Former Minister of Niger Delta and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Godsday Orubebe, needs no introduction. The actions which made his name — ‘Orubebe’ popular, is still very fresh in the memories of Nigerians. He is in the news again.

Recall that on March 31, 2015, Orubebe who became popular, acting as a polling agent for the PDP, made attempts at disrupting the proceedings of the 2015 presidential election collation.

Orubebe dramatically seized the microphone for minutes insisting that the former INEC chairman, Attahiru Jega, was biased against the PDP and should suspend the announcement of the result.

During the week, Orubebe resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in protest against the emergence of the party’s presidential candidate from the north.

The 63-year-old politician communicated his intention in a letter addressed to the National Chairman of the party, Iyorchia Ayu.

Orubebe is evidently displeased with the party’s leadership for throwing open the presidential ticket and for failing to pick Rivers Governor Nyesom Wike as a vice-presidential candidate.

According to pundits, the exit of Orubebe from PDP could be a signal toward the beginning of total withdrawal of support for the party by the majority of the party’s stakeholders in the southern part of Nigeria, and this could hinder the party’s chances at the 2023 presidential election.

Read Also; Tinubu: The man who would be president

Orubebe in his resignation letter, noted that the opposition party was not ready to regain power from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2023, and expressed displeasure that the party jettisoned zoning by allowing a northerner to emerge as presidential candidate for the 2023 election.

However, he affirmed his commitment to protecting the sanctity of Nigeria and working towards her progress and development.

The letter read in part, “I write to formally inform you of my resignation from the PDP. This I have communicated to the Chairman of Burutu Ward 3, Burutu Local Government Area, Delta State, effective June 20, 2022.

“Consequently, I am by this letter intimating you of my total withdrawal from all activities at the ward, local, state, and national levels of the PDP.”

He added: “The present situation in the party does not inspire confidence that the party is ready to regain power in 2023. Against the mood of the nation and in complete disregard for the provisions of the party’s constitution, the party, threw the zoning of the Presidency open, which created a situation that led to the emergence of a Northerner as the party’s presidential candidate, thus making the two topmost positions in the party, after your emergence as the National Chairman, to be occupied by Northerners, contrary to Section 7.3 of the party’s constitution.”

Amid the resignation brouhaha, Orubebe had met with Wike behind closed-door.

Recall that both men served together in the cabinet of former President Goodluck Jonathan before Wike resigned to contest the 2015 governorship election on the platform of the PDP.

Orubebe was appointed Minister of Niger Delta in April 2010 when Jonathan announced his new cabinet.

Although he is yet to disclose his next move, many observers are keenly watching his steps.

Since news about the arrest of former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu alongside his wife, Beatrice Nwanneka, broke on international media outlets, the couple has become the thrust of public discourse.  The couple during the week, was arrested and arraigned before a United Kingdom (UK) court over allegations centered on organ harvesting.

The serious accusations not only signpost a personal tragedy to him especially with his daughter’s current travail, but are of larger and unpleasant implications for the country’s reputation.

The term “organ harvesting” has since topped social media trends. Organ harvesting or donation/transplantation involves removing an organ from one person (the donor) and surgically placing it in another (the recipient) whose organ had failed.

In the UK, forced organ harvesting and trafficking are interlinked crimes. Trafficking of human organs is illegal in the UK and legal donation of organs can only take place with the donor’s consent.

The illegality of harvesting and trafficking human organs within and outside Nigeria has made it one of Nigeria’s Serious Organised Crimes (SOC).

Ekweremadu, a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, had been a senator since 2003. He served as Deputy President of the Senate from 2007 to 2019.

Born on May 12, he holds both Bachelor and Masters’ degrees in Law from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1987.

He was also recently made a visiting professor at the University of Lincoln.

Ekweremadu was recently in the news after saying the South-East region would not vote for the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, in 2023.

Before his comment on Obi, the embattled lawmaker withdrew from the 2023 governorship race in Enugu State after he failed to win the PDP’s ticket.

