The Nation Newspaper

Author: The Nation

  • Nasir El-Rufai’s hypocrisy and manufactured northern victimhood

    Nasir El-Rufai’s hypocrisy and manufactured northern victimhood

    Sir: Former Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai is at it again weaponising religion, inflaming northern emotions, and inventing conspiracies just because he is no longer the one sitting close to the corridors of power.

    He shared Bello Doka’s article alleging that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is “waging a quiet war against the Muslim North.” Coming from a man whose politics has been built on religious division, the propaganda is painfully predictable.

    But let us tell ourselves the truth: Politics of religion is dead. Competence has taken centre stage. The North will not be dragged backwards by one man’s bitterness. El-Rufai’s Problem Is Not the North His problem is that Tinubu is not using him.

    This sudden defence of “Muslim North” did not exist during Buhari’s government. Where was this righteous energy when Buhari filled every important office with northern Muslims?

    Chief of Army Staff – Muslim, North; Chief of Air Staff – Muslim, North; Defence Minister – Muslim, North.

    What happened?

    Banditry exploded. Kaduna burned. Zamfara collapsed. Katsina was bleeding. Farms became graveyards and schools were turned to kidnap markets.

    So let’s ask El-Rufai: If Muslim appointments automatically bring security, why did your own Kaduna become the epicentre of killings under a Muslim – Muslim government?

    The hypocrisy is loud. When Buhari filled Nigeria with northerners, El-Rufai said: “Appointments should be based on competence.”

    Today Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu balances appointments and suddenly competence no longer matters, only religion matters?

    Where did this sudden “love” for northern Muslims come from?

    El-Rufai, the same man who said Kaduna South complaints against Muslim – Muslim ticket were childish, is now crying religion?

    The hypocrisy is disgusting.

    The North must stop allowing political manipulators to play saviour

    The same El-Rufai who silenced clergy in Kaduna is now pretending to defend Islam? The same man who divided Kaduna by religion for eight years now wants to preach religious fairness?

    Nigeria knows him, Kaduna knows him, and history knows him.

    Whenever Nigeria begins to unite, El-Rufai appears with matches and kerosene.

    Religion is his political oxygen.

    Division is his comfort zone.

    Chaos is his political career.

    Tinubu owes you competence, not sectarian appointments. The entire idea that “Northern Muslims are being removed” collapses when placed beside reality: Middle Belt finally has representation; Northerners are still in key offices, and Christian Northerners are finally considered human beings.

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    Appointments are no longer a religious monopoly.

    Is that war? Or sanity?

    A northerner is not defined by religion

    El-Rufai’s logic is clear: If you are not a Muslim, even if you are from Northern Nigeria, you don’t belong.

    So Plateau, Benue, Southern Kaduna and Taraba should become foreign countries?

    This is exactly why Middle Belt shunned northern politics under Buhari. Tinubu is correcting decades of marginalisation inside the North itself.

    Tinubu is doing what El-Rufai never had the courage to do: Balancing the system, uniting the country, reducing ethnic monopoly and restraining religious dominance.

    And that is what truly frightens him.

    Nigerians are tired of religious merchants. We want roads. We want electricity. We want better security. We want working economy. We want competent appointees

    Not loud emotional blackmail from political middlemen searching for relevance.

    If Northern Muslims like Buratai, Sadiq, Monguno, Badaru and others could not secure Nigeria when they controlled everything, then the problem is not religion.

    The problem is that incompetent people were recycled because they were Northerners and Muslims, not because they could deliver.

    Tinubu is ending that rubbish. El-Rufai, the game is over.

    The era of religious extortion is gone. The North is wiser. Nigeria is tired and the Muslim North you are trying to provoke has suffered enough under the same system you defended for eight years.

    If you have a presidential candidate for 2027, bring him. Tell Nigerians his achievements. Tell us what he did. Tell us where he succeeded.

    But don’t hide behind Islam. We are not buying that trick again.

