Seasoned Nollywood actor, movie director and producer, Azeez Ololade Ijaduade, has reportedly been shot by a trigger-happy policeman in Iperu, Ogun State.
According to report, Ijaduade is currently at the Babcock University Teaching Hospital, where he is battling to live.
Nollywood actress, Biola Bayo is celebrating her 42nd birthday with a request to her fans to give her a birthday present by subscribing to her channel on YouTube.
The movie star urged her fans to subscribe if they truly love her and also pray for her.
She said: “The best birthday gift you can give me today is to please, subscribe to my YouTube channel and pray for me. You can either click on the link in my bio to subscribe or type in Biola Adebayo Ent. on YouTube to subscribe
If you truly love me, please do this for me and watch my contents. TALK TO B”.
In a follow-up post, Biola expressed gratitude to her Maker, questioning what he hasn’t done for her.
She stated that in case anyone don’t know what the Grace of God is, they should look at her very well.
“CHAPTER 42 AND THANKFUL! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DR. ABIOLA. What have you not done for me oh God? Just In case you don’t know what “GRACE OF GOD” means, just look at me very well”, she wrote.
Controversial Nollywood actor and movie producer, Yul Edochie has advised fans and followers against being overly religious and obsessed with it.
Yul took to his Instagram page to assert that the majority of religion is a scam and formulated to control the people.
The movie star claimed that the ways of their forefathers are great as he pointed out how they worshipped the same Almighty God but in different ways, which he believes was more efficient.
Yul stated that it’s time for people to start going back to their roots.
However, he admonished people not to hate anyone because of their religion, saying that all humans are created by the same God.
He urged religious fanatics to stop forcing their style of worship on others or look down on others as nobody is holier.
He said: “So after seeing this, I decided to drop a few words. You see Religion, no too carry am for head like that. There is God Almighty. Yes. Worship him the way you understand.
“Don’t try to force your style of worship on others or see others as inferior because they don’t worship God the way you do. Nobody holy pass. After all, none of us has seen God. We just believe what we were taught. Even the people who taught us, plus the ones who taught them, none has seen God.
“We all need to slow down. Stop the discrimination. Don’t believe everything inside Religion. Some percentage of Religion na scam. Formulated to control the people. The ways of our forefathers are great. They worshipped the same Almighty God but in different ways. And their ways seemed to be more efficient.
“Oyibo people condemned the ways of our forefathers so they could sell us their own ways and we fell for it. It’s time for us to start going back to our roots. But no matter what, never hate anybody because of their religion. We’re all human beings, created by the same God.”
Suzanne Emma, the estranged wife of Nollywood actor Emeka Ike, has reacted to the veteran’s claims on what ended their marriage and how he dismissed her allegations of domestic violence.
In a recent interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo, Emma maintained that Ike had subjected her to abuse throughout their 17-year marriage.
She recounted a specific incident at the hospital when their child was seriously ill, describing how Ike verbally berated her and physically assaulted her.
She said: “There was a time we went to the hospital; my child was sick. We didn’t have money. And I was trying to negotiate with the hospital to treat the child, and we would pay later. It was taking a little bit of time, and Emeka Ike just came in and started yelling at me, ‘You’re a fool. You don’t know how to do things. What’s all this? You can’t even talk to them. Who are they? They’re beneath you, and you’re allowing them to do this and all that.
“And I got upset and said, ‘Sir, why are you being a jerk?’ And I went off into the car to sit down. Immediately Emeka Ike was coming into the car; his punch was the first thing that I was seeing on my jaw.”
Recall that a Lagos Island Customary Court dissolved the marriage between Emeka Ike and his wife in 2017 due to incessant battery.
Emma had approached the court on July 13, 2015, seeking to dissolve the 14-year-old marriage with the Nollywood actor.
No fewer than 52 males and females kidnapped victims have been rescued in Isa local government of Sokoto state by the North-West Operation Hadarin Daji troops of the Joint Task Force.
A statement issued on Saturday, December 23, with photos shared on the official handle of the Nigerian Army had confirmed.
The statement partly read: “The feat was recorded on December 22, 2023, when troops cleared and destroyed terrorists enclaves at Saruwa, Kubuta, Gundumi villages and Bunwanga Gundumi forest in Isa LGA of Sokoto state.
“During the operation, the troops of the OPHD rescued 52 kidnap victims while several terrorists were neutralized.
“The rescued victims include 14 males, 32 females and six children who will undergo medical check-up, debrief and hand over to appropriate authorities to reunite them with their families.”
Mike Onolememen, former Minister of Works under President Goodluck Jonathan has joined the Edo governorship race. In this interview, the former minister explains why he is in the race and his chances. He spoke with VINCENT IKUOMOLA.
Why are you in the race to succeed Governor Godwin Obaseki in next year’s election?
It is no longer news that I am interested in the gubernatorial election in Edo State come next year. Someone asked me why I took the decision. The truth is that in the past four gubernatorial contests in Edo State, I’ve always been interested. For about three times, I was prevailed upon by the leadership to let it go to other persons. Sometimes, we just accept but I believe this is the right time. You can see we are all about the same age bracket. So, we don’t have any limitation.