Now, the desperation to save the life of their daughter, Sonia, has landed Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice in London detention.

Read Also; Tanko Sabo: When the delegate shared his booty

If convicted, the couple may get a maximum of life sentence or 12 months imprisonment or a fine or both, on summary conviction under the United Kingdom’s Modern Slavery Act 2015.

Ekweremadu, who is a UK resident, has since surrendered his passport to the UK government over the issue.

According to the prosecutor, a 15-year-old homeless boy was transported from Lagos to Heathrow with the intent of harvesting kidneys because one of Ekweremadu’s daughters has kidney disease.

On June 21, the couple was discovered with £20,000 in cash before boarding a flight to Turkey.

But Ekweremadu had in December 2021, written a letter to the British high commission about a kidney donation for his daughter.

In the now-viral letter which is yet to be independently verified, the former deputy senate president said he was writing in support of a visa applicant who was scheduled for “medical investigations for a kidney donation to Ms Sonia Ekweremadu”.

The letter did not disclose the age of the male but UK prosecutors alleged that the victim is a minor and that Ekweremadu had falsified his age to 21.

He said the donor and his daughter “will be at the Royal Free Hospital London,” adding that he would “be providing the necessary funding”.

Confirming the arrests in a statement, the metropolitan police said the pair were charged to court on Thursday following an investigation by the police’ specialist crime team.

The police added that the investigation was launched after detectives were alerted to potential offences under modern slavery legislation in May 2022.

At the court proceedings, the court heard the couple, who have four children and a house in Willesden, North London, hoped to transplant the boy’s organs to their daughter who suffers from kidney failure.

The prosecutors reportedly informed the court that Ekweremadu procured a passport for the boy and claimed he was 21 years old but the prosecutors discovered that he was 15 years old.

According to the prosecutors, the duo have a daughter who has a kidney-related disease and has been on dialysis. They added that they believe the plan was to use an organ from the boy on their daughter who appears to need a kidney transplant.

“Beatrice Nwanneka Ekweremadu, 55 (10.9.66) of Nigeria is charged with conspiracy to arrange/facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting,” a statement by the police reads.

“Ike Ekweremadu, 60 (12.05.62) of Nigeria is charged with conspiracy to arrange/facilitate travel of another person with a view to exploitation, namely organ harvesting.”

The child was said to have “been safeguarded”, while the police added that its operatives “are working closely with partners on continued support”.

The couple have since appeared before Uxbridge magistrates’ but were denied bail and remanded in custody.

The case has been adjourned till July 7.

As the dust raised by controversial cleric and spiritual director, Adoration Ministry, Enugu, (AMEN) Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka’s outburst about Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is yet to settle, opinions are sharply divided over the cleric’s position.

Ever since, Mbaka has been grappling not to sink in the murky waters of the controversy.

In his usual style, Mbaka turned the occasion of his midweek sermon and prayer service in his church, at his Adoration Ground, into a forum for political predictions.

He declared that Obi would never become Nigeria’s President because he is a stingy man.

Mbaka said Obi is “cursed” and will not make any progress unless he comes to kneel at his ministry’s altar.

“It is better to have an old man with a generous spirit than to have a young man with ‘gum’ hands,” Mbaka said.

“Peter has a curse; he is not going anywhere if he doesn’t come to kneel down on this adoration altar.”

Mbaka said Obi insulted the Holy spirit, adding that he helped Obi secure a second term as Anambra’s governor, but “he never came to thank God.”

He noted that the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has shown readiness to be president because Obi is no longer his running mate.

Mbaka said: “Someone who doesn’t give people money is who you want to support? Do you want people to die of hunger?

“If he becomes president, he’ll close down our ministry. If Igbos are looking for who to represent them in Nigeria, it’s not someone like Peter Obi.

Read Also: What next for Kingsley Moghalu?

“Someone that refused to give donations to the church, is he supposed to be Nigeria’s president?” he added.

