The Nation Newspaper

Author: The Nation

Kwankwaso: The man and his politics
- By Abu Mahmud
Sir: Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, national leader of the NNPP, has openly stated that he would only defect to another party if offered the presidential or vice-presidential ticket for 2027. Kwankwaso argues that his decades-long political career entitles him to such consideration, insisting that his supporters would accept nothing less.

Kwankwaso commands a loyal base in Kano, where he is celebrated as a champion of the masses. Beyond that stronghold, however, his career is marked by serial defections—PDP, APC, NNPP—each aligned with personal calculations rather than consistent principles. Supporters call this pragmatism; critics call it political nomadism.

Recent developments in Kano have punctured the myth of Kwankwaso’s invincibility. The political rupture within the state has exposed a reality long obscured by propaganda: his influence depends heavily on state power. Without control of institutional machinery, his dominance diminishes. Electoral results reinforce this limitation. In the last presidential election, Atiku Abubakar secured over seven million votes, Peter Obi over six million, while Kwankwaso garnered just 1.14 million—nearly all from Kano.

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Governor Abba Yusuf’s anticipated defection to the APC further signals a shift in Kano’s political landscape. While the Kwankwasiyya movement remains relevant, its grip on state power is weakening. As his influence wanes, he increasingly portrays himself as a victim of betrayal, rallying supporters with narratives that elevate personal loyalty above political evolution.

In a political manoeuvre aimed at his own survival, a report claimed that the former NNPP presidential candidate formally asked Chief Bisi Akande to help arrange a direct meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu so he could personally negotiate his defection. Akande reportedly refused, stressing that he could not sidestep the party’s established structures, and instead directed Kwankwaso to the official high‑level committee that handles negotiations with prominent politicians seeking to join the party.

Even though he’s anxious about his political future, he can’t bring himself to tell the youths—whose blind loyalty he still counts on—why the people who stood with him from 1999 onward have walked away. What’s glaringly absent from his story is any reckoning with his own habit of discarding the allies who built his career: Senator Hamisu Musa, Musa Gwadabe, Abubakar Rimi—all side-lined after they helped him rise. Political independence isn’t betrayal; it’s a legitimate pursuit.

When Abdullahi Ganduje parted ways with Kwankwaso, he endured ridicule and abuse.

In my view, Kwankwaso and his blindsided supporters should at least appreciate Abba Gida‑Gida’s restraint in not publicly airing the unpleasant experiences that surrounded his rise to governor under the NNPP. Even though the Kwankwaso–Abba clash is, at its core, politics in its truest form—a search for solutions and self‑determination, there remains a clear distinction between betrayal, the pursuit of solutions, and the quest for independence from total submission.

•Abu Mahmud,

Hadejia Road Kano.
January 20, 2026
On Nigeria’s perilous state of affairs
- By Abachi Ungbo
Sir: It goes without saying that Nigeria is roiled by strong winds that are intent on ripping up its delicate fabric. This has drawn deep concern, and it is leaving everyone watching with bated breath on how it will walk away unscathed. Presently, an asphyxiating atmosphere of fear, bigotry and hatred which is antithetical to nation building has entirely enveloped the country.

What we have now is a situation where the huge paper that is spread over the nation’s wall has given way to deep and troubling cracks. The mask on different faces has fallen off, exposing the open declaration of patriotism and allegiance to the country as mere rhetoric. It is regrettable, that the badges of the respective ethno-religious camps are carried with honour. By and large, national identity is almost non-existent. And, the abounding diversity of the country only attracts scant attention.

Not a few Nigerians have become brutally cynical about the future of the country. They simply question our nationhood which poses a clear and present danger to our democracy and sovereignty. The social media has turned into a huge battlefield of ethnic, religious and ideological war as well as a simple barometer for gauging the crisis of unity and togetherness brewing in the country. Already, there are growing calls of secession which is spreading apace across the regional boundaries of the country. In fact, we have a host of ‘post Nigeria’ maps making the rounds in the social media showing the country carved along ethnic and religious lines.

The current state of affairs is a corollary of the actions of the political class and religious leaders which have been far from been exemplary. They have effectively used their positions as tool of mobilization for selfish ends and oppression which has evidently made the current situation not unexpected.

It is no news that Nigeria is prostrate by insecurity with a devastatingly high human toll. The reported international dimension to the issue is driving chills down the spines of Nigerians. Unfortunately, illegal mining activities in the hotbeds of the insecurity, massive corruption, complicity of officials among other things are conflating in not only compromising the fight against insecurity but in making it long drawn out. The situation has placed the country in a bad light with threat of foreign military intervention on the grounds of genocide.

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The economy is still too weak to pull out the mammoth population trapped in the dark hole of poverty. Recently, PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) reported that 114 million – about 65% of the population are projected to be living in poverty in 2026. This provides a trigger for social unrest. The demand for sacrifices is made on ordinary Nigerians and not the leaders.

The picture of the former Yugoslavia readily comes to the minds of Nigerians as a convenient case in point of failure in the proper handling of diversity, socio- economic challenges etc. Recall that Yugoslavia was a stable country, an oasis of peace where the different nationalities co-existed before it became a theatre of instability occasioned by economic crisis, secession agenda, clashes between the nationalities etc.