For me, it is my intention and it’s something I have thought about for the past 15 years. That is about four cycles of election. I believe this is the best time in a sense for this project to crystallize because whether you like it or not, we have come of age.
Having said that, my driving force for this project is the fact that governance in Nigeria have not really been stellar because we’re going from frying pan to the fire. By now, one would have expected that in terms of governance, Nigeria should have been much better than what it is.
What are you bringing on board that you think gives you an advantage over other aspirants?
As somebody who has been in government, who knows the purpose of government, I believe that with my experience in government either as Executive Director of the Petroleum Trust Fund or under President Olusegun Obasanjo when I was Minister of State for Defence where I had a lot of activities within and outside the Nigerian boundaries in quest for Nigeria’s sovereignty. If you look at the space, you discover that so many people are populating the space without any iota of experience in governance. Governance is a very serious matter. It is not a place for every person as it were. However, you cannot limit participation in governance.
I believe that despite all that, if we are to excel in what we do in governance, people with requisite experience should be sought out. Unfortunately, in our country, that is not done often.
I have looked around the country and the present dispensation, and I know that given the opportunity, I will be able to do things differently. That is why I threw my hat into the ring in order to be nominated and win the ballot when the time comes and do the right things that Nigerians will be proud about.
You were a foundation member of the PDP. All your political life, you were a member of the PDP. Why are you gunning for the ticket of the APC?
It is true that I have been a member of the PDP. Up till this year, I was a member of the party, but something happened that I just couldn’t relate with. Right from the beginning of the year, I set out to run for a senatorial seat, that is the Edo Central Senatorial District. In that primary election, I won in a very stylish way. I got 90 per cent of the votes and the remaining 10 per cent was shared by the remaining five aspirants.
But at a time, I thought it was over, the Governor of the State, Godwin Obaseki had come in and was supporting somebody who did not even partake in the primaries to take over the ticket. Initially, we thought it was a joke. We went to High Court and from there to the Court of Appeal and from there to the Supreme Court. Funny enough, the Supreme Court gave them judgment. For me, that was the breaking point. From that point, I did not accept to go further because it was one too many. That was what happened.
In any case, those in APC today were once in PDP with us in Edo State. Many of them are people we have done things together politically. When we are together, we don’t discriminate against each other. Because of that, it is the same characters you are dealing with. So, you don’t feel as if you are a newcomer. We can go to each other’s constituencies and talk to the people. Our people are very smart and they know where their bread is buttered. I have made serious consultations in the three Senatorial Districts and I am satisfied with those consultations. It is the satisfaction I got from that exercise that is pushing me on.
You are new in APC even the parties are literally the same. Have you met with Oshiomhole because some of his boys like the former Minister, Clement Agba are showing interest in the race. How much of consultation have you done?
I am well known throughout Edo. By training, I act more than I talk. My actions speak for me. I am not the traditional politician who just talk and talk and no action. I am full of action. I am an architect, project manager and God has given me the opportunity to display these skills, either in agencies of the Federal Government or outside the country representing Nigeria and all that or in the military. To the glory of his name, all the opportunities I got, I made good use of them and this will not be different. I am very passionate and whatever I do, the people are always at the height of it all.
We will do whatever we have to do to the best of our knowledge and leave the rest to God.
Still on my visibility at the grassroots, I am not running for councillorship and at the leadership level, I know all that matters. In wards and local governments, I am at home with everybody. When Inu Umoru was alive, I was always with him in Edo North. I was always with Yisa Braimoh, Abubakar Momoh and all of them.
What role do you think zoning will play in this election?
From what I can say, zoning is cardinal in this forthcoming election that we are talking about because when we started in Edo State, majority of the stakeholders were asked to come to a roundtable to agree on a formula. This is to ensure that the process was not rowdy and at that time, it was agreed that the most populous senatorial district would take the first shot. And that was how Lucky Igbinedion became the Governor of Edo State.
And of course, when the leadership of the party took that position, we all queued behind them and we worked for the candidate and the candidate won. After Edo South, it was now the turn of Edo North and Comrade Adams Oshiomhole got that ticket and he ran with it for two terms. This was after Oserheimen Osunbor had his mandate truncated by the court. At the end of his tenure, you recall that there was a bit of antagonism and Edo South wanted to come back to it but were prevailed upon not to do such a thing, that is was not just about having the population but that we all came from a common source and that as brothers, we should relate with one another that way.
Like I said, Osunbor’s tenure was truncated by the court of law and that was how Oshiomhole came in. Having said that, we have accepted the process of zoning and counter zoning like we have experienced.
Going by this zoning, it has fallen upon the Edo Central Senatorial District where I come from. We truly believe that looking back and seeing what it has been, it is only fair that Edo Central is given the opportunity to fly the flag of the party in the coming gubernatorial contest and I also share that belief.
Having looked at the possibilities, I came to the conclusion that it is a venture I really want to partake in.
You’ve talked about zoning and fairness. How are you working toward this dream, are you in consultations with other stakeholders so as not to make the process rowdy?