This was not the first time that the fiery priest would attack the ex-Anambra governor as he had in the build up to the 2019 general election embarrassed Obi at the Adoration Ground.

Mbaka’s latest comments drew widespread reactions. It did not sit well with some social media users who took to various platforms to air their opinions.

Many wondered why a fiery cleric, who like the good shepherd, should be busy taking care of his flock is busy in the political arena, throwing pebbles into already muddied political waters.

Also, reacting to Mbaka’s comment, Bianca Ojukwu, widow of the Biafran warlord, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, spoke on Obi’s ‘stinginess’ and how families benefited from it.

In a swift move, the Catholic Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Calistus Onaga, ordered for the shutdown of the church over Mbaka’s outburst.

In a letter addressed to ‘All the Clergy, Religious and Lay faithful in the Catholic Diocese of Enugu’, the bishop banned Catholic faithful from having anything to do with the Adoration Ministry.

He said in the letter that Mbaka having refused to heed to the Church’s persistent directives, “and in fulfillment of my pastoral duties as the Chief Shepherd, I hereby prohibit all Catholics (clergy, religious and lay faithful) henceforth from attending all religious and liturgical activities of the Catholic Adoration Ministry until the due canonical process initiated by the Diocese is concluded.”

Noting that his decision was based on the fact that Mbaka’s teaching and utterances were not consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church, the bishop enjoined all Christian faithful to keep praying for the embattled priest.

While some adorers (church worshippers) criticised the ban, Obi’s supporters hailed it, insisting that the ban was long overdue.

The ban, however, resulted in a protest. But Mbaka dissociated himself from the protest, saying he remains under the authority of the Catholic church.

Mbaka’s grouse with Obi could be traced back to 2019 when the former governor visited his church, and he failed to make a monetary donation.

Obi had instead requested to be shown a project, so he could support it. Since then, Mbaka has nursed a sort of resentment against Obi.

But reacting to the outburst, Obi in his usual calmness, said Mbaka remains his priest and father in faith.

Obi said, “For me, Father Mbaka is an ordained priest of God and as a priest, he remains my priest and I will always respect and show my allegiance to the church,” Obi said.

“And whatever he says, I take, because he is my father, he is my father in faith and I respect him any day. He is my brother. We are very close; that’s my own. And whenever he says something wrong, I pray over it. If he says something right, I pray over it. So, mine is prayers and whatever he does, I love him. This is me because he is a priest of God.

“In fact, I had travelled when he said that. If I was there, I would have told him ‘Since you’ve seen this, pray for me to overcome it’. That’s what I tell every pastor. I meet pastors everyday who tell me ‘Peter, this is what is going to happen’. And I tell them ‘Since you’ve seen it, let’s pray that it doesn’t happen’.”

Backtracking from his statement, Mbaka asked for forgiveness from Obi’s supporters and noted that he was misunderstood.

Mbaka said: “I’m a priest of the Catholic Church and the Bishop is my father; I swore an oath to obey him and his successors. I cannot do otherwise.”

The fiery cleric also urged his followers to continue praying for Obi stressing that he was one of them, a brother and friend.

“I have come to bless you and to dismiss you, I don’t want you to go to the main road. I don’t want you to be pugnacious or to be cantankerous,” he said.

He added that he does not want them to be violent or classified as bandits for we are not bandits.

“We are obedient children of God, we love the mother church and the mother Church loves us so much,” Mbaka added.

Although Mbaka appears to be unruffled and undaunted with many of the criticisms he has faced so far, he must be mindful of his posture and not step on banana peels.

After many months of denial and public silence, the rift between the Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, and his deputy, Rauf Olaniyan, came to full glare.

There is no gainsaying all is no longer well between the duo. While Makinde is from Ibadan, Olaniyan hails from Igboho in the Oke Ogun zone of the state. The duo teamed up in a political calculation midwifed by former governor Rashidi Ladoja, aimed at unseating the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2019 gubernatorial election.