    Nigeria is moving forward. With or without the tears of expired politicians.

    •Sa’adiyyah Adebisi Hassan,Kaduna.

  • Will the system allow General Musa to work?

    Will the system allow General Musa to work?

    Sir: Across religion, tribe, region, and political persuasion, Nigerians have lifted General Christopher Gwabin Musa on a wave of goodwill as he assumes office as Minister of Defence. It is a moment heavy with hope, supported by the growing sense that the system can work if given the right leadership.

    Musa’s record as Chief of Defence Staff earned him a credibility that neither propaganda nor political choreography could manufacture. He was respected in the barracks and appreciated by citizens who watched a man who communicated to Nigerians clearly, acted decisively, and understood the gravity of Nigeria’s security crisis.

    But as CDS, Musa was at the centre of Nigeria’s security storms with limited room to operate. His influence was bounded by entrenched interests and the political machinery surrounding the armed forces. He pushed the military as far as the system allowed, yet the deeper engines of decision-making remained outside his reach. He could direct operations but not redesign the architecture that produced those operations. He neutralized criminals, but could not neutralize the competing interests of powerful figures who hold opposing philosophies on how terrorists should be engaged. He could respond to crises, but not restructure the institutions that continually generated them. His role demanded results in an environment where major security decisions were shaped by political calculations.

    Now, as Minister of Defence, Musa is at the nexus where policy, procurement, doctrine, inter-agency coordination. In this office, he can set tempo, direction, standards, and expectations. It is understandable why Nigerians; exhausted by years of insecurity; have placed their hopes on his shoulders.

    But Nigeria’s defence architecture is not a technical institution; it is a political battlefield populated by entrenched interests. There are politicians who profit from insecurity. There are officials who enable bandit networks. There are influential religious figures whose rhetoric softens the ground for criminality. There are state governors who prefer negotiations, ransom payments, and accommodation over decisive action. There are appointees who resist reforms because it threatens the channels through which billions are siphoned. There are intelligence officers who hoard information or divert it to criminals. These forces do not evaporate simply because a competent man has been appointed. They form the landscape Musa must confront as Minister of Defence.

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    In truth, Musa’s toughest challenges may not come from bandits, terrorists, or herdsmen, but from within the corridors of power. There will be tensions with officials who favour negotiation over strength strategy. There will be clashes in doctrine with those who treat hardened criminals as stakeholders rather than threats to the state. There will be frictions with established power centres, from clerics advocating dialogue with armed groups to political players invested in the status quo. The influence of figures like Sheikh Gumi will continue to hover over public discourse, pushing for concessions at moments when Musa insists on firmness. Some northern elites and state officials who view decisive force as politically inconvenient will find themselves at odds with a minister whose instinct is to enforce law, not bargain with those who break it.

    Musa enters this office as a man who understands the system intimately. He has seen the rot, noted the loopholes, witnessed the sabotage, and felt the institutional resistance. He is not naïve about the terrain. That experience, combined with the rare national goodwill he enjoys, gives him a fighting chance. But goodwill is not the same as political will. The real responsibility falls with the Commander-in-Chief: whether he will provide the backing required to suppress terrorism, fund the defence sector without hesitation, and allow him to clean the house without fear or favour.

    General Musa has the competence, understanding, and courage to steer Nigeria toward a new security order. But competence has never been enough in a system addicted to dysfunction. The question is no longer about his capacity; it is about the country’s sincerity. It is about whether the politicians are ready to stop playing truth-or-dare with the lives of ordinary Nigerians. It is about whether the government is prepared to confront terrorism sponsors, demolish vested interests, and prioritize national security over political comfort.

