you are from my country, you will appreciate the details, especially if you also know that those authors also wrote ‘How Democracies Die.’

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Betrayal is despicable; treason is evil. American Associate professor of history, Sally Shockro, in her ‘ Blessed Betrayal’ warns that “in a culture centred on honour, a betrayal diminishes the status of the perpetrator, and often the victim as well, destroying the personal fortunes of those involved along with the trust of the community.” Now, can I quickly add this: “if the institutions of power are corrupt, is resistance an act of betrayal or an act of loyalty to the greater good?” This question forms part of the reasoning in Larissa Tracy’s ‘The Shameful Business of Betrayal and Treason.’ The author who asks that question is a professor of Medieval Literature at Longwood University, United States. You can answer the question based on where you stand and on what you stand on. I wish we could pose it to the feuding lords of our manor and know where we and the state stand in their estimation.

They are fighting over the spoils and loot of the last war. The shut-out feel betrayed, genuinely so; now they are all out to crash the temple of power. In Crystal Parikh’s ‘An Ethics of Betrayal’, we are reminded that ‘betrayal’ as a “crime provides its own punishment” and that “where traitor feeds upon traitors, betrayal exacts its own self-consuming vindication.” If Tinubu had not offended El Rufai, we would not have been hearing the secrets we hear these days; very dark secrets couched as bad, wicked allegations. First, El-Rufai on national TV accused the ruling APC and its government of financing bandits and terrorists as weapons of politics. Nasir said this and provoked his kinsman from Kaduna, Datti Baba-Ahmed, into making a counter appearance on the same TV platform. From Datti Baba-Ahmed, we heard what the forest heard that deafened it. The man told Channels TV’s Seun Okinbaloye on Tuesday last week that insecurity in Nigeria is “orchestrated and is political.” He said Nasir El-Rufai shouldn’t be the one crying wolf; he said the man belongs in the pack of the implicated wolves.

Hear him: “Do we understand the gravity of his statement?…What I am about to say is that insecurity is part of APC; insecurity has been APC’s way of getting power. Insecurity has been APC’s way of staying in power.” He then went into accounts which I pray must not be true. He said, without mentioning names, that a former Nigerian president met with and collected huge sums of money from the late Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, to sponsor extremists in Nigeria’s North-East. Hear him: “Go back in time. Do you remember that a former Nigerian president was attacked by terrorists? It was unprecedented; never in the history of Nigeria did that happen. Why did some young men in the forest in the North-East…what business did they have (with him)? When Nigerian leaders leave power, they are liked, they are loved, they are forgiven all their errors and everything. But, this one, they followed and tried to kill him. Why did that happen?” He asked, paused and feigned crying. Then he continued: “What happened to all the donations leading up to 2015? Why did he decide to run in 2015 after crying and telling the whole world that he was no longer running? What was his link with North Africa? What was his link with Muammar Gaddafi? He is not alive, but others are alive to say it.

“I told you about 2015…you see… going after a former president and trying to kill him, what does that tell you? Before that, what had happened? After Jonathan won at the Supreme Court in 2011, the government called for dialogue (with the terrorists) and those young men nominated (the) former Nigerian president. It took three days to repudiate (that nomination). After those three days, go and plot the graph, you will see that between 2012 and 2014, the number of attacks in the North-East skyrocketed.” Datti Baba-Ahmed blamed the escalated terrorist attacks of that period on what he called “hunger, (and) lack of medicine (for the terrorists).” Why? “Because somebody had stopped sending the recurrent expenses of those people who used to come to Kaduna, collect (money) and go back.” He alleged (or claimed) that the funding was stopped as a punitive measure for the young men’s indiscretion of publicly naming their covert funder as their negotiator with the government. “That’s how the cycle went, in protest against ‘why did you call out that name (as your negotiator).’ They (terrorists) couldn’t bear it (hunger) anymore, so they felt the best thing was to go and attack (him). It failed; we are lucky… Jonathan provided him (the former president) with additional cars and money. And it was all about money; all about collecting money.