The heightened speculation over the possible defection of Olaniyan from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) was eventually laid to rest as he officially dumped the ruling party in the state.

Olaniyan’s decision to dump PDP has apparently changed the political calculations in the state. The Oke-Ogun-born technocrat cum politician, for many months, nursed a sour relationship and open display of animosity with his principal.

The crisis between the duo has defied solution, with both leaders keeping sealed lips on the matter.

Read Also: I have no regret working with Makinde – Olaniyan

Upon his defection, Olaniyan, 62, said the move does not affect his position as the deputy governor of the state, saying he had not resigned.

The deputy governor added that he took the decision after consultations with his supporters from across the state. His exit was perceived to be a significant development. For the APC, it was a plus and added advantage ahead of the 2023 polls.

The story of deputies who grew estranged from their principals is not alien to Nigerian politics. Interestingly, Olaniyan is not the first or only deputy governor to fall out with his principal.

The former deputy governor of Zamfara State, Mahdi Aliyu Gusau, was impeached after he fell out with his former principal, Governor Bello Matawalle.

Also, deputy governor of Anambra state, Nkem Okeke abandoned his principal in the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) in October 2021 to defect to the APC. A year earlier, Agboola Ajayi, Ondo’s former deputy governor had defected from the APC to the PDP.

Olaniyan had a smooth relationship with his principal during his first year in office, but things fell apart, and the duo reportedly maintained three years of silent ‘cold war.’

Although many supporters of Olaniyan have shown empathy, they are also irked by the actions of Makinde who is allegedly making bold moves to get Olaniyan removed.

Political observers began to notice the rift after they were elected in 2019, following the deputy’s absence from state functions.

Although popular artiste and self-acclaimed African giant, Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy is known for his exceptional musical prowess, he is also known for his penchant for stirring up controversies.

The 30-year-old artiste has been in the news in recent times. In November 2017, he was invited by the Lagos State Police Command over an alleged robbery investigation.

And just recently he was entangled in a shooting incident. There were reports that policemen attached to the singer shot two fun seekers, Irebami Lawrence and another identified simply as Tolu, at the Club Cubana, on Victoria Island, Lagos.

The Inspector-General of Police, Usman Baba, swiftly directed the Lagos State Police Commissioner, Abiodun Alabi, to investigate the shooting by the personnel.

The Lagos State Police Commissioner’s Special Squad had since arrested the five police officers attached to the singer.

According to a preliminary report by the Bar Beach Police Division in Lagos State, trouble started around 4 a.m. when the Grammy Award winner and five police escorts visited Club Cubana on Victoria Island.

The police report stated that about four policemen waited outside while one of the officers, identified as Inspector Ibrahim, who was in mufti, accompanied the singer into the club.

According to multiple witness statements, the singer was in the VIP section with three women when he spotted another woman.

Read Also: ‘Burna Boy offering us hush money over club’s shooting’

One of the witnesses claimed that Burna Boy told Ibrahim to invite the woman to join him.

However, the lady’s husband was said to have rebuked Burna Boy, insisting that it was disrespectful for any man to make advances at his wife.

After some minutes, Burna Boy reportedly made advances towards the woman again. This provoked the woman’s husband and friends, who had gathered at the club, and the matter soon escalated.

“As things were getting heated, Ibrahim brought out his service pistol and shot multiple times while Burna Boy was laughing,” said a senior policeman.

In the process, 27-year-old Irebami was shot in the thigh, while his friend, Tolu, was hit in the head by a bullet.

Irebami was rushed to Naval Medical Center, where he battled for his life. The victim’s family has subsequently demanded for justice on his behalf.

Burna Boy reportedly fled the country shortly after the incident, leaving his team and police escorts to their fate. During the week, he shared a photo of himself performing on stage at the Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, Spain on his Instagram page.

In another post, Burna wrote: Portugal, meaning that he has left Spain for the southern European country. He also hinted at his forthcoming album, saying: “18 days to Love, Damini! Where and with whom will you listen to the album when it drops?”