    •Bright Okuta, <brightokuta@gmail.com>

  • Misreading of Nigeria’s intervention in Benin’s coup

    Misreading of Nigeria’s intervention in Benin’s coup

    By Lekan Olayiwola

    Nigeria’s rapid quashing of the attempted coup in neighbouring Benin sparked anger and disbelief at home. Citizens watched the speed, clarity, and decisiveness of the intervention and asked: if the state can act this fast abroad, why does insecurity still define life at home? Some accused the government of hypocrisy; protecting foreign governments while abandoning its own people.

    Others saw evidence of Nigeria as a regional proxy for Western powers or recklessly entangled in global struggles while domestic violence continued unchecked. Flawed as these reactions may be, they expose a deep crisis of trust: every display of state capacity is met with suspicion, revealing that the true disconnect lies not abroad, but in Nigeria’s fractured relationship with its own citizens.

    Two different logics of war

    Nigeria’s internal struggle against insurgency, banditry, and organised criminal violence is asymmetric warfare against non-state actors embedded within civilian populations, sustained by poverty, displacement, grievance, and fear. Such wars are slow, intelligence-dependent, morally fragile, and brutally complex. Progress is incremental, reversals are common, and victory depends less on firepower than on information, legitimacy, and community cooperation.

    Quashing a coup is a different kind of conflict altogether. It is state-to-state deterrence, executed within severely compressed timeframes. Coups succeed or fail in hours, sometimes minutes. Speed and decisiveness are not optional; they are the strategy. Delay equals collapse. In these moments, clarity of command and rapid mobilisation matter more than the prolonged social repair that counter-insurgency demands.

    Regional security is not domestic policing

    Nigeria’s intervention in Benin was not an extension of domestic counter-terror operations, nor a diversion from them, but a discrete response to an unconstitutional seizure of power in a neighbouring state. Nigeria’s long-standing role within ECOWAS is neither charitable militarism nor impulsive adventurism. It is collective security enforcement, anchored in treaties Nigeria helped design, fund, and uphold for decades.

    From Liberia and Sierra Leone in the 1990s to Guinea-Bissau and The Gambia, Nigeria has repeatedly absorbed the cost of stabilising a volatile sub-region. Counter-insurgency, coup deterrence, and regional security enforcement should not be conflated. A fire brigade that quickly extinguishes a neighbour’s kitchen fire has not proven it can rebuild a city destroyed by years of arson. The skills, timelines, and conditions are not the same.

    Nigeria was not acting alone and not acting for France

    Claims that Nigeria acted as a regional enforcer for France or Western interests resonate because of Africa’s history of foreign interference. Yet Nigeria has long been the military and diplomatic backbone of ECOWAS, acting first when instability erupts due to its capacity and exposure, not because of external control.

    In Benin, the government requested assistance, and Nigeria responded within ECOWAS protocols on unconstitutional changes of government. This was institutional duty, not adventurism, and does not compromise non-alignment. Nigeria’s foreign policy balances sovereignty with responsibility. Suggesting it “chose Benin over Nigerians” misreads security realities: in an interconnected region, instability abroad eventually affects domestic safety.

    What Nigerians’ anger reveals

    Nigerians’ anger stems largely from accumulated trauma. For years, rural and peripheral communities have lived under siege; banditry, kidnapping, terrorism, and criminal militias are daily realities. Villages survive with minimal state presence; families bury loved ones without justice or explanation.

    In such conditions, every display of state competence sparks painful comparisons: if the state can act decisively abroad, why not here? Rapid domestic mobilization remains uneven. When legitimacy erodes, all actions are mistrusted—neutrality feels like betrayal, necessary interventions like abandonment. The Benin episode exposes not just insecurity, but collapsed interpretative trust.

    The trust–insecurity death spiral

    Nigeria’s security crisis is sustained by broken relationships between citizens and the state. Where trust collapses, intelligence dries up. Communities stop sharing information, either out of fear or resentment. Cooperation gives way to silence. Armed groups exploit this vacuum, embedding themselves within traumatised populations by offering protection, income, or revenge where the state is absent or distrusted.