Well, let me say that we have not been quiet on this. There have been a lot of consultations in this direction. We believe that at the appropriate time, we’ll come to that point where we’ll be able to showcase one particular candidate for the office.
The party is one and we all belong to the party. Within the party, we see ourselves as one, we may have come from different senatorial districts in the State but the interactions we have had are such that there are no acrimonies. There may be differences and in a political contest, there are always differences but we are managing the process in such a way that we need to understand one another and do away with acrimony. At the end of the day, whatever the outcome, we will all agree on it.
What exactly do you plan to offer the people of Edo State differently from what others did in the past?
There are quite a number of things to offer, some of them similar, others different. It is a work in progress right now. We won’ts go the townhall and start reeling them out because when the time comes for us to really showcase those things, you will be shocked that some people have also gone that way because of access to those classified issues. And because of this, you hardly see politicians talking about those issues in a gathering like this. Suffice to say that everyone comes with his or her own ideas about governance and at the end of the day, it is how it resonate with the people that will tell who will take the day.
There are other indications like we often see everywhere in our country that this might not just be enough to give you the ticket. As politicians, we are working with as many people as possible from different senatorial districts in other to get their buy in to our project and we are doing that right now.
You have always put your party first and that informed why you agreed to stepdown for others in the past. Will you be willing to do this again if you are called upon to stepdown one more time?
Well, it depends on the situation. If there is merit in it but I don’t see such a situation right now. In time past when we had that, we were always been told to wait for our turn and we believe our turn is now. I was in the frontline in 2007 and Osunbor was third on the log but I stepped down for Osunbor, who eventually made it and was governor for about 18 months until Oshiomhole was sworn in.
You cut the picture of a gentleman, but politics is quite a tough task. How do you intend to run your politics preparatory to getting the ticket of your party?
Everyone will always have the opportunity to play the game differently. I will put the people first so as to get their buy in. I will prioritise the areas we are lagging behind in the State. These are cardinal areas I will focus on in a way that has never been done. More importantly I will be focusing on human and infrastructural development because if you see the country as it is today, you agree with me that we still have a lot of work to do. Afterall, the purpose of government is the pursuance of happiness for the greater majority of the people. The only way you can bring that about is if you are heavy on human and infrastructural development. These are the two areas where the people will benefit. More often than not, people relate with these things and I am focusing on them because I know it is the right thing to do.
There are other things in government that we still have to do but these ones are cardinal as far as we are concerned because once the people benefit and are able to earn good living, there will be peace. What people want really is not too much. They want to be able to put food on the table for their families. They want to be able to take their children to school. They want to be able to enjoy the good life; they want at the end of whatever they’re doing, they want to have gainful employment. These are areas I’m focusing on and during the campaigns, I’m going to rein in everyone. And I believe that it will resonate with people.
To all intents and purposes, 2023 has been an eventful year in Nigeria’s Gateway State. It is a year that will be remembered by Governor Dapo Abiodun for a very long time. It has been a year of political calculations and decisions, the year of a make-or-mar second term poll that proved to be tension-laden. At the beginning of the year, the governor was seen crisscrossing all the local government areas in the state, campaigning vigorously for re-election. Having discovered so many adversaries that never wanted him to come back to Oke Mosan, including his immediate predecessor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, who with his multiple machinations vowed that he (Abiodun) would be upstaged, and naysayers within his own political structure, including another former governor, Gbenga Daniel, together with other members of the APC who were neither here nor there, he knew that the battle would be fierce and deployed the power of resilience, confident that his achievements would speak for him.
The naysayers had their say, but the Governor did not allow their qualms to deter him. Instead, he tried to build bridges, getting more people into the party. The pre-election period indeed saw an avalanche of political jobbers decamping and recamping, pledging loyalty everywhere, and moving around with vigour, buoyed by the power of bribes. The February 25, 2023 election came and the APC made a clean sweep, but then the main battle was just starting, with so many divisions within and without. There were people very close to the Governor who literally made a show of working against him. And the opposition believed that with money, their plans were fool-proof. Evidence abounds of a vote buying plot, with over 20,000 ATM-like cards printed to buy the people’s conscience and ensure that the governor did not get a second term, and the Federal Government is currently prosecuting the culprits, some of them now fugitives, in the court of law.
Amidst the storm, Prince Abiodun stuck with God the Father: he had no godfather to rely on. And so he was able to navigate the political terrain and gain victory when some believed that it was impossible. After the polls, he took stock of developments, identified mistakes, and forged ahead with his agenda to develop Ogun State. As soon as he was sworn-in for a second term, he took the decisive actions that have now made Ogun State an investors’ delight and one of Nigeria’s safest states. He continued work on the cargo airport, the best in the country, and constructed so many quality roads. Even roads such as the Atan-Lusada-Agbara road, though not yet completed, have continued to attract so much attention because of their scope and beauty.