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“The truth is that someone had gone to North Africa and negotiated with Gaddafi; Gaddafi who was an international terrorist said ‘I will help you as I have been doing… I will retire to your country if you become president… He wanted to create a buffer in Nigeria. They gave crazy amount of money to that gentleman (the former president) to go and help these people with the intention of bringing them to fight in Libya. When Gaddafi died, ‘they’ sat on the money. They kept on (giving) the recurrent until (the terrorists) mentioned the name and then they stopped sending the money. Now, all these things are linked. They wanted Nigeria to burn if Buhari did not become the president in 2015. They brought people from neighbouring countries in readiness, to remove Jonathan by all means. The desperation to get Jonathan out of power built up and added to what we call insecurity in Nigeria today.” That is Datti Baba-Ahmed saying all those things after the man who was allegedly involved has died. I heard people asking why he did not say those things when the man was here. I wonder too.

Why did he have to wait till El-Rufai said his own before saying his own? And immediately he left the TV studio, someone in their party, Hon Farouk Adamu Aliyu, came in, sat where Datti sat and pointed fingers at Datti too as a disciple of the ex-president he had just accused of financing terrorism.

The you-be-terrorist-I-no-be-terrorist diatribe should lead us to ask who really these people who have been leading us are. Could it be that people who are supposed to be in the dock have all along been the court? Nigeria has faced unremitting violent insurgencies for decades. It ranks 6th on the 2025 Global Terrorism Index and accounts for 6% of global terrorism deaths in 2023. That is according to the Global Community Engagement & Resilience Fund (GCERF). Hundreds of people have been killed and millions more displaced, and the end is not yet. Now, we hear claims, accusations and confessions from these gentlemen that the cause of everything was politics and quest for power.

Whatever is the worth of the long English of the three political leaders from northern Nigeria, it should get us thinking as a nation in dire need of peace and security. Can the agencies in charge of our security and safety ‘collaborate’ with these gentlemen (Datti Baba-Ahmed and Nasir El-Rufai) to draw up an action plan for us to defeat the enemy? Those two guys sounded like they knew too much. It becomes real when you hear Datti declaring that what he said was just about 10 percent of what he had in his belly, begging to be released. How and when will he be released of the remaining 90 percent? It took Tinubu’s non-accommodation of El-Rufai to make the man angry and say what he shouldn’t say; it took a provocative statement by El-Rufai to draw out Datti Baba-Ahmed. Then Adamu Aliyu. They’ve all been in government, yet it appears we do not know them. Who really are they?

Warts and all, each of them still seeks to sleep with us. We are a nation of helpless landlords who must open their door at midnight to bloody invaders. “They say in Yoruba, Ìjàmbá ṣ’olè bí onílé bájí (The thief is in danger if the landlord awakes). But today, the landlord is in danger if he does not open the door for the thief.” That is classic helplessness – or surrender; an inversion or transposition of order and orderliness. University of Michigan art history professor, David T. Doris, has the above quote in his ‘Vigilant Things’ (2011). He goes on to sum up our situation in words of exasperation: The world has turned upside down (Ayé ti d’orí k’odò).

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Foundation Offers Free Medical Serves To Edo Community

Published

12 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Editor

As part of its campaign against extractive activities and promotion of healthy living in the Niger Delta region, an environmental think-tank organisation — The Ecological Action Advocacy Foundation (TEAAF) on Monday offered free medical services to the people of Gelegele community in Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo State.

The free medical services which included eye screening, sugar level and BP tests, general medical examination and counseling, etc, saw over 150 people benefitting from the free medical outreach.

The beneficiaries were also offered the appropriate reading eyeglasses and medications as the outcome of their tests required.

In her speech, Project Director, TEAAF, Ann Ajirioghene Offi, said though it was not the first time her organisation is taking free medical services to the community, the need to offer the current free medical services to Gelegele people arise during a dialogue with them where they narrated different health challenges to the representatives of the organisation.

A cross section of beneficiaries of the outreach

Offi, who described Gelegele as a Community of Particular Concern to her organisation, said the health challenges keep increasing by the day as a result of extractive activities, gas flares and negligence.

She said: “We have seen that there are a lot of health challenges in this community, and this is as a result of the location of the community, and the ongoing extractive activities in the community, most especially the gas flares in the heart of the community. The gas flare has resulted in a lot of health challenges in the community, according to our research.

“We felt it’s very vital for us to bring free medical services here going by the health challenges facing the people.

“The challenges keep increasing by the day as a result of negligence. Negligence in the sense that the health centre in the community is not functional as it ought to be, and from my observation, no medical equipment in the clinic to take care of people.”