    The result is a vicious, self-reinforcing cycle. Insecurity deepens mistrust. Mistrust weakens intelligence. Weak intelligence prolongs insecurity. Each failure feeds the next. This is why Nigeria can move swiftly to neutralise a coup across borders yet struggle to suppress armed groups at home. Counter-insurgency is not won by speed alone. It is won by legitimacy.

    The real gap was narrative, not action

    The government’s most consequential oversight in the Benin episode was not the intervention itself, but unconvincing explanation. No sustained effort to clarify the difference between coup deterrence and counter-terrorism. No serious attempt to situate the action within ECOWAS obligations. No clear connection drawn between regional stability and Nigeria’s own security interests. Most damagingly, there was little acknowledgment of citizens’ exhaustion and fear.

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    Silence created a vacuum, and outrage rushed in to fill it. In societies where trust has been battered, narrative is not propaganda; it is governance. Explaining why actions are taken is not weakness. It is a form of respect. When leaders fail to communicate moral and strategic reasoning, citizens assume the worst not because they are irrational, but because past experience has taught them disbelief.

    Legitimacy and crisis communication as firewall

    Security is not merely the absence of violence. It is the presence of dignity. Populations that feel seen, protected, and respected become the strongest intelligence network any state can possess. Those who feel ignored or abused withdraw, resist, or adapt in ways that undermine collective safety.

    Regional leadership and domestic legitimacy are not competing priorities. They are mutually reinforcing. Nigeria cannot anchor ECOWAS abroad while neglecting empathy at home. Rebuilding trust requires more than operations; it demands a deliberate action plan including legitimacy and crisis communication as governance.

    Rebuilding trust cannot rest on government statements or military action alone; it requires a civic infrastructure that penetrates daily life. Traditional rulers, religious leaders, civil society actors, and the National Orientation Agency are the connective tissue between state and citizen. Their moral authority and credibility ensure that explanations of ECOWAS obligations or acknowledgements of trauma are heard as empathy, not propaganda.

    Civic education must translate interventions into local idioms, create feedback loops, and foster dialogue. Community repair through schools, clinics, and accountable policing becomes classrooms of legitimacy. Security framed as protecting citizens with dignity, reinforced by civil society monitoring, ensures legitimacy and communication together form Nigeria’s true firewall.

    •Olayiwola is a peace & conflict researcher and policy analyst. He can be reached at lekanolayiwola@gmail.com

  • The challenge of political stability in West Africa

    The challenge of political stability in West Africa

    In the last week, there was a failed coup d’état in the Republic of Benin after the success of a coup in Guinea Bissau. The military governments in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger are sitting tight at different levels of instability while the military regime in Guinea (Conakry) appears to be on its way out. The regime in Mali, despite its blind walking into a marriage with Russia, is daily challenged by various ethnic fissiparous tendencies in the wretched Sahelian dessert country that appears doomed to instability for the foreseeable future. Our neighbour Niger will eventually come to its senses and come back crawling to Nigeria if we stand on our democratic course. Burkina Faso, as far as I am concerned, is a basket case despite the exaggerated claims of the propagandists hired by its government of manufacturing air planes, going to space and other absurd performances by its president and government.

    I know this desert country and when I see how the world is being fooled, I laugh. The success of this propaganda can be seen in the recent inaugural speech of Madame Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, president of Namibia who claimed that her country would follow the glorious example of the president of Burkina Faso!

    Eventually, Africa will wake up from the dream world of the paradise of the confederation of Sahelian States. This Burkina Faso is keeping a Hercules’ C130 plane belonging to Nigeria which landed in its territory because of bad weather and issuing inflammatory statement about guarding its air space. The Federal Government of Nigeria should issue a stiff statement saying what happened and demanding the release of its plane using countries like Senegal, Guinea and even Niger as conduits for our diplomatic intervention.