As a matter of urgency, the trajectory of the country must be rerouted to preclude an implosion. This actually brings us to the place of strategic leadership. The security of lives and properties needs to be bolstered before the country is drawn to a Pre-Hobbesian state. Of consequence in my considered view is the revisit of the recommendations of past national dialogues not least the 2014 national conference which the APC government under the banner of the Nasir El Rufai Committee (2012) concurred with some of its provisions. Both attempts provide solutions to challenges of national development.

•Abachi Ungbo,

abachi007@yahoo.com
January 20, 2026
Abandoned Idi-Aba-Abeokuta-Obafemi-Ajebo link road
- By Gbenga Adeoye
Sir: We bring warm greetings to the Honourable Minister of Works, Sen Dave Umahi and his entire team on the various Renewed Hope Projects going on across the country. One of these great projects is the Lagos-Calabar-Coastal Highway which also passed through Ijebu Water Side in Ogun State as well as the award of Badagry Sokoto Road which passes through Soyoye Rounder area in Abeokuta.

The night repairs of Sango-Abeokuta Road is also worthy of note and commendable.

While we have a duty to commend the government when we see performance, we, the Egba people, also have a collective duty imposed on us to call the attention of government to any project(s) that is of economic importance especially where execution of such project (s) is slow, stagnant and sometimes, not even conceived.

In view of the above, we hereby call your attention to the slow pace of work on Idi-Aba-Abeokuta-Obafemi-Ajebo link road to Lagos-Ibadan which passed through the Federal Medical Centre in Abeokuta all the way through OGTV, the state government owned television station and others

We also request that you ensure the designed standard is not lowered after the segment that passed through Abeokuta City, especially in areas that passed through villages as contractors have a way of dropping standards after leaving the main city, thereby reducing durability in some parts of the road.

In addition to the above request; we are deeply worried over the project for the following reasons:

The project has dragged for too long having been awarded during the administration of President Buhari. The segment in the town from Federal Medical Centre up to Chrisland University appears good but shortly after, it has become difficult for people to drive through.

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The newly established Federal University of Medicine and Medical Sciences (FUMMSA) has its 170 hectares permanent site on the same road at Ajibayo Village and there is no way they can move from their current temporary site to that location if that road construction remains abandoned, stagnant, or slow.

The road is an alternative road to the old Ibadan Abeokuta road via Apata, Bakatari, Ilugun and Odeda to Adatan in Abeokuta and that also need attention. The road passed through the state-owned television station, OGTV.

The road is capable of transforming the economic landscape of Obafe-Ajebo area in that, the diversion of the road at Owojo to pass through Oyebola to Alapako- Oni will create an industrial hub around Ajebo town and villages like, Erunwon, Abiona Mosafejo and Olosun among others.

The road is useful in decongesting regular traffic and gridlocks at Ogere axis of Lagos Ibadan expressway as motorists going to Abeokuta from Ibadan and vice versa will not need to drive through Abeokuta-Sagamu Interchange.

Excavation done on the road has now made life very difficult for motorists, whereas it was a smooth drive through as well as a short-cut to Ibadan when it was constructed by the administration of Chief Olusegun Osoba during his tenure as the governor of Ogun State.

In view of the above, we plead that urgent action be taken to ensure speedy completion of the road as it will have direct positive impact on the economy of Egbaland, Ogun state and Nigeria as a whole.

While wishing you all the best in the new year, we pray that funds will be available to your ministry to get this project and other ongoing projects completed soonest.

•Dr. Gbenga Adeoye,

Egba Economic Summit Group,

Abeokuta, Ogun State.
January 20, 2026
U.S. felon, global outlaw

US felon, global outlaw? A grim logic, isn’t that? So, why is the globe acting surprised?

Whatever the utterly insecure US President, Donald Trump, tries with the world — thus making it far less safe — he had practised (and gone away with) in his own country. Will he get away with global outlawry? That is still in the womb of time!

Back to his American felony. On 30 May 2024, Trump earned due conviction for 34 felonies in his native New York. Instead of the state tossing him inside the can, though an ex-president, all he got was a confetti of votes to return to the White House.

In that theatre of the absurd, the US court that should sentence for felony duly proven, solemnly pronounced its own impotence. After being voted president though a proven felon, the court neutered its power to punish, after due process.

The final verdict? “Unconditional discharge” — to commit more felonies? That was 10 January 2025, after Trump’s triumph in the November 2024 presidential election.

Four years hitherto — 6 January 2021 — he had spat and shat on the holiest shrine of American democracy. That day, to reverse his defeat by Joe Biden in November 2020, he had marshalled his thugs to sack the US Capitol.

But by institutional self-loathing and partisan brinksmanship, the Republican segment of the US Senate gave Trump a slap on the wrist, though the House of Representatives did own duty to duly impeach.

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The moral of this judicial-legislative abandonment: if Trump’s own country fled from bringing the felon to heel — if not for out-and-out criminality, then for violent political chaos — what global order, which at best runs on conventions, can stop Trump from becoming a preening, dashing, unfazed global outlaw, unleashing US fearsome might to hide his personal shame and sate his sundry insecurities?

That’s the Trump global tragedy playing out! US felon, global outlaw!