The statistical agencies are keeping record. A report by Economic Confidential, a subsidiary of PR Nigeria, recently showed that apart from Lagos, Nigeria’s economic capital, Ogun State is Nigeria’s most economically viable state. Pointing to the Gateway State’s status as Nigeria’s topmost investment destination after Lagos, the report showed that the Dapo Abiodun-led Ogun State outperformed Rivers State, which joined Lagos and Ogun on the list of economically viable states for the year 2022, along with Kaduna, Kwara, Oyo and Edo states. The report compiled from figures released by the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) showed that while Lagos received the sum of N370, 921, 413, 425.62 from the Federation Account and generated N651,145, 633.085 as internally generated revenue, Ogun, on the other hand, received N113,404, 027,439.22 from the Federation Account and generated N120,548, 157,140.78 internally.
Only recently, the Abiodun government indicated that the recently approved Dry Port at Kajola Papalanto of Ewekoro Local Government Area of the state would create at least 40,000 jobs for both skilled and unskilled workers in the state, expand the internally generated revenue, reduce transport and transaction costs, and attract various infrastructure and regional development projects, amongst others. Efforts have actually reached advanced levels in actualizing the Abiodun administration’s vision for the port. With the Gateway International Airport nearing completion, the congruent plan is to develop a dry port that will receive goods from Apapa and Tincan dry ports. The proposed site has been satisfactorily assessed to be proximate to both NRC narrow and standard gauge rail lines, and has the Lafarge and Dangote cement factories within its catchment area.
Instructively, even the Federal Government, which through the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) had previously lamented that Nigeria’s agriculture industry suffered an estimated N3.5 trillion in post-harvest losses every year, has thrown its weight behind the airport as a game changer in reversing the trend.
Hear the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of Economy, Mr. Wale Edun: “We look forward to the end result which is the creation of jobs, increased production, and increased opportunities for farmers to produce and sell their products at a good price and in good time without any of the usual post harvest losses and loss on transit. The airport is good for the economy of Ogun State and Nigeria, and we would like to see more of this. We encourage other states to join the private sector to achieve such. The ARISE Agro-Cargo Industrial and Export Processing Zone, is a major economic achievement that speaks to the possibility of rapid growth of the economy, which is the objective of Mr. President to have more investments like this. It is the type of investment that grows the economy, creates jobs and reduces poverty and it is good for the people of Ogun State in particular as well as Nigeria in general that new economic life is being breathed into the area.” The airport is expected to create over 25,000 direct and indirect job across the agriculture, transportation, logistics, hospitality, tourism and other sectors.
Next year, the government is focusing on the construction of infrastructure at the various economic development clusters, while extending the Lagos Blue Line Metro Rail Project into Agbara and ensuring the well extension of the Lagos Red Line Metro Rail Project to Ijoko and Ifo/Kajola in line with the execution of the State’s multi-modal transport plan under the Lagos-Ogun Joint Development Commission initiative. Steadily, Nigerians are beginning to appreciate Ogun’s emerging status as a giant construction site and Nigeria’s top investment destination. Besides, Ogun under Abiodun will join league of oil-producing states soon. Already, there is a Ministry of Mineral Resources saddled with the responsibility of overseeing the general administration and operation of the natural resources that abound in the state, and a Ministry of Energy to take advantage of the constitutional amendment that allows sub-national governments to participate in the energy sector. The administration will construct over 2,000 housing units in Warewa, Sagamu, Iperu, Ibara, Ayetoro Road, OGTV Village, Ijebu-Ode, etc, and ensure water reticulation projects to connect more households to potable water supply, having completed the Urban Water Supply Project.
Given the foregoing, it is no surprise that the governor has continued to win laurels. He is The Sun newspapers’ Man of the Year 2023 and also Silverbird Television’s Man of the Year 2023.Ogun is seen as one of the progressives and viable states. Many people who never believed in him are now converts. Good things are happening in Ogun State in the area of infrastructure building, agriculture, human resource, women and children’s empowerment, among others. Ogun is in the news for good almost everyday, and so many people are wondering where the governor got the energy from. Governor Abiodun’s rising public image and political profile is, therefore, not quite a surprise.
– Akinmade sent this piece through kayodeakinmade809@gmail.com
The Minister of State for Police Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, recently organised a stakeholders’ meeting on the role of police in national security in Lagos where she highlighted Federal Government’s efforts aimed at repositioning the police for better service delivery. Deputy Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU reports.
From time immemorial, the police have been relied upon by the various communities and nations for protection of life and property.
In carrying out their functions, policemen enjoyed the cooperation of townspeople through the supply of intelligence gathering. Policemen in the pre-independence and pre-independence era resided with people at the grassroots, underscoring the partnership in the provision of adequate security.
In that period of community, state or regional policing, policemen understood the language of the people they served; they knew the geography, sociology and psychology of the environment of operation.
It appears that reality has now dawned on the Federal Government to look at the history of the police and draw lessons from the factors that aided their effectiveness and efficiency in the past.
At a recent Town Hall Meeting in Lagos, the Minister of State for Police Affairs, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim agreed that the effectiveness of community policing depends on the public confidence and trust in the police.
At the meeting were Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Police Inspector-General Kayode Egbetokun, top security officers, lawmakers, traditional rulers and representatives of civil society organizations.
The reiterated the commitment of the President Bola Tinubu’s administration towards deep reforms that will be backed by a robust implementation plan and innovative resource mobilisation and allocation.
