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Tag: Kemi Badenoch

  • Badenoch: A call for balanced leadership

    Badenoch: A call for balanced leadership

    Dr. Ademola Adeleke

    Sir: Kemi Badenoch, a prominent UK politician, recently recounted a disheartening experience where Nigerian police allegedly stole her brother’s shoes and watch. Contrasting this with the professionalism of British police, she attributed such issues in Nigeria to systemic corruption fuelled by poverty. While her critique reflects her frustrations, Badenoch’s position as a leader in a developed country calls for a more constructive, balanced, and culturally rooted approach to addressing these concerns.

    Nigeria, like many developing nations, faces deep structural challenges, including weak institutions and economic disparities. However, it also boasts a rich cultural heritage, marked by resilience, unity, and strong family values. Badenoch’s Yoruba roots, which emphasize good character and communal progress, could serve as a foundation for inspiring positive change. Yoruba culture values leadership grounded in discipline, integrity, and a commitment to nation-building. These principles, if embraced, can shape her engagement with both her heritage and her role as a leader in the UK.Rather than focusing solely on Nigeria’s failures, Badenoch could adopt a narrative that critiques while uplifting. Her experiences in the UK offer valuable lessons, but they should not diminish the dignity of her origins. For example, she could highlight stories of Nigerian innovation, cultural achievements, and the successes of its diaspora alongside calls for systemic reform. This balanced approach would foster mutual respect and pride among Nigerians and their global counterparts.Moreover, Badenoch’s position allows her to advocate for policies that strengthen ties between the UK and Nigeria. Initiatives in governance, education, and anti-corruption programs could directly address the issues she identified. Such advocacy would not only underscore her commitment to reform but also reinforce her ties to Nigeria’s development. By leveraging her Yoruba heritage’s emphasis on collective progress, she could inspire Nigerians to embrace leadership that prioritizes accountability, discipline, and national unity.

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    Leaders like Badenoch wield significant influence over how the world perceives their countries of origin. While addressing failures is necessary, doing so through a lens of respect and hope is critical. Her ability to navigate the dualities of her Nigerian roots and British upbringing positions her uniquely to foster collaboration, promote shared values, and inspire change.

    Badenoch’s reflections resonate with many Nigerians and members of the diaspora who grapple with the contrasts between developing and developed nations. By integrating the values of good character, discipline, and unity from her Yoruba heritage, she can champion a message that critiques without disowning, uplifts without ignoring challenges, and ultimately inspires both Nigeria and its global diaspora toward a shared vision of progress.

    •Dr. Ademola Adeleke, Manchester, UK.

  • Kemi Badenoch and dangers of self-denigration

    Kemi Badenoch and dangers of self-denigration

    • By Jide Babalola

    Sir: One of the oldest and most profound aspects of Yoruba history is the Ifa Oracle, a spiritual and philosophical system that has guided generations.

    Over 30 years ago, I delved into the rich verses of Ese Ifa, as meticulously compiled by Professor Wande Abimbola in Oju Odu Mereerindinlogun. One of the fascinating revelations was the presence of numerous words of Hausa and Arabic origin, such as monafiki, alafia, suuru, adorable etc, showing how interconnected our histories and cultures are. These linguistic imprints that have been richly explored by Professor Farooq Kperogi and others in the past speak to a history of exchange, coexistence, and shared humanity among Nigeria’s diverse peoples—a powerful reminder that everyone, indeed, comes from somewhere.

    In contrast, modernity, particularly in urban centres around the world, often pushes an aggressive narrative of individualism. While this may foster personal ambition, it also risks disconnecting individuals from their collective histories, values, and responsibilities. This seems particularly evident in the case of Kemi Badenoch, due to her persistent criticism of Nigeria. Her sweeping negative statements about our country, and more alarmingly, her amplified disdain for specific parts of it, reveal not just a personal bias but a dangerous narrative that undermines the dignity and unity of our people.

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    If one aspires to lead on the global stage, as Kemi evidently does, it is crucial to embody respect, balance, and an understanding of one’s heritage. It is one thing to critique one’s country of origin constructively; it is another to perpetuate a rhetoric of scorn that surpasses even the colonialists who once sought to exploit and degrade us. In her disdain, she appears to hold Nigeria in lower regard than those who colonized and enslaved our ancestors. What message does this send to her audience? What foundation of leadership does it build?