On 25 September 2025 when Trump went to the United Nations General Assembly to ridicule everyone (see “Nebuchadnezzar”, 30 September 2025), this column dismissed the US president as the 21st century Nebuchadnezzar, doomed to falling on his sword, at the zenith of his hubris, just as the Babylonian original (reigned: 605 BC-562 BC).

But that image is a tad too restrictive. Nebuchadnezzar seems even truer of the American electorate. If a fella had sacked your parliament — the very sacred symbol of your republicanism, your liberty and your democracy — and was also duly convicted by your court — what sort of hubris would make you pick him as your president?

The haunting words of Kamala Harris, Trump’s Democratic Party opponent, still hang eerily in the air, an eternal rebuke, long after the deed had been done!

“On day one, if elected,” Vice President Harris had warned, “Donald Trump would walk into that office with an enemies list … Donald Trump intends to use the United States military against American citizens who simply disagree with him. People he calls ‘the enemy from within’. This is not a candidate for president who is thinking about how to make you better. This is someone,” she insisted, “who is unstable, obsessed with revenge, consumed with grievance, and out for unchecked power”!

Talk of Kamala hitting the bull’s eye, home and abroad! What prescience!

At home, Trump’s paramilitary US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), with icy terror, wields raw power to maul, crush or even kill, particularly that Trumpian scum, called “immigrants”.

Incidentally, documented or not, Trump and fellow hypocrites and xenophobes, once belonged to this class, being settlers from Europe and elsewhere. Only the native Indians were no immigrants. They owned the land. But those had been near-blotted out by frontier savages, the western world imposed on their native horizon.

Then, the US president’s flagrant misuse of the National Guard, against Democratic states he dubs “enemies”, though he has been forced to retreat in some states, after being blocked by the courts.

But either by ICE terror or National Guard muscling, the “immigrant” scum aren’t the only victims. Collateral damage seeps into the Trump racial blue bloods, as the Minneapolis woman in Minnesota, Rennee Nicol Good, fatally shot by an ICE agent. She was neither Latino nor Black, nor was she an “immigrant”! The rich also cry?

Still, it’s on the global plain that Trump’s mail-fisted outlawry has been most rankling in its triumphalism.

After his initial rhapsody over seizing Canada as America’s 51st state, punching Mexico hollow with US trade tariffs and unilaterally renaming Gulf of Mexico as Gulf of America — a move the world ignored with quiet scorn — Trump made the most brazen of his move, thus far, at the turn of 2026.

On January 3, he announced that his goons had captured and kidnapped Venezuela President, Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. In a fit that hovers between triumphalist glee and outright power lunacy, the US President, a few days later, even proclaimed himself “Acting President of Venezuela”, on his Truth Social platform, to a roar of applause from his MAGA fanatics!

Though he code-named that invasion “Operation Absolute Resolve”, it’s Trump’s own roguish “Operation Shock and Awe” — a parody of President George W. Bush’s 22 March-9 April 2003 Iraq II campaign, which not only nabbed Iraqi strongman, Saddam Hussein, but eventually hanged him on a Sallah day!

That Iraq invasion — crooked, to be sure, but glossed by the legal technicality of a UN Security Council approval — stole the Iraqi soul. But it also unleashed ISIS terror on the globe. What further chaos will the Venezuela invasion and Maduro capture unleash on the Americas?

Flush from this roguish victory — and his insane lusting after Venezuela’s oil — Trump has upped his ante to grab Greenland, a frigid, autonomous region of Denmark, whether “they like it or not!” Indeed, such is the gripping power lunacy, sweet and delirious, that Randy Fine, a Republican member of the House of Representatives has drafted a bill to cover the proposed Trump steal!

Just imagine: the US House of Representatives turning House of Representathieves over Greenland! Still, there’s a counter-Bill by a Democratic member, aside a bi-partisan Senate bill. Trump times!

A menacing, self-destruct image looms: a mad dog mauls foes, no big deal. But when it mauls its owner? That’s the Trump misadventure into Greenland! That land is under NATO protection, which guarantor-in-chief is Trump’s America! That he’s threatening his Europe opposers on Greenland, with hefty tariffs, is a classic bandit’s bay!

Much eerier: Trump’s global outlawry is flaring in 2026 — the year America clocks 250 years! At 250 years, the British Empire, hitherto the ruthless global lord of the manor, started melting. So did the Ottoman Empire, which peaked at 250.

By this year too, trust in US public institutions will sink below 20%. That fatal threshold (19% trust in public institutions), triggered the fall of the old Soviet Empire in 1991.

So, deja vu America at 250? We’ll see! That obtuse Trump can’t grasp the force of history is a red flag. So, are a FIFA President gifting Trump — a war monger — global football’s peace tinsel, and Maria Corina Machado, giving Trump her Nobel Peace Prize he’ll never own, in a fit of self-loathing! Both are a false lull, in a historical tempest.

But one thing is clear: the American century and days of blind global bullying is ebbing!

Nigeria — and other smart nations — should brace up for a post-American epoch.

Happy new year, folks! It’s nice to be back!