Eyeglasses display displayed during the medical outreach for distribution.

One of the beneficiaries, Clement Eyenmi, expressed joy and appreciated TEAAF for the free medical services, saying “our people need an organisation as this to come to their aid.”

He lamented that despite his age, he’s already having eye challenges as a result of the gas flares in the heart of the community.

“In this our environment, and personally for me, I have an eye challenge as a result of this gas flaring in the heart of our community. But today, I was attended to; I was given a reading glasses.

“The oil company flares the gas but does not bother about the welfare of the people, or show concern about the environment. This is a major problem we have here.

Medical personnel attending to a beneficiary.

“What this organisation is doing today is what we expect the government and the oil company to do, but they will never do such,” he added.

Also speaking, another beneficiary, Bobby Ikinbor, also appreciated TEAAF for the free medical services, saying “we do not have a standard hospital here, so, today, as this organisation brings this free medical services, it is a relief to us. We appreciate the organisation.”

He added: “You see, at times when we have an emergency health challenge and we try to rush the person to the city, we have to pray because of the bad condition of the road. At times the emergency patient dies before we get to the city.”

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OPINION: Nigeria Deserves A President Donald Trump

Published

19 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Editor

By Suyi Ayodele

“I spoke with AJ on the phone to personally convey my condolences… He assured me that he is receiving the best care in the hospital.” From wherever he then was, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu relayed that Anthony Joshua, the British-born boxer of Nigerian descent involved in a recent car accident, had told him he was receiving the best medical attention in Nigeria.

Yet, with something as ordinary as a headache, the same president routinely jets out of the country for treatment, sometimes to the United Kingdom, sometimes to France, sometimes to destinations left undisclosed. No one asks Mr. President why he can not stay behind and partake of that same “best care in the hospital” available at home.

Instead, we busy ourselves with tallying the number of days he spends abroad, and when the arithmetic is done, we move on. Nothing more is demanded; nothing more is explained.

So, if tomorrow a President Donald Trump were to bar Nigerians from travelling to the United States for medical treatment, we would promptly denounce him as a racist. Yet the very next day, we would assemble a cultural troupe to welcome home a medical tourist president, one who left Nigeria quietly, without telling us what ailed him, and returned triumphantly after treatment abroad.

That is our lot; the predicament of a people wedded to decay and decadence. And it is precisely this contradiction, this ritual of self-deception, that makes it easy for some world leaders to dismiss Nigeria as a disgraced country.

President Trump is a man many love to hate. And justifiably too. The man attracts ‘hatred’ for himself as if his mission on earth is to do what many consider ‘despicable.’

I, however, have a different opinion about the man who rules America at the moment. I see him as more of an American patriot than the brute many people project him to be. I don’t see anything wrong in a president asking non-nationals to go back and fix their own countries. That, to me, is the central message of the Trump Presidency. My understanding of his philosophy on governance is that citizens should hold their leaders accountable, rather than fleeing their countries.

This is one of the reasons I hardly argue about Nigeria and its numerous failing institutions with any Nigerian living outside the shores of the country, especially those who japa less than 20 years ago. My position is simple: if you know that Nigeria is being run by the best of men now, just pack your bags and baggage and come back home. A friend once asked me why I don’t see anything wrong in “the racist called Trump”, and I responded by asking him to come back home and enjoy our nationalist president. If farming is an easy venture, blacksmiths will not sell hoes and cutlasses. Those are the words of our elders.

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Three days into the New Year 2026, President Trump opened the New Year on a very good note for the people of Venezuela. Venezuelans, at home and in the diaspora, woke up that Saturday, January 3, 2026, morning to discover that they had no president. Trump, using the sophisticated American soldiers in the US elite corps, invaded Venezuela in the dead of the night and abducted, if you like, kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Surprisingly, the people rejoiced at the news!

The husband and wife were in bed when the American soldiers came calling. One can picture how startled they were when they saw the strange faces in their inner room. The shock, especially when Maduro had, less than a month ago, boasted that he was safe and secure and dared America to come after him, is better imagined! What if the couple were making out when the intruders arrived?

Hours later, Trump boasted of the feat as “an extraordinary military operation,” during which “air, land, and sea were used to launch a spectacular assault. And it was an assault like people have not seen since World War Two.” He then described the operation as “…. One of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history” as the Venezuelan military capacities were “rendered powerless”, and “…. the men and women of our military working with US law enforcement successfully captured Maduro in the dead of night.” Could this be the reason why our elders advise that when one’s mother’s co-wife is older, one must call her mother (Tí ìyàwó ìyá eni bá ju ìyà eni lo, ìyá làá pèé).

