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OPINION: The President Is My Brother, I Shall Not Talk…

Published

8 months ago

April 21, 2025

Editor

By Lasisi Olagunju

I found myself inventing the above verse as today’s headline. The verse came sounding like “The Lord is my shepherd/ I Shall not want…” The twenty-third Psalm. Yesterday was Easter Sunday; today is Easter Monday. All Judases are shamed.

Life here is bitter as brine. The green pastures are withered. The still waters are poisoned. More and more, victims fall in undeclared wars in Benue and Plateau. Terrorists rebrand and relaunch in Borno and Niger and Zamfara. The Commander-in-Chief is absent in flesh, in body and soul. But I must be quiet, because the president is my brother.

Some twenty-something years ago, one of us (I can’t remember who the person was) blurted out a question:

“The name of your governor, ‘Alamiyeseigha’, reads like a tongue-twisting clause. What does it mean?”

Our guest was the Bayelsa State Commissioner for Information.

The guest sat up, grinned and looked round the Tribune boardroom. She then smiled out the answer.

“It means God is never wrong. Just like my name, ‘Benamaisia’, means brother is never wrong.”

I thought that was deep. I quickly got it stored in the depth of my brain. True. God is never wrong. But brother? An argument would have ensued but that commissioner, Mrs Ruth Benamaisia Opia, went into an intelligent analysis of how and when a brother is deemed not wrong: She said a brother is never wrong in the presence of outsiders. She might be right. Among her audience were a people whose own culture instructs them to first deal with the fox before spanking the cock. They also say you don’t sell your brother cheap; if you do, you won’t be able to buy him back expensive.

“Kin-blood is not spoiled by water.” That is how 12th-century German poet, Heinrich der Glîchezære, couches it in his epic, Reinhart Fuchs (Reynard the Fox). I am supposed to love and be loyal to the king because he is my brother. Is my brother, the king, supposed to love and be loyal to me? Christian scholar, T. L. Westow, in his ‘Who is my Brother?’ published in May 1964, declares that “nobody can eat for somebody else.” That may be true in biology; it is not true in politics. What do you think my brother, the president, is doing on my behalf in Europe? He has been there for the past two weeks.

Because my brother is the president, he can do anything and get away with it. And he has been doing it. The president is the law. He keeps a very good company in the US President Donald Trump. Last week, Trump complained about his country’s Federal Reserves chair, Jerome Powell. “I’m not happy with him. I don’t think Powell is doing the job. He will leave if I ask him to.” An American reacted: “Why have anybody but Trump run anything? Just get rid of congress, senate, Supreme Court, etc. He’s so smart; he can run everything.” It is too late to recommend the same here. President Bola Tinubu is the smartest somebody ever created. He had been the law long before he became president. Presidential powers have only enlarged his coast, and we are happy and grateful for the answered prayers.

I have no problem with Tinubu staying put abroad. The only issue I have with it is that in his absence, Muhammadu Buhari’s eunuch is having an erection again. I don’t like that. It is risky. While I agonise over the resurgent eunuchs, I will not stop stopping critics from hampering my president with the constitution and all its provisions. Scrap the law, scrap the courts, the legislature, everything; sack the governors, give the president their functions and budgets. Make him President and Governor General of the federation. Trash all the scrapped. Scrap Abuja and let the super man reign from wherever he finds comfort. Why not?

My brother, the president, is in Europe, running the country effectively unseen like an unseen poem. It is my duty as a brother to expose the ignorance of critics who say the president residing abroad is immoral and illegal. I should tell such critics that the people who created Nigeria started Nigeria with that arrangement. When the two Nigerias were brought together in 1914, the first ‘president’ (nicknamed Governor General) reigned six months in Nigeria; four and a half months in London; one and half months cruising on the high seas. Lord Lugard gave his employers that condition and he got it, he maintained and enjoyed it for several years. A befitting office with full complement of competent staff was even provided for him right inside the colonial office in London. That is our history.

Shakespeare says there is no darkness but ignorance. Ignorant critics say my brother does not delegate as the constitution dictates. They should read history. Our president’s ancestor, Lord Lugard had two deputies called Assistant Governors. From 1914 when he took charge till he left in 1919, he delegated neither power nor responsibility to any of them. There were complaints and grumblings, home and abroad; the Governor-General ignored them all. Nothing happened. Nothing will happen if President Tinubu keeps that foundational tradition alive. He has a duty to run his government undisturbed from the Moon, even from inside the Sun.