January 20, 2026
Rivers’ anomie season 2.0

Given how quickly the different actors in the Rivers’ political divide have gone back into the trenches, it is obvious that no lessons have been learnt either in the simple understanding of politics as art of the possible, not to talk of the body of organising rules on which the superstructure of governance is grounded and which the feuding parties are supposedly sworn to perform their duties. For if the period between March 18, 2025, when President Bola Tinubu clamped emergency rule on the state and September 17, 2025 when he rolled back the emergency, was supposed to afford the combatants sufficient window for introspection, what ought to be obvious now is how pretty little has changed in any sense. In fact, take out the restraining hand of President Tinubu, the state would probably be back on that uniquely perilous journey characterised by arson, sabotage, and other variants of anomie and delinquency. Remember, the jungle don mature as the governor once proclaimed in a fit of supposedly holy, self-righteous, rage.

And that was even long after the symbol of representative governance – the parliament was torched by – some will argue – agents of the executive. Of course, the bigger drama on the status of the assembly itself would follow later. Indeed, it came in a moment of unforced error, when the majority lawmakers – numbering 27, changed parties on television in Abuja – as against their wards where they registered!

I recall the governor swearing, at some point, that the legislature, not only existed at his pleasure but that the seats of the majority had been voided from then on! Thereafter, he opted to work with a parliament of three members, even when the self-appointed parliament fell short of a quorum in the eyes of the law. From then on, governance, in the Garden City state, simply became a charade – from the budgetary process, the procedural screening of the members of the state executive council, right up to the sham of a so-called local council elections; everything became a one-man show with a throng of conflict entrepreneurs egging the governor on!

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While these were going on, the dominant narrative was that the governor, Sim Fubara was the more sinned against, just as his sparring partner, Nyesom Wike, the supposedly vile godfather-Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, was the sinner. An element of that narrative was that Nigerians cared far less about the crimes of arson, the disregard to the constitution and the brazen outlawry that the governor had come to represent than they do of the godfather’s overbearing antics if not volubility! This was what the army of Wike’s opponents, armed with talking points, sold in their media rounds and duly amplified by their media house allies. They probably won that segment of the battle even if in the end, they lost the war rather ignominiously, where it mattered most – the Supreme Court.

February last year, the justices in their 62-page opinion signed by Justice Emmanuel Agim had pointedly accused the governor of democratic subversion.

“Having by his own admission engaged in a series of illegal activities just to prevent the other 27 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly from participating in the proceedings of the House to carry out their legitimate legislative duties which they were elected to do, his resort to Sections 102 and 109 of the 1999 Constitution and the doctrine of necessity on the basis of his allegation that they have defected is a red herring to perpetuate his subversion of the Rivers State House of Assembly, the 1999 Constitution and democratic government in Rivers State”, part of the judgment read.

More seriously, the apex court would not even be persuaded that a government, properly defined, existed at the time in Rivers State: “A government cannot be said to exist without one of the three arms that make up the government of a state under the 1999 Constitution. In this case, the executive arm of the government has chosen to collapse the legislature to enable him govern without the legislature as a despot. As it is, there is no government in Rivers State”.

The court then made what I consider a point, which I consider particularly relevant at this time: “Political disagreements cannot justify…contempt for the rule of law by the governor of a state or any person. What the 8th respondent (Fubara) has done is to destroy the government because of his fear of being impeached”.

Familiar?

Remember: that was the charade that President Tinubu terminated with the expectation that the feuding parties would use the opportunity to mend their ways. But what do we see months after? The return of the same old playbook in slow motion; of exclusion, of deliberate, systematic emasculation of the legislature – a simple failure to perform a public duty – the constitution of the state executive council. The language though different, conveys the same unmistakeable message: Jungle don mature.

Like in times past, the lawmakers are vexed. And many argue that they have reasons to be – given that the law appears to be on their side. This is particularly so as they are the sole authority on how the monies belonging to the state are spent. And to the extent that they have neither received nor processed the budget instrument on the basis of which the governor could be spending the people’s money, the governor could be deemed to have broken the law. The other matter is that there is no state executive council, properly constituted to run the business of government.

To be honest, the minders of Governor Fubara have not been particularly convincing on either of the issues: the other day, one of them claimed that the governor is still implementing the appropriation passed during the emergency and that the governor has only chosen to run the business of governance with his team of advisers because it is convenient for him!

In the meantime, Nigerians are being asked to choose between the noxious play of the supposedly power-drunk politician and his band of supporters on one hand, and the opportunistic manoeuvres of a wayward godson and his tribe of jesters on the other. Surely, the last thing Nigerians want to indulge is the now familiar swagger of absolutism, of players acting and treating the law as if it exists for mere convenience, and the attempt to deodorise gross misconduct. And now the most tragic of them all: the judiciary being called upon to insert itself into a process that the constitution clearly pronounces as “off limits”!

Yes, I understand the politicians and their mind games and why some doses of madness from their quarters are sometimes necessary to spice up the democratic space. As for the elders – Rivers elders, I understand that those who haven’t gone AWOL have splintered into compartments of ethnicity and the pursuit of lucre. As for the judiciary, I am, sufficiently worried at the ease with which it has been called into the dirty job. The world, surely, is watching!