    Leadership demands a capacity to reconcile one’s origins with one’s aspirations, to elevate rather than denigrate, and to contribute meaningfully to global discourse without betraying one’s roots. Kemi’s words challenge us to reflect on what it means to be a patriot, a leader, and a custodian of heritage in an interconnected world. As Nigerians, we must ask ourselves: would someone who harbours such open contempt for her homeland truly have the empathy and vision to lead a diverse and multicultural society like the United Kingdom—or any society at all?

    This moment calls for intellectual vigilance and a reaffirmation of our collective pride. It is not about silencing critique but ensuring that such critique does not devolve into baseless denigration. For those of us committed to Nigeria’s future, the task is clear: to counter negativity with truth, to defend our history and unity, and to remain ever conscious of the dangers posed by those who reject their own foundations.

    Let us not only remember where we come from but also ensure that the world understands the value of our shared humanity, despite the voices of those who choose to forget.

    •Jide Babalola,

     Abuja.

  • Oyinbokemi

    Oyinbokemi

    Kemi Badenoch may need to beware of the pratfall ahead. It is what hubris breeds. Rarely is a woman accused of hubris, perhaps a few like Cleopatra. Hubris is often a male venom because women seldom rise to the sort of power that invokes celestial self-confidence.

    In this regard, Badenoch is a class apart. Many don’t want a rehash of Badenoch’s rhetorics without restraint, her Nigerian putdowns, her repudiation of the land of her birth. Yet, as the cleric Bishop Kukah has eloquently written in a recent essay, we must credit her ability to traverse a country of a pedigree that enslaved blacks and built a civilization on the backs of the African race.

    She thinks she was plucked from the sky, a dizzy genius of self-manufacture. She does not seem, in her habits and attitude, to know gratitude to history, to go down in genuflection to the monuments that made her possible.

     She is not the first to so rise. We have known blacks, especially in the United States, who either star as inspiration for others or, for most part, take a cue from the words of an unlikely hero of humility: Winston Churchill. He said, “it was the people who had the courage of a lion, I simply had the luck to give it roar.”

    Obama acknowledged the exploits of centuries of blood and tears, of white butchery and blacks squelching through the mud bowed by lashes. Serena nods to Arthur Ashe. Coco Gauff thanks Serena. In Britain, Formula One Lewis Hamilton thanks all of them before him, especially in the U.S. but not without knowing that you can’t be a pioneer without the collective sacrifices of little people in little episodes. Those who protested in homes, in farms, on the plantations, like Bertha Mason, who screamed anonymously in the attic in Charlotte Bronte’s novel, Jane Eyre. Or Mansfield’s Judgment of 1772 in favour of James Somerset, a slave who would not toil in the plantations outside England. Or our own John Fashanu, or even a sleek Arsenal star Bukayo Saka, whose Nigerian name, unlike Kemi’s, rankles the British soul soothingly.

    Badenoch should remember that a few other Nigerians and African names, too many to say, have been in British politics, and have made names like hers not too shabby for the ear and sensibility of the British. To refer to Churchill again, “to each, there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered a chance to do a special thing.”

    Read Also: Cleric urges Nigerian leaders to embrace humility, honesty

    As Nixon wrote in his memoirs, “history affects us more than we affect history.” War made Roosevelt, slavery minted Lincoln, suffering sainted Mother Theresa, apartheid gave us Mandela. We have to be humble before history. We are not as great as we think we are. History is like what the playwright Arthur Schopenhauer describes willpower, as “a strong blind man who carries a lame man who can see.”

    A few examples of blacks who rose by discounting their fellow blacks should help Kemi. They are Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan and Michael Jackson. Woods is the best golfer whoever lived, even if he has not clobbered as many majors as Jack Niclaus’ 18. When his stardom lit its first tinder, he had a meeting with existing stars of his colour, especially Jordan. They asked him to stay away from politics, and focus on golf. Retreating from controversy would mount up the dollar deals, and he did. When he was asked in Missouri about a question, he replied, “I am a golfer.” He became a darling of all. Blacks and whites embraced him.

    Then came the fall that exposed his many peccadilloes. The whites turned their backs on him, and it was the blacks, who he would never marry, who would never date, he never identified with that gave him succour in that painful hour. It was his time of solitude. Michael Jackson became so white that he wanted to look white. Then he had troubles of his own, and he fell into accusations of sexual perversion. He opened up in a new album asserting, to some as an exaggeration, that they -white- “don’t care about us.”