According to her, the goal is the emergence of a world-class police that is inclusive, intelligence-led, technology-driven, and community-based and alive to its constitutional responsibilities.
The minister assured that the Police will live up to its responsibilities in ensuring the safety of the lives and properties of Nigerians.
Sulaiman Ibrahim said she has made commitment to supporting efforts aimed at delivering viable solutions to tackle the complex issues that have limited the capability of the Police.
She said she will be rebuilding trust, restoring confidence and redefining policing in the country.
The minister said security is local and intelligence gathering is key.
She said: “This Townhall is therefore the first in an extensive series of Townhall engagements across the Country, to catalyse grassroots understanding of security dynamics and foster community-specific solutions. Recognising that security is inherently local, our approach must reflect an appreciation for the distinct characteristics, challenges, and strengths of each community.”
The minister added: “Local security interventions must therefore be designed based on local peculiarities and considerations, with the full participation of members of the various communities and blocks, to ensure inclusivity and full ownership. “Some communities are experiencing security challenges relating to a very high influx of other nationals; others are struggling with insecurity relating to rapid urbanization, while some are struggling with insecurity triggered by resource control and the agrarian nature of their environment, amongst other.”
Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the time is now for the implementation of Tinubu’s renewed hope police agenda.
She highlighted the six foundational pill8ars that will serve as strategic frameworks, crafted to redefine and strengthen the Police.
Her words: “The first is Technical and Operational Excellence: Harnessing cutting-edge technology and refining operational protocols to elevate the capabilities of our Police Personnel. This will also include strengthening the air and marine capabilities of the Nigeria Police Force to boost its operational effectiveness.
“Second is Infrastructure Advancement: Undertaking a comprehensive standardisation, modernisation and fortification initiative for the physical infrastructure of the Nigeria Police Force. This includes upgrading facilities and establishing command centers to bolster operational efficiency.
“Third is Welfare Enhancement: Focusing on the holistic well-being of our officers by implementing comprehensive support systems and healthcare measures. This pillar aims to bolster the physical, mental, psychological, and financial health of our dedicated personnel.
“Fourth is Policy Framework Development: Crafting a comprehensive policy framework to serve as the backbone of the entire law enforcement apparatus. This entails adherence to best practices, thereby rebuilding public trust and ensuring the highest standards of professionalism and accountability.
“Fifth is Branding, Citizen Engagement, and Public Trust Management: Initiating a strategic branding campaign to cultivate a positive and contemporary image for the Nigeria Police Force. This involves active engagement with citizens and effective management of public trust through transparent and accountable practices.
“Sixth is Community Collaboration and Public Trust: Establishing collaborative partnerships within the community to enhance citizen engagement and fortify public trust. This pillar emphasises the importance of a symbiotic relationship between law enforcement and the communities they serve.”
The minister said these pillars collectively form the cornerstone of efforts aimed at positioning the Police in an efficient pathway characterised by transparency, public confidence, and a strong connection with the communities it serves.
She stressed: “We are all custodians of security and must contribute to shaping a safer and more resilient society by showing our support to the men and women of the Force, who continue to demonstrate a high level of patriotism and selflessness to the service of the Country.
“As a forward-looking administration, we are now committed to these deep reforms, backed by a robust implementation plan and innovative resource mobilisation and allocation, which has been the bane of previous reform efforts. The goal is to see to the emergence of a world-class police force that is inclusive, intelligence-led, technology-driven, and community-based and that is alive to its constitutional responsibilities.
“I am therefore confident and can assure you that the Nigeria Police Force will live up to its responsibilities in ensuring the safety of the lives and properties of Nigerians.”
To the Minister, the Lagos Model of fight against crime initiated by the President when he was governor has been sustained by successive governors, particularly Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim thanked President.Tinubu for his unprecedented commitment to transforming critical areas of the economy, with a special focus on security and the Police.
She also commended Sanwo-Olu for building on the security foundations laid by the President for a safer Lagos.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim said the Lagos State Security Trust Fund has continued to be a shining example of the possibilities of local participation and collaboration in securing communities.
The Innspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, said that by involving the communities and citizens in the policing decision making process, the minister was giving effect to Robert Peels Principles of Policing, which emphasise that ‘the people are the police, and the police are the people.’
The import of this is that the option of crime management through meaningful communal engagement remains the most potent policing model and my policing vision, strategies and leadership actions are fundamentally entrenched on the firm and time-tested foundation.
Stakeholders believe that by convening the townhall meeting, the minister was giving the requisite leadership towards perfecting the model of policing. Egbetokun said: “In cognizance of this, I wish to acknowledge and most sincerely commend the foresight, thoughtfulness, and zeal of the Hon. Minister in appreciating the strategic importance of engaging constantly with the citizens towards the perfection of our community safety and internal security mandate.”
Policing is a collective responsibility. Thus, Sulaiman-Ibrahim urged Nigerians to see policing, communal safety, and security as a joint mandate with the Police.
She added: “In so doing, they should demonstrate more sensitivity to issue of crime prevention and offer useful criminal information that will aid the police in keeping them safe.