January 20, 2026
Rivers of free money

This writer believes that some privileged persons within and outside Rivers State benefit from the instability always plaguing the state. Otherwise, how does one explain the resurgence of the political warfare between forces loyal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his predecessor, Minister Nyesom Wike, few months after the state of emergency was lifted? The general belief was that the state of emergency provided an opportunity for the combatants and their foot soldiers to reach a political détente.

But alas, as Chinua Achebe said, in Arrow of God, “for when we see a bird dancing in the middle of the pathway, we must know that its drummer is in the nearby bush.” But who are the drummers for the combatants in Rivers State who must truly be in the nearby bush? For this writer, the drummers are those seeking access to what I call the “free money” in the state. For Wike, it is those who want a share of the humongous N600 billion, left behind by the departed sole administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd).

Before Fubara took refuge in the All Progressive Congress (APC), his supporters had alleged that the fight between Wike and Fubara, was because of the former’s interest in controlling that “free money”. While the Rivers State 2025 budget of N1.846 trillion is enormous, there is a huge chance that the resources which causes the intractable debacles dating back to the beginning of this republic, may actually be the ones unbudgeted for.

Since the return of democracy in 1999, Rivers State has shown itself as the richest state with pots of “free money”. The evidence in support of that claim, is monumentally abundant. The first governor 1999-2007, Peter Odili, was given the acronym, “Donatus”, because he always donated handsomely at every public event he was invited to. To show that the money in question was not mere small change for donations, he became the biggest financier of the PDP in that era.

But for former president, Olusegun Obasanjo’s alleged interference, Odili, who ran the costliest campaign to succeed Obasanjo, had enough resources to appropriate the presidential ticket in 2007. The man, to whom Odili handed over, Rotimi Amechi, went on to repeat the same feat when he backed the election of late president, Muhammadu Buhari, against President Goodluck Jonathan. As Rivers State governor, he was reputed as one of the biggest financers of the election of the former president.

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To show that his resources is as deep as the oil wells in the state he governed, the former governor and later Minister for Transport, successfully ran a well-oiled campaign during the APC presidential primary. He came second behind the winner, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who went ahead to win the presidential election. Amaechi, was succeeded by Wike, who became a master class intervener in strategic capital projects, of national importance. Hardly ever worried about the flow of resources, he took many gigantic federal projects.

Wike, built massive infrastructure for a new Nigeria Law School, in Rivers State. He built houses for judges of federal courts, amongst several of such projects. Like his predecessors, Rivers money also flowed towards the presidential campaigns, during his tenure. First, he was reputed to have sponsored his former friend, Aminu Tambuwal, against Atiku Abubakar, in the Peoples Democratic Party primaries, in 2019. When he completed his second tenure, he sought the presidential crown for himself, in 2023, and if we are to believe Dele Momodu, he outspent the doyen of presidential election contests in Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar.

When Wike’s ambition was blocked at the PDP primary, which was as contentious, as a presidential campaign, Wike engaged his financial vehicle in a reverse gear, driving furiously and desperately, as if on a forward speed gear. The success of APC, which he supported, in 2023 election, earned him the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. And with the power and influence he holds, he is more or less the most dreaded political leader in Rivers State. Presently, Wike’s eyes are on the 2027 election, not as a candidate, but as a supporter of President Tinubu.

Obviously, Fubara joined APC, the president’s party, to counter the enormous political weight of Wike. But, he did not take into consideration that Wike’s men may have planted several mines in APC, just as he did in PDP, awaiting Fubara to make his entry. Despite his entry into APC, the state lawmakers who had earlier joined APC, have started an impeachment proceeding against the governor. Thinking it may help, Fubara’s men threw mud on the lawmakers accusing them of helping themselves with Rivers “free money”, while the sole administrator held sway.

Many presidential election pundits have argued that any presidential candidate who wants to be successful at the polls must have his eyes trained on Rivers, Kano and Lagos states. While the general attention is on the enormous registered voters that the states have, the more underlining factor may be the enormous financial resources the three states boast of. While their various state budgets show their enormous financial powers, the unbudgeted financial resources, may be the critical factor which contenders seek to have influence over, by controlling the states.

The influence of the three states extend far beyond the states. Recall that while Wike was in power, as Rivers State governor, he had enormous influence in the elections in the entire South-south. Former governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki confessed that it was Wike who made his reelection possible after he defected to PDP, haven fallen out with his sponsors in APC. Wike, as governor of Rivers State, was also influential in who won election in Bayelsa State.

Sadly, for Fubara, Wike had used the last local government election to cement the rings he ran around Fubara in Rivers State and he showed what the future may look like, during his recent thank you tour of the councils. Wike, also has the state legislators firmly with him, and even the flicker of light for Fubara, when four members of the state House of Assembly demurred about the impeachment proceedings, dimmed almost immediately. Not surprisingly, the 25 present member legislators are presently in one accord that Fubara has committed gross misconducts, as envisaged by section 188 of the 1999 constitution (as amended).

Fubara, may need the help of President Tinubu to stop the impeachment proceedings, even though he is hoping to use the courts to emasculate the legislators. But, this writer wonders what the court would say to justify denying the legislators the power to engage in a constitutional process. And to compound the matter for Fubara, he may have engaged in several constitutional infringements in the fights that led to the declaration of state of emergency in the state and he can still be punished for those infringements.