If my brother is not ready for home, it is my duty to beg him to stay back wherever he is. It is also my duty to attack his attackers here. He should not rush home after these Easter holidays simply because sibling rivalry is pushing some of our bad brothers to demand his immediate homecoming. The president should work harder in London – or cross the English Channel back to Paris, and continue where he stopped.

Last week, from wherever he was, the president set up an eight-man committee on his pet census project, five out of the eight members are from his sitting room. Because he is my brother, I am not supposed to mention this and say he was wrong to use his household to rule the whole world.

MORE FROM THE AUTHOR: [OPINION] Lugard: 80 Years After

For those who are not happy that five brothers out of eight make the list of Tinubu’s census committee, I recommend, in the spirit of this Easter season, ‘The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard’. It is a Bible passage:

“Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Him with her sons, kneeling down and asking something from Him.

“And He said to her, ‘What do you wish?’”

“She said to Him, ‘Grant that these two sons of mine may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on the left, in Your kingdom.’” (Mathew 20:20,21).

What you just read is a brother to the right; his blood brother to the left. The Master was number one. The brothers would be numbers two and three. And there were twelve disciples. The two brothers were John and James. Whose cousins or nephews were they? Find out whose sister their mother, Salome, was.

Some neighbours are already saying that without them in 2027 my brother will be sent back home empty-handed. They should shut up, and go and listen to Juju music Commander Ebenezer Obey. He warns that no one should vow that without them their friend won’t find food to eat. They should not say that again. Sustenance is God’s. He is the only provider. If they want war in 2027, my brother will give them. I will watch the bull fight; my popcorn is ordered.

So, those who are not happy with my brother’s nepotism should go drink iced water. They should wait for their own time. Nigeria is a tripod. Every good and every bad must get entered in the country’s balance sheet. Muhammadu Buhari had his own fill. We shouted, but Bayajidda II pointed us to his kurmo (deaf) ears. Goodluck Jonathan had aides who helped him do his own so well that he became Azikiwe.

I read Keith Ferrazzi’s ‘Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success.’ But I will not join outsiders to quote that book and warn the solo man that he “can’t get there alone” and “in fact, can’t get very far at all.” I will also refrain from reading ‘What do you think of eating alone?’, a recent piece written by The Korea Times’ senior advisor, Park Moo-jong. There is a spice in that piece. It is from Desmond Morris, English zoologist, ethologist and author of ‘The Naked Ape’: “One may eat alone in the privacy of one’s own home, but to eat alone in a public place is to invite suspicion of personal failure at best and deviancy at worst.” If the president were not my brother, I would have expanded that verdict to accommodate what critics say of him here. I would have said that Nigeria is a public, multi-regional, multi ethnic entity and that no group, no matter how smart, or wise or vicious can kidnap Nigeria and hold it hostage for long. But the president is Yoruba and Muslim like me, so I won’t undermine my brother. I won’t join those who say that even the British who created the country did not succeed in putting it in purdah for as long as they wished.

President Bola Tinubu is a brother to some because he is a Muslim. To some others he is a brother because of the language he speaks – his mother tongue – Yoruba. Still, to some others, he is a brother because of the fraternity of politics he leads. Common to these concentric circle of brotherhoods is the charge that his wrong must not be said from any mouth there. Scores killed in Plateau, 56 murdered in Benue, the Commander-in-Chief is rocking the cities of Paris and London. He must not be accused of playing Nero while his Rome burns. Our brother must never be said to be wrong.

This president campaigned and pledged to renew our hopes in a better Nigeria. Where are the promised “sparkling springs” and the “babbling brooks”? A brother has no right to question his brother, the president. If he is your brother, tell him not that he lives in an illusory world where failure is praiseworthy success and poverty is wealth. The people’s suffering notwithstanding, rejoice with your brother.

A brother is never wrong. Like the anonymous American army major said in the Vietnam war, there is nothing bad to have my brother destroy the town in order to save it. The king can invent his own reality and call us to project it for the world to admire and applaud. We will obey him; he is our brother.