    What seems to be happening in the region is a challenge to Nigeria’s security and we must rise quickly to the occasion by cranking up our diplomatic feelers to deal with all these irritants. Our government must use as agents, Nigerians knowledgeable about the affairs of these countries.

    I am surprised that we have not worked on bringing back to our embrace the Republique of Niger. This should have been a priority of this government. We must never allow any hostile governments surrounding us. We have ties of consanguinity with our neighbours; we must always exploit this for our benefit. We should always post as heads of missions to these countries, people who can talk to those in power in African languages rather than inherited colonial languages with key players in power politics of these countries. For example, a Yoruba speaker should be sent to Benin, Hausa speaker to Niger, Kanuri speaker to Chad, Fulfulde or Hausa speaker to the Cameroon and an Igbo or Ibibio- Efik speaker to Equatorial Guinea.

    I remember General Ike Nwachukwu as foreign minister discussing with the foreign minister of Benin when the two of them found out they could do without English/French interpreters in 1988 when dealing with the issue of toxic wastes dumping in our waters by Italian shippers.

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    The situation which deteriorates to military coups and putsches in most cases in these West African countries is economic. In the particular cases of Chad and Benin, the two countries from their exit from dependence on France had serious problems of unviability. Chad throughout its history was ruled by the French military. Benin on the other hand provided junior civil servants for the French administration of West Africa (L’Afrique Occidentale Francaise — L’AOF). Of course when the French granted independence to the separate countries, Benin inherited too many civil servants which the economy of the country could not support. The unemployment consequently caused instability in the country. After independence, Benin cities regularly witnessed placards emblazoned on roads saying “Larmee au pouvoir  (army takes power). In the past, Nigeria tried to help by joint development of cement production in Onigbolo and sugar production in Save. Unfortunately the ventures failed while the attempt to privatise them did not succeed. The economy of the country depends on trans-shipping of imports bound for Nigeria through the port of Cotonou. This was also unviable because of changing policies in Nigeria on smuggling. Smuggling is such a big deal in the country which exports cocoa grown in Nigeria as its main produce.

    The solution to all these economic problems is integration of the West African economy with Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and Nigeria bearing the economic burdens as Germany seems to do in the European Union albeit with complaints and grumbling.

    The recent abortive coup d’état failed because Nigeria answered the call of “safe our souls” by the remnants of the democratic government that was about to be kicked out. But for how long can Nigeria sustain the government of Benin while its own economy is not the best it can be and the current state of ECOWAS makes it difficult for it to do anything for the serious economic problems of Guinea Bissau and Benin?

    West Africa will remain in a prostrate and pathetic position until Nigeria takes the challenge of co-prosperity of itself and its immediate neighbours more seriously. In the meantime, Nigeria has to provide a grant or loan secured by Benin-Nigerian production of the oil found in the Benin waters. Nigeria also must press Benin to privatize the sugar production in Save (Sabe) and Cement industry in Onigbolo. If possible, the Dangote group should be encouraged to make a distress bid for the two factories. The political future of Benin should be negotiated because as it stands today, the economy of Benin will continue to be in dire strait and a drag on the economy of Nigeria which currently provides a safety net for Benin’s galloping population and its hopelessly resourced economy.

  • On Bauchi’s planned recruitment of 10,000 workers

    On Bauchi’s planned recruitment of 10,000 workers

    Sir: It is now exactly six months since the Bauchi State government, under the esteemed leadership Senator Bala Muhammad Abdulkadir, announced the recruitment of 10,000 workers across the state. This initiative was widely welcomed as a strategic effort to reduce unemployment and provide opportunities for the growing number of graduates in Bauchi. However, since the announcement, there has been no official update on the progress of the exercise, despite the high expectations of many candidates who are eagerly waiting to be absorbed into the state payroll.

    The prolonged silence has created tension and uncertainty in the minds of thousands of less privileged applicants, who now question whether the selection process will truly be based on merit. Many fear that the delay, now approaching seven months, may benefit only those with privileged backgrounds. This concern is further deepened by circulating rumours that the selection process is being conducted secretly through unofficial channels, with allegations that certain individuals are acquiring appointment letters at very high prices.