“The wider the trust and information-sharing gap between the Police and the citizens, the more we as a people inadvertently empower criminal elements to succeed in their evil plan to threaten our value for peace and security.”
Lagos State Commissioner for Waterfront Infrastructure Development, Yacoob Ekundayo Alebiosu, in this interview with OYEBOLA OWOLABI, warns against indiscriminate dredging of Lagos waterways and illegal reclamation of land along waterfront corridors, insisting that these must stop, else Lagos tastes the bitter side of Dubai.
The government has been trying to flush out illegal dredging operators. How do you intend to curb this menace?
The state has laws which stipulate functions and duties over reclamation, dredging and other things. Illegal dredging affects our lives in different ways; it affects our economy. Gambia has a population of about 2.1 million, but they receive about 300,000 foreigners per annum. Why? Because they have clean waters. Anywhere you have clean waters, people will always go there but, unfortunately, indiscriminate dredging is the reason we have dirty waters here. This of course affects our outlook and how people choose to come here. If you would spread the 300,000 that visits Gambia annually, that is about 20,000 foreigners monthly. Now picture how it affects our economy, even among the local traders; the woman selling roasted plantain, the lady selling akara, bread and things like that.
Are you then saying dredging operation and operators should be regulated?
One of the things that really scares me, and that gives me a lot of concern is the Dubai experience. After Dubai reclaimed all its islands, it ran out of sand. Dubai and in fact most of the Arab nations, now import sand from Australia. You can imagine the cost. God forbid. But, of course, there’s a possibility of that happening here too if it is not controlled.
Some would tell you dredging is Lagos and Lagos is dredging. In some areas like Ojo, that is their traditional job, and they are already passing it to their children. How much of this sand dredging would affect the environment, how bad can it be? And would stopping it not deprive people of employment?
I am not saying we won’t dredge because we can’t survive without dredging, but it must be controlled. If it’s not controlled, it becomes a mess. I’d give you an example of how it affects every day households. Dredging is basically sucking sand from water, and that is where you have micro-organisms. These micro-organisms serve as food for fish. Every time you disturb the water, you mess up the food for fish, and mess up their habitat. The fishes thus have to go further to look for food. And the further you go, the more tedious and expensive it is to harvest the fish. The effect of this is that the fish that should cost N500 will now sell for N5,000. And I think the traditional dredgers who use baskets, like their forefathers did, should be protected, just like the Native Indians are protected in America. They are not the problems, the problem is those who dredge indiscriminately at alarming rates and then reclaim. The sands dredged are used for two reasons. The first is to reclaim land which is also done illegally, and it affects the alignment of the state, and the second is they reclaim to stockpile.
But how are they able to dredge indiscriminately without government’s knowledge?
Well, every community is aware. They see them but are afraid to talk because they are also members of the community. But, of course, there are several cases in court. There was the High Court judgment which went in favour of NIWA, and then the Appeal Court judgment in favour of the Lagos State government, saying that states are allowed to regulate their waters. NIWA approached the Supreme Court for interpretation. Regardless, we as a government need to know the amount of sand that is pumped from our waters. Again, how many beaches do we see right now, because every time you dredge, you’re taking out sand, and nature has a way it works. What happens is that it compensates for what’s been taken out. Nature sends out water to reclaim sand, and where’s the first place the water goes? The beach! The beach mops up the sand and brings it in. When all that is done, it leads to erosion.
What are plans to sensitise people on the negative effects of dredging?
The journey of a thousand miles starts with a step. We’re also reviewing our policies because it is important for us to know the amount of sand that’s being dredged. In the past, we gave licenses and permits for dredging. When you’re licensed, it says you can dredge but then we would have to control the quantity you dredge which means we have to keep an eye on the amount dredged. To answer your question, yes, we’re working on that.
What are plans to improve our waterfronts and make it more attractive?
We have a lot of ministries coming together on that, like Physical Planning, Environment, Transport, Survey, Lands, etc. When people apply for reclamation, we make sure it is not sent for approval until we get their Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) and Drainage report. We don’t proceed on approvals until we get those things. One thing I am happy Physical Planning does is, if you reclaim, there’s no way you’re going to build on it, Physical Planning will not process your planning approval until they get clearance from us. And, of course, you have to get approval before you reclaim. Indiscriminate dredging goes hand in hand with indiscriminate reclamation because when you reclaim illegally, it affects the coastal lines. We had a meeting recently with some MDAs, where we all agreed there’s need to redefine an alignment so that we’re able to effectively monitor. Just like blood diamond, there’s need to monitor sand from when it is dredged to when it gets to the end user.
Do we even export sand?
Not that I’m aware of at the moment. But I can tell you that sand is the second most sought after natural resource after water. It’s used for a lot of things, especially in building, construction, and so on. So we must control and regulate the sector to avoid the Dubai experience.
While the japa trend continues to rage, creating anxiety in the country, especially among skilled labour employers and citizens genuinely concerned about the future of the country, the recent murder case involving a Nigerian couple in the United Kingdom and other unsavoury cases has brought to the fore the not so good side of the trend. GBOYEGA ALAKA explores.