This writer wonders why Fubara can’t play politics to survive, or perhaps summon the Rivers free money, to wash away his sins.

January 20, 2026
ACF, time to move beyond talk-shops
- By Muhammad Musa-Gombe
At a time when Northern Nigeria is bleeding from insecurity, poverty, and despair, the leadership can no longer afford the comfort of conferences without consequences.

When the Arewa Consultative Forum marked 25 years of existence in 2025, expectations across Northern Nigeria rose sharply. The celebration was not just about history or nostalgia. It came with the announcement of a development fund reportedly exceeding N10 billion, buoyed by substantial contributions from leading industrialists such as AbdulSamad Isiaka Rabiu of BUA Group and Aliko Dangote. For many northerners, it felt like a turning point, a long-awaited shift from speeches to solutions.

Months later, that optimism has thinned. Rather than immediately engaging its vast constituency, rolling out sensitization programmes, or launching quick-impact projects capable of touching lives across the region, the ACF returned to familiar territory. Another talk-shop followed, this time reflecting on leadership 60 years after Sir Ahmadu Bello, Tafawa Balewa and Samuel Akintola.

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While history deserves reflection, the timing unsettled many who believe the North needs action more urgently than remembrance.

The sense of urgency is unmistakable. Across the North, communities are battling relentless insecurity. Farmers abandon their fields. Traders travel in fear. Children remain out of school in alarming numbers. Entire local economies are stifled by violence, displacement and poverty.

In this environment, many northerners expected the ACF to seize its development fund as a tool for immediate relief and strategic intervention.

Instead, silence greeted the public on what to expect, how the funds would be deployed, or which priority sectors would benefit. No broad communication. No regional sensitization. No visible low-hanging fruit projects to signal a new direction. For a region in distress, this pause feels costly and unsettling.

The frustration is heightened by developments elsewhere in the country. In the Southwest, regional cooperation has moved beyond declarations into infrastructure planning, economic hubs, technology clusters and coordinated policy direction. States collaborate, pool resources and pursue long-term competitiveness. In the South-south, structured community engagement and development frameworks increasingly shape how interventions reach the grassroots. Even parts of the North-central are quietly building innovation hubs and targeted economic programmes to prepare young people for a digital future.

Against this backdrop, the North appears to be lagging not in ideas but in execution.

What makes the situation more troubling is that the North no longer enjoys the political luxury it once did. Demographic advantage without human capital has become a liability, not strength. Electoral numbers cannot compensate for weak productivity, poor negotiation leverage and diminishing moral authority. Regions that invest in ideas, data and delivery increasingly shape national outcomes, while those relying on sentiment and size alone are steadily side-lined.

The ACF must confront an uncomfortable truth: relevance in modern Nigeria is earned through results, not reminiscence.

This is not for lack of resources. The North has land, people, history and influence. It has goodwill from its sons and daughters in business, industry and public service. What it lacks, many argue, is a clear, time-bound development plan that translates concern into coordinated action.

The ACF occupies a unique position in this equation. It is not a government, but it is also not a mere social club. It has access to policymakers, traditional institutions, private sector leaders and international partners. Its voice carries weight. Its convening power is respected. With that influence comes responsibility.

Stakeholders are therefore asking simple but powerful questions. What is the roadmap for northern development between now and 2030? How will the development fund be used to complement federal and state efforts? Which sectors are priorities – education, agriculture, health, youth employment, security support or infrastructure? How will communities be engaged and results measured?

These are not unreasonable demands. They are the expectations of a people under pressure.

The danger of endless reflection is that it risks disconnecting leadership from lived reality. While conferences debate leadership decline, ordinary northerners are coping with hunger, fear and shrinking opportunities.

While papers are presented, young people are leaving the region in search of dignity elsewhere.

This moment therefore calls for humility as much as it calls for boldness. The forum must listen; especially to voices it has historically side-lined. Young professionals, civil society actors, women leaders, development experts and technocrats across the north are already doing hard work in silos. Harnessing this energy does not weaken traditional leadership; it strengthens it. The ACF does not need to abandon its elders or heritage. It needs to expand its tent, modernize its methods and accept that the north it seeks to lead today is not the north of 1965 or even 2000.

To be clear, reflection and dialogue have their place. The legacy of the Sardauna and his contemporaries deserves study. But legacy becomes meaningful only when it inspires action. The greatest tribute to those leaders is not another symposium but bold programmes that lift people out of despair.

What is required now are visible steps; small but impactful projects that restore confidence. Sensitization tours that explain plans and timelines. Strategic partnerships that unlock jobs and skills. Clear communication that reassures contributors and beneficiaries alike that development funds will not sleep in accounts while the region burns.

The road to 2030 is short. Development does not happen by speeches alone. It happens through planning, implementation and accountability. The North cannot afford to drift while others move ahead with clarity and purpose.

The ACF still has an opportunity to redefine its relevance. It can move from being remembered as a forum of speeches to being recognized as a catalyst for regional recovery. But that window will not remain open indefinitely.

For millions across Northern Nigeria, the message is clear. This is not the time for more talk-shops. It is time for action.