Many of the singer’s fans were displeased by his actions. But reacting, Burna Boy, in a terse response said, “Nigerian Social media can say BURNA BOY started Boko haram, e no go shock me.”

Burna Boy keeps courting controversy by his comments and actions; many of his fans have advised that he needs to tread softly, and most importantly, make conscious efforts not to soil his reputation.

Former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Kingsley Moghalu, appears unhappy at the moment. His tall dream of leading Nigeria has again suffered a setback. Moghalu had plans to take Nigeria into the future as a modern, 21st-century nation, but he lost his party’s presidential ticket.

His loss at the presidential primary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), manifested as a rude shock to his supporters and social media fans.

It would be recalled that he lost his first presidential bid as the Young Progressive Party (YPP) candidate in 2019, the same party he dumped a couple of months after the last election.

Then he joined ADC. Moghalu, in his comment after joining the ADC in October 2021, said his then-new party aligned with his political ideology.

Upon losing his election to represent the party in the 2023 polls, Moghalu resigned his membership.

Dumebi Kachikwu, a media entrepreneur and younger brother of former Minister of State for Petroleum, defeated Moghalu, and a businessman, Chukwuka Monye at the Presidential Convention in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

Kachikwu polled a total of 977 votes against Moghalu who came second with 589 votes while Monye who came third had 339 votes.

Irked by the electoral process, Moghalu resigned his membership of the party.

In his resignation letter addressed to the ADC National Chairman, Okey Nwosu, faulted the party leadership and the manner in which they handled the electoral process that produced Kachikwu as the winner.

He said the exercise conducted by the ADC leadership was flawed with inconsistencies, similar to that noted within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He added that the “process and conduct” of the exercise contradicts his values.

Moghalu further accused the leadership of the ADC of reneging on its promise to provide a level playing field for all aspirants during the primary election.

He said: “I am writing to hand in my resignation from my membership of the African Democratic Congress, effective immediately. I have resigned because the process and conduct of the party’s presidential primary on June 8, 2022 at Abeokuta revealed a fundamental clash of values between me and your leadership of the party

“Despite the circular you issued a few days to the primary committing the party to providing transportation and accommodation for delegates to and in Abeokuta, and which as we agreed would provide a level playing for all the presidential aspirants, the party under your leadership failed to do so.

“Some aspirants, including myself, made donations to the ADC party account as requested by the party for this purpose. This failure, which appeared intentional, created room for massive abuses of the electoral process including delegate capture and financial inducement of delegates.

“This is only one of numerous inconsistencies and the absence of transparency and predictability in the management of the party that I had progressively complained about.

“As you are well aware, I have consistently resisted pressures to join the APC or the PDP precisely to avoid “cash-and-carry” politics. For me to remain a member of the ADC therefore, after what thousands of party members participated in at Abeokuta, would be to endorse political corruption of a most obscene order.

“I joined the ADC in October 2021 with the best of intentions. Since then, I have put my entire team to work on growing and improving the party, including raising the party’s visibility on all media platforms, recruiting more than 10,000 new members to the party, and providing new offices for various state chapters of the party at my expense.

“It is deeply regrettable that other inducements appear to have played more important roles in determining the outcome of the primary than loyalty to the party.”

Reacting to the claim of financial inducement made by Moghalu, the presidential candidate denied paying delegates and alleged that it was the former CBN deputy governor who induced some party chairmen.

Kachikwu also said the party will forward a petition to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on the alleged financial inducement.

Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Festus Keyamo, asked Moghalu to join the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Keyamo, who described Moghalu as his brother, advised the latter to pitch his tent with the ruling APC.

According to him, joining the Third Force whom he tagged as a group of untested Nigerians might be worse off than his previous party.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary may have come and gone but the Pandora Box of intrigues, cutthroat politicking, predictions, counter-permutations, and upsets that all characterized the contest linger on.