    Some unconfirmed reports suggest that some unscrupulous elements within the system may be selling positions for amounts ranging from N900,000, N800,000, and N600,000, depending on the candidate’s qualifications.

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    In view of these troubling allegations, we call on the state government, to launch a thorough investigation to verify the authenticity of these claims. Additionally, we urge the government to expedite the recruitment process and ensure that the entire exercise is transparent, merit-based, and fair to all applicants, especially those who are genuinely qualified and deserving of the opportunity.

    Going so will not only restore public confidence in the recruitment process but will also strengthen the integrity of governance and demonstrate the administration’s commitment to justice, fairness, and equal opportunity. The people of Bauchi State hold high expectations for this government and continue to believe in its dedication to positive change and inclusive development.

    In conclusion, the ongoing recruitment exercise represents a rare opportunity for the Bauchi State government to reaffirm its commitment to transparency and meritocracy. By ensuring that every appointment is earned through competence rather than privilege, the governor has the chance to inspire renewed trust among citizens and set a strong precedent for future governance.

    The hopes and aspirations of thousands of young people rest on the integrity of this process. We are confident that the, administration will rise to the challenge, with decisive action, clear communication, and a firm stance against job racketeering, so that Bauchi can stand as a model of fairness and equitable opportunity for all.

    •Ukasha Rabiu Magama, Magama Toro Bauchi state,

  • Under the jackboot

    Under the jackboot

    •A new wave of military coups is spreading in West Africa

    For the ninth time, a coup or coup attempt has berthed in Guinea Bissau. As Nigeria’s former President Goodluck Jonathan who headed a mission to observe the country’s election last month observed, what emerged appeared to be a ceremonial coup arranged by President Umaro Emballo who was reluctant to relinquish power to the winner. The opposition appeared to have won, and President Jonathan called on the umpires to release the result.

    As the Nigerian former leader said, the results were available to all observers and could have been declared by the election commission if it so chose. The coup leader was the head of the presidential guard who had always professed his loyalty to the deposed President.

    The international community has a duty to assist the growth of democracy in the country by ensuring that the people’s will prevails. If this is done, it will bolster the confidence of Guineans in democracy, faith in the ballot box would be rekindled, and future putchists would be deterred. Already, the junta has published a 12-month transition plan that ousts the right of the military leader installed on November 26 from contesting for the office at the expiration of the period. Not many people in the former Portuguese colony and outside trust Major General Horta Inta-a and his men to keep to the pledges in the 29-item charter of transition.

    Unfortunately, the West Africa sub region has become a belt of military coup leadership. At a time when the world believed that military coup has become unfashionable, it has been reintroduced to the West African political space. In 2023, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso brought back military dictatorship in the guise of the civilians being too soft on rebels who have wreaked havoc in their countries. The fallout, when the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) insisted that the tanks should be rolled back into the barracks, was that they pulled out from the sub regional body. Today, the three have formed the Alliance of Sahel States. This is to the advantage of neither ECOWAS nor the Allies.

    While ECOWAS was still grappling with the split and the development in Guinea Bissau, the attempted coup last Sunday in Benin Republic reared its head. It took the intervention of Nigeria to put out the fire. Yet, it has left its tell tale and the tame response that could come from ECOWAS and the African Union is not enough to assure anyone that no other country could travel the infamous path.

    The countries violently showed disregard for the ECOWAS protocols and apparently dared the body to do its worst. The formation of a standby force may not be enough to do the job given the level of insecurity in the region. It is time that countries of the region began to do serious peer review with a view to getting democracy entrenched in the area. This is one thing that would help the people trust their governments and serve as the bulwark against military adventurists.