•Gombe is a media practitioner based in Abuja. Email: mlgombe@yahoo.com.
January 20, 2026
Terrorists, other criminals in Kogi get quit notice from Ododo

Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Ahmed Ododo yesterday served quit notice on terrorists and criminals, declaring that their days were numbered.

He made the declaration in Lokoja during the unveiling of security drones to tackle crimes.

The governor stressed that Kogi would not harbour terrorists and criminals.

His words: “Let me be very clear here: this administration will not submit to criminality. We have said it before, and we will say it again today, Kogi State will not negotiate with criminals. We will not surrender our communities.

“We will not allow bandits or terrorists to take over any part of our land. Government must be in charge, not bandits, not kidnappers, not criminal sponsors. Our government is fully prepared to confront, attack, and defeat criminals operating within our territory.

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“If any criminal group was in doubt about our determination, the unveiling of these drones should clear that doubt. To the criminals, I say this plainly: your time is running out. Kogi State’s strategic location as the gateway between the North and the South makes security a serious responsibility. “

The governor emphasised that his administration had put in several efforts to tackle security challenges in the state, pointing out that these had made Kogi the most peaceful state in the Northcentral part of Nigeria.

He assured that he would not relent in the task of making the state peaceful and free of criminals.

“Over the last two years, our administration has recorded clear achievements in the security sector. We have built a strong, intelligence-led security framework that combines technology, community participation, inter-agency cooperation, and political will. Today, Kogi State stands as the most peaceful state in the Northcentral zone, and we are determined to be the safest state in Nigeria.

“We strengthened grassroots intelligence by building security structures across all 239 political wards. We absorbed 2,752 Vigilante Service personnel into the civil service to improve welfare, discipline, and professionalism. We recruited and equipped hunters across the 21 local government areas to support operations in forests and hard-to-reach areas. We have also sustained clearance operations in several flashpoints, reclaiming territories previously threatened by criminals.’’

“We constructed and equipped a Quick Response Unit to ensure rapid deployment to security threats. We procured and distributed patrol vehicles, operational vans, thousands of motorcycles, bulletproof vests, helmets, communication gadgets, and other equipment to enhance mobility, safety, and effectiveness. Today’s unveiling of these drones builds on these efforts. It strengthens our ability to see threats early, respond faster, deny criminals territory, and protect our people better.”

Ododo thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for ensuring a safe and secured Kogi, declaring: “Mr President’s commitment to national security, inter-agency synergy, and intelligence-driven operations has made our work easier at the sub-national level. We are truly grateful.”

The governor who sympathised with those affected by criminal activities, assured that his government “ is in full control. We are determined, we are prepared, and we will secure every kogi citizen.

He added: “I also appreciate the National Security Adviser; the Chief of Defence Staff; Chief of Army Staff; Chief of Naval Staff; Chief of Air Staff; DG, NIA; Inspector-General of Police; Director-General, Department of State Services; and Commandant-General, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps for their continuous support and collaboration. Our success so far is a product of synergy, shared intelligence, and joint operations.”

January 20, 2026
Airstrikes kill terrorist leader Munzir, others
- Troops rescue106 kidnap victims, arrest 82 crime-suspects, destroy 20 illegal refineries, seize 30 oil thieves
Strikes by the Air Component of Operation Hadi Kai, a military offensive against Boko Haram and its splinter groups, have resulted in the death of terrorist leader Munzir (aka Baa Yanziye) and several others in Northeast.

The airstrikes, conducted in support of ground troops, were carried out during combined operations between January 1 and 15, targeting terrorist hideouts, logistics bases, and fleeing fighters.

Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Michael Onoja, stated this in an update on the military’s successes against terrorists and other non-state actors.

According to Gen. Onoja, ground forces, in conjunction with the Air Component, hybrid forces, and security outfits, conducted aggressive operations in Gwoza, Konduga, Bama, Askira Uba, Chibok, Mafa, Guzamala, and Damboa local government areas of Borno State; Hong and Madagali local government areas of Adamawa State; and Damaturu and Gujba local government areas of Yobe State.

He said: “During the encounters, scores of the terrorists were neutralised. Also, 34 of them were arrested, while 17 kidnap victims were rescued. The suspects and weapons recovered are in troops’ custody for further action.

“Between January 1 to 3, 2026, the Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai conducted multiple air interdiction missions at Abirma, Chiralia, Guva in Timbuktu Triangle as well as Garin Mallam Iddirisa, Garin Abu Ayuba in Nduva, Damboa Local Government Area of Borno State. Battle Damage Assessment, said that a well-known terrorist leader, Munzir (otherwise known as Baa Yanziye) was neutralised alongside others during the strikes.

“Similarly, between January 8 to 13, 2026, multiple air interdiction were conducted at Abbagajiri in Timbuktu Triangle, while the component provided close air support to ground troops within Damasak, Megumeri, Gubio, Kereto, Binduldul, Matari, Gashagar and Gudumbali general areas of Borno State. Battle Damage Assessment showed that some selected targets were acquired and engaged with bombs and rockets accordingly.”