Poverty unravels homes; policies upend businesses. But what is real is unreal because the president is my brother. We hear politicians of various ailments hail the president for making Nigeria great again. Even some opposition governors are rushing into his Noah’s Ark. Reality has different versions. When it is bad as we have it, regime washers create a positive one and command me to praise it. They say we must celebrate their reality because it is done everywhere, even in America where we borrowed this system that sells the freeborn into slavery. If that sounds interesting to you, read ‘Bad for Democracy: How the Presidency Undermines the Power of the People’ by Dana D. Nelson. It was published in 2008 long before Donald Trump came with his ideology of alternative truth.

You see them on TV boasting of unprecedented achievements and daring you to contradict them. They did and do it where we copied our constitution. Towards the 2004 presidential election in the US, a Bush administration official with the swag of a conquistador told a New York Times reporter, Ron Suskind: “We’re an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you’re studying that reality judiciously, as you will, we’ll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that’s how things will sort out. We’re history’s actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.” This sounds like what my brother’s government can say in Nigeria. The government is a pack of confidence men. We – you and I – exist to only study, write and talk about what they do.

My brother is dining alone somewhere across the Mediterranean Sea. Some people say he is in Paris, France; some say he is in London, United Kingdom. I am supposed to thank him for eating on my behalf abroad while I yawn at home. As I do that, I should also ask what will end anyone’s ‘eat alone’ regime if they do not change? An Arabian proverb speaks on the consequences of fencing off others from a communal feast. They say he who eats alone vomits alone. They also say he who eats alone chokes alone. The Tigrigna of Eritrea and northern Ethiopia say: He who eats alone dies alone. The NURTW has a more radical version. Its members shout: “Eat alone, Go away!”

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FULL TEXT: Gen Musa’s Inaugural Speech As Defence Minister

Published

6 hours ago

December 6, 2025

Editor

Newly appointed Defence Minister, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), on Friday, delivered his inaugural speech as he assumed office, pledging to end the shedding of innocent blood and strengthen Nigeria’s security architecture.

Here is the full speech:

FULL SPEECH: ADDRESS BY GENERAL CHRISTOPHER GWABIN MUSA (RTD), ON HIS ASSUMPTION OF OFFICE AS MINISTER OF DEFENCE.

December 5, 2025

It is with profound humility and a deep sense of responsibility that I address you today in my new capacity as the Minister of Defence of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Six weeks ago, I was in Kaki. Now, I am coming as the Minister. It can only be God. I thank President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, for the trust and confidence you have shown in me.

I take that very seriously. For me, it is indeed a privilege and an honour, after serving 39 years in service, to come in and now be the Minister of Defence of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The love Nigerians have shown us reflects that people believe we can turn the tide.

But it is not rhetoric. It is by action. We must, firstly as Nigerians, take ownership of the responsibilities and challenges we face in our country.

It is only us who can solve the problem. It is when we agree within ourselves that we can deal with this, that we will succeed. God is with us, and He has always given us the responsibility to succeed.

This responsibility is one I accept with solemn reverence and unwavering commitment to the safety and security of our great nation, Nigeria. Let me also acknowledge the dedicated leadership of my predecessor and the relentless efforts of every one of you in this room.

When I was the Chief of Defence Staff, you gave me all the support, and I truly appreciate it. I want to assure you that coming back as Minister, we want to do more for your welfare, well-being, and the administration of the Ministry. I strongly believe in reward and accountability. You do well, you are rewarded. We take corrective measures to ensure we succeed. I don’t believe in “na so we dey do am.”

We must assess everything that we are doing and see whether we can improve it. I believe in fostering a positive workforce. We are going to listen to your challenges, and whatever we can do to address them, we will. But I count on you also to put in your best. You know your task ahead. You don’t have to wait until somebody calls you or asks you a question. Do what you are supposed to do, and that will make it easier for us as a nation.

The task of securing the nation is continuous, and I am aware that you have been holding the line with dedication. I commend you all. For decades, my life has been defined by uniform, by the ethos of service, and by sacred covenants to defend the territorial integrity and citizens of Nigeria. I therefore come to this role not as a stranger to our security challenges, but as a comrade who has been in the trenches both literally and figuratively. I’ve seen firsthand the bravery of our troops, the complexity of our threats, and the role of strategic coordination. Like I always say, no single individual can achieve this alone. No single service operator can do it. We must work as Nigerians, making Nigeria better.

Consequently, my core philosophy in ensuring the affairs of this ministry is simple: operational effectiveness through unified action and strategic foresight. Ladies and gentlemen, we cannot afford to operate in silos.