    Under no circumstances should the world powers be encouraged to dig into the countries of the region again. The centuries of colonial plundering of resources are largely responsible for the underdevelopment of countries of the South. Recent events have shown that they have the intention of returning for the solid minerals while at the same time promoting discord and conflicts. As founding fathers of progressive Africa such as Kwame Nkrumah and Patrice Lumumba championed, the future of Africa lies in the rise of patriots in the political leadership. Unless this is done, Africans will remain hewers of wood and drawers of water in the international system. Young ideologues in the guise of military messiahs are not the way to look. Elected leaders owe the people the task of strengthening institutions and sanitising the electoral system.

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    The starting point is to insist that the adventurists, presumed to be backed by the ousted President of Guinea Bissau, should be pushed out. The lame excuse that the results were destroyed in the wake of the coup is unacceptable. All multilateral organisations, especially those represented in the country to monitor the election should insist that the minimum acceptable condition is that the winner of the election be sworn in even if he has to form a broad coalition.

    It’s about 50 years that Murtala Muhammed came up with the ‘Africa has come of age’ speech. It appears that the continent has regressed since then economically and politically. Without unity of purpose, there may be no way forward.

    Nigeria remains the giant of Africa, having intervened to save Liberia, Sierra Leone, Gambia, among others. It will continue to play its role, but it must be secured at home, too. When political leaders are partisan in their assessment of every issue, when the national interest is not distilled and accepted as the way to go as is the situation in the developed word, it will be difficult to help the region.

    All eyes should be on the future now. But the present is the pathway to the future.Africa remains at the bottom of the development ladder of the world. By all indices, Africa remains far from others, and military rule is one of the reasons for this. All the current leaders should realise that they have a duty to pull the continent out of the woods. China and Japan have directly or indirectly impacted Asia. Today, Singapore, South Korea and other Asian Tigers are far ahead of all African States. Brazil in Latin America is pulling its weight and they have all put the possibility of military coups far behind them. Africa must follow suit.

  • MARKETING EDGE publisher John Ajayi dies at 62

    MARKETING EDGE publisher John Ajayi dies at 62

    The Founder and Publisher of MARKETING EDGE, Mr. John Ajayi, has died.

    He was 62.

    His demise has thrown the brand and marketing communications industry into mourning.

    Ajayi was a respected journalist and one of the foremost voices in the nation’s integrated marketing communications space.

    He left behind a legacy that profoundly shaped, and will continue to shape, the industry he passionately served.

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    A visionary entrepreneur, Ajayi was widely acknowledged as a pioneer of brand journalism in Nigeria.

    Through MARKETING EDGE, he championed ethical practice, elevated professional standards, and built a respected platform that provided insight, analysis and thought leadership for practitioners and institutions within the sector.

    Under his stewardship, the publication grew into an authoritative voice, shaping discourse and spotlighting excellence and innovation across the marketing communications ecosystem.

    The MARKETING EDGE family described his passing as a devastating loss to the organisation and the wider industry.

  • New Lions Club president poised for developmental projects

    New Lions Club president poised for developmental projects

    The newly-installed President of the Isheri Host Lions Club, Horatius Egua, has pledged to prioritise developmental and humanitarian projects throughout the period of his tenure.

    He promised to continue his predecessor’s gesture by helping girls to maintain proper personal hygiene with the donation of sanitary pads to them across the state.

    The Lions Club president announced this while addressing reporters at his investiture, which was held under the aegis of District 404 B3 Nigeria.

    Egua highlighted his administration’s programmes, including enhanced community outreach, youth development initiatives, improved healthcare interventions, and stronger membership engagement.

    He noted that many girls in the country lack access to sanitary pads, stressing that his administration would bridge the gap to ensure good health and hygiene among girls.

    He Lions Club president pledged to embark on projects that would better the lot of humanity.

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    Egua said the funds raised during the investiture would be judiciously utilised for humanitarian services to fulfill the mandate of the club and lionism.