In the Northwest, the Defence spokesperson said troops of Operation Fansan Yamma conducted offensive operations from January 1 to 15 in Anka, Bakura, Bungudu, Kaura Namoda, Maru, Maradun, Talata Mafara, Zurmi and Tsafe local government areas of Zamfara State; Kankara, Danmusa, Malumfashi and Matazu local government areas of Katsina State; Arewa and Shanga local government areas of Kebbi State; Binji, Gudu, Isa, Rabah, Sabon Birni, Tambuwal and Wurno local government areas of Sokoto State; and Borgu and Kontagora local government areas of Niger State, as well as Tsanyawa and Shanono local government areas of Kano State.

Onoja said that during the operations, troops killed several terrorists and arrested nine others. He added that 52 kidnap victims were rescued, while a large cache of weapons was recovered from the terrorists.

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“Between January 9 and 12, the Air Component of Operation Fansan Yamma conducted armed reconnaissance and air interdiction missions at Dutsen Magaji, Machata, and Kana Birniwa in Jigawa State, as well as Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

“Accordingly, targets were acquired and engaged with rockets. Subsequent battle damage assessment revealed that scores of terrorists were neutralised, while their enclaves and logistics facilities were destroyed,” he said.

The Defence spokesperson said the two ongoing operations in the Northcentral – Operation Endurance Peace and Whirl Stroke – achieved significant feats against terrorists/ extremists.

According to him, troops of Operation Enduring Peace killed several terrorists/criminals, arrested 25 others, and rescued 14 kidnap victims during operations conducted between January 1 and 15 in Barkin Ladi, Bassa, Kanam, Mangu, Riyom, Jos East, Jos North, and Wase Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Plateau State, as well as Chikun, Jema’a, and Sanga local government areas of Kaduna State. While troops of Operation Whirl Stroke arrested the wife of a notorious bandit, John Gata, and eight suspected kidnappers, rescued 21 kidnap victims, and seized arms, ammunition, and other items from the suspected criminals.

In the Niger Delta region, the Defence spokesperson said troops of Operation Delta Safe foiled oil theft worth over N53,752,100, comprising 63,200 litres of stolen crude oil and 19,300 litres of AGO. The troops also discovered and destroyed 20 illegal refining sites and arrested 31 oil thieves and other criminals, while assorted arms and ammunition were recovered.

On the military offensive against Indigenous People of Biafra/ Eastern Security Network (IPOB/ESN) in the Southeast, the military high command said troops arrested three IPOB/ESN members at Umunze Community in Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

“Investigation revealed that they belong to Jukwese IPOB/ESN syndicate operating within the Umunze community in Orumba Local Government Area of Anambra State.

“Similarly, a suspected notorious arms dealer was also arrested at his residence in Nteje, Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State. Following his arrest, troops recovered a vehicle and two Samsung phones,” Onoja said.

According to him, on January 1, the Air Component of Operation UDO KA provided close air support to the ground troops during a clearance operation at Ajalli Forest in Ezeagu Local Government Area of Enugu State, where terrorists’ enclaves were identified within the thickly forested area and were set ablaze.

“Also, on January 8 and 9, armed reconnaissance was conducted over Awo-Ommama, Eke-Ututu, Mbieri, Njaba, Orlu, Orsu West, Orsumoghu and Owerri as well as Nkalagu, Ishielu, Ohaukwu, Izzi and Abakaliki. During the missions, significant successes were recorded,” he said.
January 20, 2026
Residents scoop diesel as tanker overturns on Lagos bridge

A diesel-laden tanker yesterday overturned on Liverpool Bridge,Tin Can, Apapa, Lagos, triggering a scramble by residents and passersby who scooped the inflammable product under the bridge.

Eyewitnesses said the tanker tipped over during rush hour in the morning, before the arrival of traffic management officials. Footage shared showed residents with jerry cans and containers of various sizes collecting the diesel, despite the obvious danger.

The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) said the affected section of the bridge was cordoned off to allow emergency responders to secure the area. The agency later confirmed that the road had been reopened after the spilled content was neutralised.

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In a post on X, LASTMA said: “The road on Liverpool Bridge inward Apapa that was cordoned off has been reopened after the contents have been neutralised by men of the Lagos State Fire Service. LASTMA officials are doing the needful and traffic is expected to move better, while we await the arrival of a tow truck.”

Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, and the Controller-General, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Mrs. Margaret Adeseye, stated that the situation had been brought under control through the efforts of the Nigerian Police, emergency responders, and other security agencies.Aminu, a young man who sleeps under the Liverpool Bridge near Lever Market, told The Nation he narrowly escaped death after noticing liquid dripping from above.

“I just saw something like water falling from the bridge and landing very close to where I sleep. Immediately, my mind went to what happened in Jigawa last year. Some of my brothers died when a tanker fell and they went to scoop fuel and not long, fire started and burnt them. I told myself I was not ready to die.”

Also, LASTMA and officers of the Nigeria Police Force have evacuated two vehicles which collided on the Third Mainland Bridge at Adeniji Intersection area of Lagos State.

The Nation learnt that a yet-to-be-identified driver of a Lexus jeep had fallen asleep while driving, leading to loss of control and eventual collision with another vehicle early yesterday.

The Lexus Jeep had number plate RBC-516EA, colliding with the other vehicle with number plate LND-327EH, and Toyota RAV4 – BDG400FA.

January 20, 2026