The emergence of former Lagos governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, proved political pundits, online and social media polls wrong. Like a soldier, he displayed gallantry by defeating all comers to win the presidential ticket of the party at the Eagle Square, Abuja.

Many congratulatory messages have continued to pour in for him. But in all of these, the former Lagos governor made a striking point saying Buhari showed that he is trustworthy by not endorsing any of the presidential hopefuls.

Recall the President had during an interview on Channels Television last year revealed that he actually had an anointed successor but he would not unveil the person for the fear that such an individual could be “eliminated.”

Buhari, last week also urged governors of the ruling party and other stakeholders to allow him to choose his successor. All of these birthed fears and issues between the North and the South.

But in the end, all of these controversies were laid to rest after an elective process was conducted. Tinubu said: “He (Buhari) promised the entire country and the world that he will build a legacy of transparency and consistency, the legacy of level playing ground for all the candidates, that he will be committed to democratic principles and values and he did so.

“He did not endorse anybody, he did not impose anybody, and he did not at any time attempt to tinker with the process of this election to favour one tribe or the other. He was steadfast, trustworthy, dependable, and a great leader.

Read Also: Atiku, Tinubu should embrace southeast

“It is not my victory that is important, it is the process and management of that election that gave it to President Muhammadu Buhari,” Tinubu said.

Buhari in his response urged APC governors to work for the victory of Tinubu, saying the success story of the party at the 2015 and 2019 polls should be repeated in next year’s election.

APC National Chairman Abdullahi Adamu said, “Tinubu is the collective project of the party”.

The President, in a letter to Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) chairman, Kebbi State Governor Atiku Bagudu, described Wednesday’s shadow poll as the most competitive and peaceful in national history.

With his emergence as the party flagbearer, political observers argued that if any presidential election is held today, Tinubu, by the account of his political experience and antecedents, would emerge victorious.

Tinubu, reputed for his political shrewdness and unbeatable strategy, was the first in APC to openly declare his presidential interest. He reached out to delegates earlier than the others and covered more grounds. In all of the last-minute intrigues and horse-trading, The Nation had tipped Tinubu to win the presidential ticket of the party due to a number of factors including nationwide recognition, reach, structure, support, endorsements, mass appeal, track record as governor of Lagos State, rich experience in both the private and public sectors. Alas, the projection is vindicated.

With this strategic feat, Tinubu — the Asiwaju of Lagos, Jagaban Borgu, and “Lion” of Bourdillon — aptly fits into the description of the “last man standing” among his peers after the Fourth Republic was inaugurated 21 years ago.

Year after year from 1999 to this moment, Tinubu has remained a strong factor in defining the outcomes of elections not just as a kingmaker but as a regent.

Interestingly, Tinubu’s cult of followers keeps expanding. He has mentored politicians across the country, many of who became governors, senators, House of Representatives members, or were elected or appointed through his support.

His political allies especially the intimidating circle of experienced grassroots politicians, mobilisers of voters, formidable political network, and propensity for deal-making all contributed to Tinubu’s victory.

At the contest, many were greeted with the shock of bigwigs stepping down their aspirations for Tinubu. The immediate past Minister of Niger Delta, Senator Godswill Akpabio; former Governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun; Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole; Governor of Jigawa State, Abubakar Badaru; senator representing Ondo North Senatorial District, Prof. Ajayi Boroffice, and Uju Ohanenye pledged their support to Tinubu.

In the end, Tinubu polled 1,271 votes to defeat 13 other presidential hopefuls, with Rotimi Amaechi, former minister of transportation, coming a very distant second after scoring 316. Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo got 235 while Senate President Ahmad Lawan, the proclaimed consensus candidate of Abdullahi Adamu, APC national chairman, polled 152.

The magnitude and depth of the celebration which greeted the announcement of Tinubu as the winner, explains the unifying influence which he has become on his party.

In writing the history of the hard-fought political battles and well-deserved electoral victory, Tinubu’s name would be engraved in the pages.