    “It is with a heart full of gratitude and joy that I stand before you today as the newly-elected 18th President of the Isheri Hosts Lions Club, District 404-B3,” he said.

    District Governor for the 2025/26 Lions Service Year, Adelaja Adeleye, urged Egua to be focused and lead with vision, inspire through action, and make a real impact through service.

    “More importantly, collaborate positively with your board, unite your members, set goals, and deliver projects that truly address community needs,” he added.

    Immediate-past president of the club, Mufutau Adetayo Mustafa, hailed Egua for attracting donations to be committed to humanitarian projects.

  • Defence Minister to Generals: lead with loyalty to constitution, C-in-C

    Defence Minister to Generals: lead with loyalty to constitution, C-in-C

    The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has urged newly promoted Major-Generals of the Nigerian Army to lead by example and remain loyal to the Constitution and the President, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

    He advised them to embrace strategic leadership, uphold professional excellence, and remain steadfast in defending Nigeria’s sovereignty.

    Musa spoke yesterday at the investiture of 27 newly promoted senior officers with their new ranks at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre in Abuja.

    He said: “Your elevation today places you in a unique position. You are being entrusted with strategic-level responsibilities that directly impact the success, cohesion and future trajectory of the Nigerian Army.

    “The baton is passed from one generation of officers to the next. It is your responsibility to not only uphold the standards of your predecessors but to surpass them.

    “Lead by example, demonstrate humility, firmness in decision-making, compassion for your subordinates, and loyalty to the Constitution and the Commander-in-Chief.”

    The minister said the promotions reflected not only a recognition of past achievements but also the nation’s confidence in their ability to shoulder greater responsibilities.

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    According to him, rising to the current heights in the military profession requires resilience under pressure, courage in the face of adversity, moral integrity in decision-making, and an unshakable commitment to national service.

    “Each of the senior officers before us today has demonstrated exceptional command capability, staff proficiency and strategic insight, making them worthy of this honour,” Musa said.

    “Embrace this new responsibility with courage and renewed patriotism. Lead with wisdom, act with integrity, command with compassion, and remain unwavering in the defence of Nigeria’s sovereignty and unity.”

    The defence minister hailed the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), the Army Council, and senior leadership for maintaining the integrity and credibility of the promotion process.

    He stressed that the Army operates in an increasingly complex security environment, requiring adaptable, visionary, and courageous leaders.

    Musa also acknowledged the critical role of families, describing their support as a “silent but powerful contribution to national security”.

  • Upbeat Fest stages comeback

    Upbeat Fest stages comeback

    Upbeat Fest, the annual holiday event designed for families and fun-seekers, has staged a comeback. Powered by Upbeat Recreation Centre, this year’s edition will run from December 13 to January 4, and is expected to welcome over 15,000 attendees.

    Last year’s festival attracted more than 13,000 visitors, many of whom participated in adventure games, live entertainment, and children’s holiday activities, with parents praising the event for its safe environment, diverse attractions, and enjoyable programming for all age groups.

    Organisers of the event, Upbeat Recreation Centre, said this year’s edition will feature additional games, more family zones, longer activity hours, and improved experiences for all ages.

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    The Santa Grotto—one of the event’s most popular stops—will return with new features aimed at creating memorable holiday moments for younger guests.

    Upbeat Fest 2025 is sponsored by some of Nigeria’s most trusted brands, including Kelloggs and The Hoppa. These partnerships highlight the festival’s commitment to quality and excellence.

    Kelloggs, known for its delicious family breakfast, embodies the joy of family togetherness, while The Hoppas brings its legacy of adventurous comics to the table.

    Upbeat Recreation Centre, in a statement, noted that the goal this year is to expand capacity and increase accessibility while maintaining the warm, festive atmosphere that defined last year’s success.

    The Centre assured that this year promises to be exciting, thrilling and engaging. “Join us this year to experience the magic of the Christmas season with your friends and family,” it said..