We cannot tolerate gaps between policy and execution, or between the ministry and the services. This ministry will be a powerhouse of strategic direction, enabling support, and relentless accountability. We must provide that support for our troops to continue to succeed. They are sacrificing their lives out there in the field—day and night, thunderstorm or windstorm—whatever the situation, to ensure that we, Nigerians, can go to bed and sleep well. We must continue to pray for them. We must continue to provide the necessary support.

Working as a team with other MDAs, Mr. President has made it very clear he will give us all the support we require and demands that we achieve success, which we have promised him. Within the first few weeks, we must show that we are committed: the ministry working inside, the troops working outside.

To translate this philosophy into action, my initial focus will rest on three interconnected pillars: enhancing joint operational strategy synergy. We will immediately begin a rigorous review of all theatre commands and inter-service operations. My door will be open, as always, to the Chief of Defence Staff and Service Chiefs for frank discussions on equipment, training, welfare, and strategy. Mr. President wants us to present our challenges, with the promise that they will be addressed. So it is left for us to do the needful.
Our goal is to overwhelm the adversaries with seamless jointness, not just cognition.

Welfare and Morale as a Force Multiplier

We all understand the importance of morale to our personnel and staff. We must therefore prioritise the timely provision of all necessary kits, ensure prompt payment of operational allowances, and vigorously address accommodation and medical care for our personnel and their families. Those not injured are watching how we treat the injured. If they are not taken care of properly, they will not give their best, because they will be apprehensive. Especially those who have lost their loved ones—the families want to know what will happen.

It is our responsibility to take care of them. The aspect of actions that impugn their integrity is not acceptable. We must make payments seamless. We must treat them with respect. Anybody who is laying down their life for their country deserves the highest respect, and that is what we offer. I will be very critical about that.

Intelligence-Driven and Technology-Enabled Defence

The Ministry of Defence is the strategic brain of our national defence architecture. We must therefore leverage technology for intelligence, surveillance, and recurring service. We have partners and allies ready to support us. We will reach out to them to work as a team. We will also collaborate with other security agencies. Every Nigerian is vital to the success of Nigeria. We will foster a culture where data and intelligence drive our decisions, not just experience alone. I charge the Ministry to be a catalyst for innovation and efficient resource management.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I expect the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and urgency from all of us. We do not have time to waste. We will continue to hit the ground running. We must respect the human rights of Nigerians. If we make mistakes, we must take necessary action to make amends. I will always encourage candid advice and robust debates. But once a decision is taken, we must move as one united team.

There will be zero tolerance for corruption, indiscipline, or indolence. Our loyalty is to Nigeria and the Nigerian people. The President is the Commander-in-Chief; the bulk stops on his table. We must provide the support required to make Nigeria peaceful.

Shedding of innocent blood is over. Our children should go back to school. Our farmers should go back to their farms. Most of the challenges we face are not military solutions—they are issues of good governance, justice, equity, and fairness, which we will encourage. Both non-kinetic and kinetic solutions must work hand in hand. We cannot afford to fail Nigerians. Charity begins at home; if we have the mindset that we will succeed, we will.

To the Service Chiefs, I offer my full support and expect your utmost cooperation to move the Armed Forces to greater heights. To the Department Secretary and the Civil Service cadre, you are the institutional memory and the framework for our sustainability. I value your expertise and count on your diligence to translate our military objectives into actionable administrative and budgetary policies.

The road ahead is demanding and will be tough. Let us not take it for granted. But because we are Nigerians, we shall overcome. The threats we face are adaptive and complex, but I have absolute faith in the indomitable spirit of our Armed Forces and the capable minds within the Ministry. With the support and prayers we are receiving from all Nigerians, we cannot fail.

In closing, let me once again reaffirm my commitment to lead with fairness, firmness, and loyalty to our Constitution. The President is doing everything possible to ensure our success. We must play our part. The task ahead is enormous, but surmountable. We can win. We will win. The good people of Nigeria are looking up to us for results, and we must deliver immediately. I am not here to preside; I am here to lead, to walk, and to deliver alongside you. I cannot do it alone. I thank you all as I look forward to our detailed work and the tasks ahead.

God bless you all, and God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Thank you.

— General Christopher Gwabin Musa (Rtd)
Minister of Defence, Federal Republic of Nigeria

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Malami Breaks Silence On Alleged Terrorism Financing

Published

7 hours ago

December 6, 2025

Editor

A former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, has broken his silence on allegations linking him to terrorism financing, dismissing the claims as baseless, misleading and politically motivated.