Tinubu will slug it out with Atiku Abubakar (Peoples Democratic Party; Dumebi Kachikwu (African Democratic Congress); Prince Malik Ado-Ibrahim (Young Progressives Party); Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso (New Nigeria Peoples’ Party) and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP).

Others are Prince Adewole Adeboye (Social Democratic Party (SDP); Omoyele Sowore (African Action Congress); Kola Abiola (Peoples’ Redemption Party); Peter Umeadi (All Progressives Grand Alliance); Dan Nwanyanwu (Zenith Labour Party); Christopher Imumolen (Accord Party) and Maj. Hamza Mustapha (Action Alliance).

As the countdown to 2023 begins — a year that many pundits have predicted to be a decisive year in the historical evolution of the Nigerian nation, it presents a remarkable opportunity for Nigerian citizens to make a critical decision.

It is no mere rhetoric that Femi, the eldest son of Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, and a grandchild of women’s rights activist Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, is a master of his musical craft.

Unarguably, Femi is not just a multi-instrumentalist, he is also a singer and songwriter. His earliest introduction to songwriting was by his father, Fela.

Just like his father, Femi knows when to slow down the pace of the song and when to quicken it. He knows when to change the tune, when to dance, when to sit, when to dramatise, when to relax and when to be serious.

For Femi, bearing his father’s legacy with respect has been a worthwhile journey. Like his father, Femi has remained committed to social justice, human rights and music has remained a critical component of his activism and a channel through which he tells the stories of Nigerian people.

Femi took charge of the Afrika Shrine after his father’s death in 1997. He renovated the shrine and rechristened it the New Afrika Shrine.

Ever since, his irresistible music – and his often scathing lyrics, sung in Nigerian pidgin and Yoruba – has endeared him to many.

Read Also: Femi Kuti: my 60th birthday gift is bigger than Grammy

He took up the saxophone at age 16 and within a couple of years was playing in Fela’s band, which featured an entourage of well over 20 musicians and dancers. During a Nigerian army raid on Fela’s home, Kuti’s mother died after falling from a window—a tragedy he has laid at the feet of Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo.

Femi rose to the position of assistant band leader before he decided to set out on his own. In 1986, he started his band, Positive Force, and began establishing himself as an artiste, independent of his father’s massive structure and legacy.

His international career began in 1988 when the French Cultural Centre in Lagos and Christian Mousset invited him to perform at the Festival d’Angoulême (France). He also performed at the New Morning Club in Paris and the Moers Festival in Germany. He went on to tour Europe and then entered America. All the while, back home in Nigeria, many remained sceptical about his music and critical of his style

He released his debut album, ‘No Cause For Alarm’, in 1989 and came out of his father’s shadow. He followed with ‘Mind Your Own Business (M.Y.O.B.)’ in 1991. In 1994, Motown, home to Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, and more, signed Femi Kuti. He released a self-named album ‘Femi Kuti’ in 1995, which featured the global hit ‘Wonder Wonder.’

A highly successful tour of the United States followed. Femi Kuti enjoyed mass success by releasing more albums. ‘Fight To Win’ (2001) included several U.S. musicians, including Common, Mos Def, and Jaguar Wright. He has nominations for several awards, including World Best Live Act and World’s Best Entertainer at the World Music Awards. In 2000, he won World’s Best Selling African Artiste at the World Music Award.

Barrister Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye’s foray into the recently held All Progressives Congress (APC)’s male-dominated presidential primary was, for her, a necessity.

Women, after all, are universally acknowledged to constitute an important unit of any electoral or political demography. Beyond titles such as “Women Leader,” and “Deputy Women Leader,” women need to clamour for more women representation in elective positions, she thought.

Hence Kennedy-Ohanenye indicated interest to break the perceived bias against female presidential aspirants.  Since 1999, when Nigeria returned to democratic governance following years of military rule, no woman has been elected as president or appointed as vice president.