The word for it today in Nigeria is ‘japa‘. That is the current trend of Nigerians finding their way out of the country, purportedly for greener pasture- by virtually any means. Usually their destinations are any of the first world European countries, the USA, Canada; and the not so first world European countries, like Malta, Romania, Greece; anywhere but Nigeria. Many young people actually think it’s a new trend because that’s the much their memory serves them and because they gave it that local nomenclature.
But for those above 45, 50 years of age, the trend dates back to the early 1980s, after things went awry at the hands of the Shehu Shagari-led civilian administration and the military took over in a purported effort to rescue. Things, however, got to a head under the succeeding Buhari/Idiagbon and later Babangida junta, that the young and the middle-aged people started exiting the country in droves. It got so bad that the Babangida regime under its MAMSER (Mass Mobilisation for Self Reliance) programme had to sponsor a television campaign tagged ‘Andrew no check out,’ played by the then popular actor, Enebeli Elebuwa, now of blessed memory, to reorientate the people and stem the alarming trend.
While there may have been a brief lull in the trend for about two decades, it seemed to have picked up again in the last decade or so, especially among the younger generations.
Macrotrends.net magazine, the premier research platform for long term investors put Nigeria’s migration rate in 2023 at -0.273 per 1000 population. Even though this is a 2.5% decline from that of the year 2022 of -0.280 per 1000, it is nevertheless significant. Besides, the reduction is by no means due to a lack of interest but more because of a lack of means.
Literally, a huge chunk of Nigerian youths and middle age people want to travel, as they feel frustrated with a system that they consider frustrating and limiting their potentials. Some get so desperate that they sell off all they’ve worked for just to get a passage to their perceived El Dorado countries; while some go through irregular routes, endangering their lives and sometimes perishing in the desert, in the Mediterranean Sea or even ending up as modern day slaves or worse, as sex slaves.
Literally, they’d give anything to be out of Nigeria.
But beyond these are other issues ranging from disappointment, to loneliness, troubled/ruined marriages, even spousal murders, like the one that broke in the United Kingdom penultimate week.
Murder in Suffolk
On Tuesday, November 28, David Abodunde, a Nigerian migrant allegedly strangled and killed his wife, Taiwo Owoeye, a former ophthalmic nurse at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital at their Suffolk home.
Interestingly, the mother of three, according to the police, had reported a case of assault by her husband to the police a day before.
The police, paying a routine check, had found Owoeye’s lifeless body in the living room of their home; while the husband who was also inside the apartment was arrested.
Her death prompted many observers to question the essence of the relocation, especially since Abodunde only joined Owoeye early this year.
Owoeye, had on agreement with her hubby, gone ahead in 2022, ostensibly to settle down and pave way for Abodunde.
Following the unfortunate incident, the couple’s three children have been taken into the protective custody of the UK social services.
As it stands, no concrete reason has been given for the unfortunate incident, save ‘tale of marital discord, domestic turbulence’, as told by the police; but a number of possibilities have been put forward in the public space – namely tendency to export the controlling culture of African husbands; wife’s insubordination or insistence on her rights as guaranteed by the UK law, which may be strange to the husband; possible allegations of infidelity; distrust- which of course could have led to the persistent domestic violence as acknowledged by the police.
The Owoeye murder was the second ‘çelebrated’ spousal murder involving Nigerian family migrants abroad in less than half a year.
In August 2023, a Nigerian man, Hassan Teddy Adeyemo was arrested for shooting and killing his wife, 43-year-old Nanchin Hassan Adeyemo in East Orange County, Florida, USA.
He was arrested on a first-degree murder charge by the police.
Although the Sheriff’s office didn’t release any additional details on the killing, it however said it was “domestic in nature.”
In another horrific domestic incident two years ago, a Nigerian man, Obinna Igbokwe, shot his wife and grandmother in Texas, USA, and thereafter, committed suicide by shooting himself, when he found that he had been cornered by the police.
Reports later confirmed the grandmother dead, while the wife was critically injured.
In an almost similar incident, another Nigerian man, Udoamaka Nwamu, 34, in June 2021, committed suicide after killing his estranged wife and mother-in-law in Douglas County, Georgia, USA.
According to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Nwamu, who had just separated from his wife, Khaliya, shot his way into his in-laws’ home, killed his ex-wife and mother-in-law, and later took his own life.
The difference here is that the in-laws were not Nigerian.
Lonely… lonely abroadians
In a short social media video post, a Nigerian who neither identified himself nor showed his face, last year tried to convey the lonely life Nigerians and indeed Africans who reside abroad go through. The video, according to the male voice, showed a lonely and deserted town on a Christmas morning.
His motive was to intimate Nigerians with the life that awaited them if they chose to go live and work in Europe, going by the eagerness and desperation with which they chase migrating to those countries. He also spent time describing the extremely cold December weather and the fact that if Christmas, which is usually loud and bubbly in Nigeria, could be so quiet, with the streets so deserted, they should then imagine how lonely other days would be.
In a rather dramatic narrative, Mercy Item, a Nigerian broadcast journalist and radio news anchor based in Enugu literally corroborated the content of that post, when she narrated the extreme lonely life her friend who had relocated to the UK was living.