A great public speaker, Trump warned that “This extremely successful operation should serve as a warning to anyone who would threaten American sovereignty or endanger American lives.” He listed those to be warned to include Cuba, saying, “I think Cuba is going to be something we’ll end up talking about because Cuba is a failing nation right now, a very badly failing nation. And we want to help the people. It’s very similar in the sense that we want to help the people in Cuba.”

Trump is a consummate power wielder. He did not forget Colombia. It is a known fact worldwide that Colombia and drugs are Siamese twins. If President Maduro of Venezuela could be ‘captured’ because he was accused of importing cocaine to America, the Colombian President, Gustavo Petro, President Trump warned, should “watch his ass”, because “He’s making cocaine and they’re sending it into the United States, so he does have to watch his ass.”

We must get this right from the start. No law permits what President Trump did in Venezuela. The invasion of the presidential palace and the kidnapping of President Maduro and his wife are bad in all ramifications. America is not the world police. At least, the United Nations (UN), that toothless world bulldog, Charter does not permit such an infraction. The sovereignty of Venezuela was raped by Trump. The sanctity of the human person of President Maduro was violated. Oh, yes, I must add this: the solemnity of the bedroom of Maduro and his wife was desecrated! What if Maduro and his wife had slept naked, as most couples do?

Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits any member state from using force against the territorial integrity (sovereignty) of an independent country. The Charter, in Article 51, only allows the use of force in self-defence, while Articles 24 and 25 permit only the Security Council to use joint or collective force against any independent nation that threatens world peace. So, where did President Trump derive the power to invade another country, pick up the incumbent president, and transport him to America in handcuffs, as he did to President Maduro of Venezuela?

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I have read many comments about the Trump Presidency. This recent action in Venezuela added fuel to the inferno of hatred for the American President. If Nigerians in the Diaspora in America were to choose who governs God’s Own Country, Trump would not have smelled the presidency. In fact, he would not have been elected as the mayor of any city. But unfortunately for the entire world, the American people, or, as someone argued, ‘the American skewed system’, elected Trump as president. Everybody, haters or lovers alike, would have to deal with that fact.

From day one, Trump never hid his identity. He never pretended to be a gentleman. He did not tell anyone that he would run America for foreigners. His ‘Make America Great Again’ (MAGA) mantra is self-explicit. America would be for Americans, he promised. And he has lived up to that. That is honesty in its illiterate form! If you ask me, that is the type of president every nation deserves. No pretence, no diplomacy; all that matters is American interests. I wish Nigeria had such a President, the one who thinks, sleeps and dreams of Nigeria. We have been unfortunate with the selfish individuals that we have had as leaders. The present crop of transactional leaders is the very worst in our recent history.

If I were to choose a president for Nigeria, I would not think twice before picking a character like Trump. A man who places the nation’s interest above any other consideration is the man after my heart. This is what is lacking in Africa, and particularly in Nigeria. A nation that has no defined national interest is bound to be in ruins, like most nations of Africa.

Nigeria has the capacity, in all ramifications, to be great. What we lack is a president who is purposeful, courageous and above all, patriotic. We can imagine that our military became suddenly effective and efficient only after Trump ‘invaded’ Sokoto and cleared out a good number of terrorists. Yet again, nobody is asking what went wrong before the coming of Trump.

I have read so much about the sovereignty of Venezuela. I have no problem with that. But the one question I keep asking the proponents of national sovereignty is: at what time does the respect for a nation’s sovereignty stop? If, for instance, the sovereignty of Nation A threatens the peace of Nation B, what should Nation B do? Should it act in the interest of its own peace or fold its hands while the rudderless nation A acts anyhow?

If President Maduro was exporting drugs to America as Trump alleged, what should be the response of President Trump? I also find it curious that many who talked about the sanctity of the American judiciary in the case involving President Tinubu and the Chicago University certificate are the same set of people saying Maduro would not get justice in America! What a people!