In the past, the likes of Oby Ezekwesili, Eunice Atuejide, Oluremi Sonaiya, Mojisola Obasanjo, Sarah Jubril, Angela Johnson, Olufunmilayo Adesanya-Davies, and others showed resilience in battling their way through the contest but they were unsuccessful.

Read Also: Breaking the bias against women

While a number of female politicians have distinguished themselves in different areas of public service, pundits argue that the female aspirant would start enjoying deserved patronage when more women join the political space.

Not intimidated by the array of male aspirants, Kennedy-Ohanenye waded in the murky waters of her party’s electoral process until she ‘smartly’ announced her withdrawal from the race at the party’s special convention, and also mobilised support for the former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

Married with four children, Kennedy-Ohanenye is a businesswoman with stakes in real estate and education. For over a decade, those who have benefited from her philanthropic gestures attest to how much she had touched their lives by showering love on the underprivileged, building equipped health centres in rural communities, where she has also carried out empowerment programmes.

She once said: “I have passion for the downtrodden in Nigeria. If I become a governor, I can only do things for the people in my state. Now, if I am President, I can touch the life of every Nigerian.”

In all, it is still a long walk for Kennedy-Ohanenye. She has to grow a brave heart to overcome the weary trek along the wilderness of political power. So far, the lawyer and businesswoman has shown resilience.

The suspended priest in the Catholic Diocese of Gboko who left the ecclesiastical temple, Hyacinth Alia, will be flying the flag of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as its gubernatorial candidate in Benue State.

His victory at the party’s primary election reverberated like a bolt of thunder.

Alia wrestled divinely and spiritually perhaps to get the mandate from other gladiators in the party including Terlumun Paul Ikya; a university don, Prof. Terhemba Shija; Chief Steven Lawani; Dr. Sam Ode; Dr. John Tor Tsuwa; Senator Barnabas Gemade; Barr. Herman Iorwase Hembe; Mark Tersoo Hanmation; Engr Nick Wende and a former minister of Justice, Chief Mike Kaase Aondoakaa.

As activities intensify for the 2023 general elections, Alia’s emergence as the APC gubernatorial candidate sends a signal that Benue is one of the states to watch in the 2023 election.

To observers, Alia is a first timer and has no political structure, but he shockingly made giant steps and has been identified as “Yes Father.” He has wormed his ways into the heart of many.

He had previously said that his divine mission is to wake the state from coma and alleviate the sufferings of people. “After preaching the gospel on the pulpit for 32 years, I decided to extend it to governance” he said.

It will be recalled that Alia was suspended from celebrating public Eucharistic mass by the Catholic Bishop of Gboko Diocese, William Avenya, due to his participation in partisan politics.

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Bishop Avenya announced his suspension from public ministry “after series of admonitions” to him. Avenya noted in the letter that “the Mother Church does not allow her clerics to get involved in partisan politics on their own.”

Reacting, Alia described his suspension as a normal practice by the Church. He also noted that the sacrifice of his suspension was a worthy cause because his mission is to save the soul of the people as well as the state and deliver it from imminent collapse.

Regardless of the church’s position, Alia forged ahead and won 12 out of the 23 local government areas of the state with a total of 464,391 votes.

He defeated his rivals, Mathias Byuan, who won in one local government and a former Minister of State for Niger Delta, Sam Ode, who won in five LGAs.

Armed with his seven-point agenda for the development of Benue, Alia said his mission was to ensure that the government continued to prioritize the needs of residents and the people of the state.

Alia will face Titus Uba, the Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly who also emerged as the flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the state’s governorship election.

Born on May 14, 1966, Alia attended St. Francis Primary school, Gboko, from where he proceeded to St. James Minor Seminary, Makurdi and then St. Augustine Major Seminary, Jos. He also went to Fordham University, USA for a Master of Arts Degree in Religious Education (Psychology and Counseling). He also schooled in Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, USA for another Masters and Doctorate Degree in Biomedical Ethics.