In a statement issued on Friday, Malami said he was compelled to respond after a publication suggested that he and several others had connections to persons described as terror suspects or alleged financiers.

Malami described the claims as “unfounded, unfair and contrary to both my record in public office and objective facts.”

The former minister stressed that he had never been accused, invited, interrogated or investigated by any security, law-enforcement or intelligence agency within or outside Nigeria for terrorism financing or any related offence.

He said: “I state clearly and unequivocally that I have never at any time been accused, invited, interrogated, investigated or charged by any security, law-enforcement, regulatory or intelligence agency—within or outside Nigeria—in respect of terrorism financing or any related offence.”

Malami noted that even the retired military officer cited as the principal source of the publication admitted that he did not accuse Malami or the other individuals of financing terrorism, but merely referenced vague “business” or “institutional” connections allegedly linked to some suspects.

He said the publication misrepresented this clarification and was politically exploited to create damaging insinuations about him.

Malami warned that normal professional or institutional engagements must not be misconstrued as evidence of supporting terrorism.

“To suggest that lawful professional or institutional engagements can be read as evidence of terrorism financing is both mischievous and unjust,” he said.

Highlighting his record, Malami listed several anti–money laundering and counter-terrorism reforms spearheaded during his tenure, including:

Establishment of the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) as an independent entity

Enactment of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022

Enactment of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022

He noted that improved inter-agency coordination under these laws contributed to Nigeria’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list.

“During my tenure, I worked to strengthen—not weaken—Nigeria’s legal and institutional framework against money laundering and the financing of terrorism,” he said.

Malami urged the media to exercise caution when reporting on sensitive national security issues, warning that careless publications can damage reputations and undermine confidence in state institutions.

He reaffirmed his commitment to the rule of law and Nigeria’s international obligations, adding that he reserves the right to seek redress against any publication that misrepresents his role in the fight against terrorism financing.

News

Otuaro Pledges To Expand PAP Scholarship As Beneficiaries Bag Master’s Degrees From UK Varsities

Published

18 hours ago

December 5, 2025

Editor

Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Dr. Dennis Otuaro, has expressed his unwavering commitment to expanding the PAP scholarship scheme.

The PAP boss made the pledge at a graduation reception for nine students who were awarded foreign post-graduate scholarships by PAP in universities in the United Kingdom.

A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr Igoniko Oduma, said the successful scholars are the first graduates in the offshore post-graduate scholarship deployment to UK institutions by the PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro, for the 2024-2025 academic session.

According to the statement, they graduated from the Anglia Ruskin University, University of Dundee and The University of Law with master’s degrees in cyber security, data science and engineering, law, construction and civil engineering management, project management, and ICT.

Otuaro disclosed in the statement that 711 undergraduate and post-graduate scholarship beneficiaries are expected to graduate from universities within Nigeria this year.

According to Otuaro, the expansion of the scholarship scheme is aimed at creating more opportunities for indigent students of Niger Delta extraction to access higher education with a view to closing the human capital development gap in the region.

Otuaro said it was for this reason he deployed 3800 beneficiaries in-country in the 2024-2025 academic year, and increased the figure to 3900 in the 2025-2026 academic session with 200 for foreign scholarships.

He said under his administration, 7700 students have been so far deployed for the PAP scholarship scheme within Nigeria in less than two years.

According to him, aince he took over, he has deployed 162 students from the region for post-graduate programmes in targeted disciplines in the UK universities.

According to him, this is in conformity with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu for the Niger Delta, who has given unprecedented support to the PAP because of his sincere love for the area.

The PAP boss said, “Our decision aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR for the Niger Delta. We will continue to create more higher educational opportunities for students from indigent backgrounds in our region.

“We are also deepening the implementation of the programme’s mandate in informal education and other areas for the sustainable peace and socio-economic advancement of the region.”

Otuaro, who congratulated the master’s graduates on their successful graduation, stressed that they completed their programmes in record time which shows the seriousness they had put into their studies.

He said they have justified the Federal Government’s investment in their education with their successful graduation, and urged other beneficiaries not to be distracted in their academic pursuits.

“We congratulate these scholars on their successful graduation. It shows that they took their studies seriously. That is what we demand of every scholarship beneficiary, whether at the undergraduate or post-graduate level”, Otuaro said.