After the ‘capture’ of President Maduro, the American President said that the US would “run” Venezuela. Many said that Trump was only interested in Venezuelan crude oil. Trump himself did not deny that. His press conference after Maduro had been taken into custody was clear enough. America had a huge investment profile in the oil sector of Venezuela. One of the responsibilities of President Trump, and this is applicable to all presidents, is the protection of the American economy at home and abroad. If the US investments are threatened in Venezuela because of the activities of Maduro, would Trump not be failing in his responsibility if he did not act in the name of sovereignty?

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Nnamdi Kingsley Akanni, a professor of International Law and Diplomacy, Rivers State University, in a 2019 paper on “The Concept of Sovereignty in International Law and Relations,” suggests that the concept of sovereignty may be a ruse after all. According to him, “The paper found that what third world countries enjoy is not sovereignty but ‘sovereignty on dictated terms’ of the so-called developed powers.”

The erudite scholar states further that at the end of the research exercise, “The paper also found that smaller States are not accorded protection from developed countries and that until that is done, the concept of sovereignty will continue to be elusive to smaller nations.” He then recommends “…that the UN should take proactive steps to give greater recognition and voice to developing countries as well as offering them the platform to assert their sovereignty in line with international law.”

What the scholar is saying here is that the concept of ‘sovereignty’ exists only when the developed countries are involved. When there is a conflict of interest between the world superpowers and any of the developing or ‘disgraced’ countries of the world, the principle of “Just War” applies. This is why Trump is going to get away with the Saturday invasion of Venezuela and the impending similar exercises in Cuba and Colombia, as the American President hinted.

If the UN wakes up today and gets its mojo back to interrogate Trump on Venezuela, the US can simply hide under the cover of the principle of ‘Just war’ as the invasion of Venezuela and the ‘capture’ of its president satisfied the jus ad bellum requirements of the ‘just cause’, just intention’; ‘just peace’; reasonable chance of success’; and ‘expected benefits outweighing anticipated cost.’. We don’t need a seer to predict that many drug-friendly leaders across the globe will think twice before making America their ‘depots.’ Trump took the American oath of office to protect American interests. This is why there has been no serious condemnation of the invasion in the US today.

The invasion of Venezuela is a lesson for third-world countries. The argument that Trump took that decision because of the last Venezuelan election and economic interest is noble in my opinion. That is what he was elected to do: protect America and its interests world over.

In Africa, in general, and in Nigeria in particular, let our leaders learn to develop our lands. Let those saddled with the responsibilities of paddling our canoes do so with utmost patriotism. And more importantly, let those who want to lord it over us do so through free and fair elections. Otherwise, we will all clap and celebrate should Trump decide to ‘capture’ and ship all undesirable elements with questionable character to America for trial. Venezuelans set the precedent on Saturday when they trooped to the streets in jubilation at the news of the removal of Maduro!1

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Oyo Traditional Ruler Suspended Over Alleged Illegal Mining

Published

21 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Editor

The Oyo State Government has suspended the Sobaloju of Ofiki, Chief Jacob Sobaloju, following allegations linking him to illegal mining activities and breaches of Executive Order 001/2023, which governs mining operations within the state.

The state government said the action was taken to protect the public interest and preserve government-gazetted assets.

In a suspension letter issued by the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters and signed by the Director of Chieftaincy Matters, Mr Olajire A.M., the traditional ruler was accused of contravening the executive order and forest reserve regulations by allegedly issuing consent letters to mining firms without lawful authorisation.

The letter further alleged that Chief Sobaloju permitted mining activities within government-reserved forest areas and facilitated unauthorised mining operations, actions said to be in violation of extant laws and regulations.

According to the ministry, the monarch was suspended from the palace of the Onitọ of Ito with effect from Monday, January 5, 2026, pending the outcome of investigations.

The suspension was described as a precautionary step to ensure an unhindered and credible investigation process.

The correspondence, titled “Re: Complaint against Chief Sobaloju of Ofiki for violation of State Executive Order, Forest Reserve Regulations and encouraging trespassing of government gazetted assets,” stated that the allegations bordered on violations of Executive Order 001/2023 and unlawful encroachment on state-owned assets.

Chief Sobaloju was also directed to immediately cease all mining-related activities, including the issuance of consent letters, avoid interference with the investigation, and make himself available to investigators whenever required.

The Oyo State Government reaffirmed its zero-tolerance stance on illegal mining and related infractions, warning that any individual found culpable would be sanctioned in line with the law.