Even on her birthday, she narrated how her friend, Nnenna’s repeated responses of ‘I am tired’ got her worrying.
“Since Nnenna moved to the UK some months ago, I noticed her mood swings. Sometimes she’d be mirthfully bursting with energy, and then suddenly she would slump into a state of melancholy.
“… Within 12 minutes of our conversation, she had said, ‘I’m just really tired’ more times than I could count. Although I’ve heard such expressions of frustration and exhaustion repeatedly in our previous conversations during the past months, something was heart-wrenching about hearing her say it over and over again this time. Today of all days – her birthday!”
Similarly, a foremost Nigerian female makeup artist once lamented the huge burden going to put to bed in Europe and America could be.
Said the artist (name withheld): “It was a totally burdensome experience and I don’t wish to go through it again. Once you’re delivered of your baby, you’re on your own. You bath the baby; do the laundry and all other chores yourself. This is unlike the situation back in Nigeria, where the whole extended family are by your side, falling over themselves to help and ensure you don’t in any way go through any stress.”
Infidelity
A UK-based Nigerian in a recent social media post, warned Nigerian men who intend to migrate abroad (japa), not to send their wives ahead. “If you’re a man and you intend to japa to the United Kingdom, please do not send your wife ahead of you. I repeat, do not send your wife ahead. If you do, they will snatch her from you…”
Above is a modest translation, as the original form was a mixture of English and Yoruba, and a little too vulgar for this medium.
But his warning may have come too late for Karim, a Lagos-based engineer with a telecoms company, who, a few years ago, got the opportunity of a UK visa and propelled his young wife to go over ahead of him, while he served out the required number of years for proper exit gratuity in his company before joining her. If Karim imagined that he stood the chance of losing his wife to voracious UK men, he probably consoled himself that her seven-month pregnancy would ward them off. But he thought wrong, as his wife barely put to bed before she started dating another man and promptly sent him a message to get himself another wife in Nigeria.
Needless to say, this hit Karim so hard, as all his plans had centred on her and their child.
The biggest pain, Karim, confided in a friend, was the fact that another man became ‘father’ to his son.
Had he known, he lamented that he would never have sent her abroad.
In a video currently trending, a distraught Nigerian man could be seen filming his wife and his purported lover (both Nigerians) and asking the man in pidgin English that: ‘So you’re the one sleeping with my wife’? A long altercation ensued with both the purported lover and the wife trying to downplay the allegation and at the same time ward off the camera from their faces. But whether this one allegation was true or false, one clear fact, as testified by Nigerians in these countries, is that a lot of infidelities play out among women who live abroad in wait for their husband.
The same applies for men, who go ahead of their wives.
Disappointment
For many, it has been tales of disappointment, with some even packing their bags and heading back to Nigeria. Some, however, are too ashamed to head back, preferring to soldier on, albeit as destitute.
Just last week, the International organisation for Migration (IOM) advised intending migrants to be cautious of a syndicate that specialises in offering fake employment letters for non-existent jobs in the United Kingdom.
The United Nations agency disclosed that over 1000 Nigerians are currently stranded in the King Charles country, having got visas based on fake employment letters procured for them, only to get there and the organisations deny they issued such letters.
Speaking at a news conference in Abuja, the IOM Chief of Mission, Dr Laurent de Boeck said: “There are some of them who lost over $10,000 only to be given fake employment letters, which allowed them to get visas….”
An X user, Gbenga Samuel-Wemimo, once narrated the story of a thriving Abuja-based Nigerian man who at the persistence of his wife, sold off all they had to relocate to Canada.
This was a man, a civil engineer in his prime, 37, who had two houses, a huge supermarket and thriving construction business, wining and executing federal government contracts and money in the bank; could be said to be comfortable.
To boot, they had three healthy children – a perfect life, you may say.
But the wife felt they had seen it all in Nigeria and the lure of the North American country seemed overwhelming to her. Eventually, the man capitulated.
They sold all that they had, raised 100,000 dollars and relocated.
But Canada didn’t turn out the El-Dorado they imagined. They stayed in her sister’s house for a while, until they found an apartment of their own. It took four months for the wife to find a local supermarket job but almost forever for the husband, who wasn’t certified as an engineer to work in the country. Ultimately, he needed to undergo fresh training before he could be registered to work even as a skilled labourer on construction sites.
Not the spectacle he expected.
Things got so bad that the only option was for him to return to Nigeria, which he took after some honest counselling from his friend.
Eventually, he returned, with two of the kids, while the wife stayed back, and things gradually picked up for him again.
Akin to the above story would be that of an elderly man who had gone to have a haircut, as narrated by a Winnipeg, Manitoba-based barber.
“I once had an elderly Yoruba man who was crying while getting a haircut, and I had to ask him, ‘Kilo seyin sir? (What happened to you sir?) And he said he wasn’t happy the way he was being spoken to at work. He said he was already a boss of his own, with a driver and everything in place’.” So I had to play the role of a comforter by telling him, ‘Daddy, you don’t need to see it like that.”