    It is the sort of trap Badenoch has to avoid. He is the first to become the leader of a major political party. It is not just a major political party, but the most organized political party in history. It is the oldest in history. It is also the most successful having gobbled up power two-thirds of the time. Before they were called Conservatives, they have been a loose group known as Tories since the third quarter of the 17th century. Most notably it was the party of slavery and monarchism. It was in the aftermath of the Reform Act in the 19th Century that it became organized fully as the Conservative Party. It is no mean task that Badenoch sits on top of story of the Tories.

    It does not call for vanity but sanity. Kemi does not act like a politician of that stripe. He should learn, too, that his party has a history of intolerance for bumbling leaders, white or black. That explains its success. Kemi should be wary, lest she becomes as black as a blip of history. If she wants to lead the party to victory, and become its first black prime minister, she has to remodel her character. Her personality is helping her today. But she needs character more.

    When Vice President Kashim Shettima says she could remove her name as Kemi, we suddenly saw her appealing to her Yoruba roots. That is not only foolish but sophomoric. Yoruba has always been Nigerian since she was born. Her biography shows she grew up in the Southwest where she had all the experience she derides. So, trying to separate Yoruba from Nigeria is vacuous. A president – who is Yoruba – is today fighting Boko Haram, and most Nigerians, North or South, abhor that group.

    She should beware of what some call Coconut – black outside, white inside. Or else, we might not call her Oluwakemi but Oyinbokemi, a name she seems to propagate with her acts. Kemi means take care of me.

  • Kemi Badenoch’s hatred for Nigeria

    Kemi Badenoch’s hatred for Nigeria

    “I find it interesting that everyone defines me as a Nigerian. I identify less with the country than with my specific ethnic group. I have nothing in common with the people from the north of the country, the Boko Haram, where Islamism is. Being Yoruba is my true identity and I refuse to be lumped with the northern people of Nigeria who were our ethnic enemies, all in the name of being called a Nigerian”- @KemiBadenoch.

    Kemi Badenoch MP, the leader of the British Conservative Party and Opposition in the @UKParliament, has refused to stop at just denigrating our country but has gone a step further by seeking to divide us on ethnic lines.

    She claims that she never regarded herself as a Nigerian but rather a Yoruba, and that she never identified with the people from the Northern part of our country who she collectively describes as being “Boko Haram Islamists” and “terrorists”.

    This is dangerous rhetoric coming from an impudent and ignorant foreign leader who knows nothing about our country, who does not know her place and who insists on stirring up a storm that she cannot contain and that may eventually consume her.

    It is rather like saying that she identifies more with the English than she does with the Scots and the Welsh whom she regards as nothing more than homicidal and murderous barbarians that once waged war against her ethnic English compatriots!

    All this coming from a young lady of colour that is a political leader in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious and multi-cultural country that lays claim to being the epitome of decency and civilisation! What a strange and inexplicable contradiction this is.

    Her intentions are malevolent and insidious and her objective, outside of ridiculing and mocking us, is to divide us and bring us to our knees.

    I am constrained to ask, what on earth happened to this creature in her youth and why does she hate Nigeria with such passion?

    Did something happen to her when she lived here which she has kept secret?

    Was she the victim of some form of deviant behaviour, abuse or perversion that has resulted in trauma, long term psychological damage and mental health issues?

    Is this why she sees red and gets her pretty knickers in a twist whenever she hears “Nigeria”?

    Why does the mention of the name of our country trigger such compulsive, violent and aggressive emotions and impulses in her?

    Given her pathological hatred for Nigerians, these are legitimate questions that need to be answered.

    She hates us with what the Bible describes as “a perfect hatred”, yet in a much publicised and widely read open letter written in 2010 during her first bid to be elected into the UK Parliament she begged the Nigerian community in her constituency to support her.

    Read Also: Kemi Badenoch’s ascent in UK politics

    At that time, when she still needed us, she identified with Nigerians but everything changed after she was elected.

    At that point, in her conflicted and confused mind, all Nigerians became demons, all Englanders became angels and her disdain and contempt for us was unmasked!

    She hates us with a perfect hatred yet she still has the effrontery and nerve to haul her rotund posterior back to our country with one Hamish, who I am told is her English husband, to watch polo at the Lagos Polo Club.

    This is the same country that she has described as being a lawless jungle and corrupt stinking edifice from which no good can come and that is filled with nothing but apes, monsters and the criminally insane.

    Her Nigerian passport (if she still has one) ought to be revoked and she should never be allowed to set her foot in our country again. She should take Vice President Kashim Shettima’s @KashimSM counsel seriously and drop Kemi as her name.

    She should formally wipe her maiden name of Adegoke off the record as well and publicly renounce and disavow her father, mother, siblings and Nigerian lineage and heritage.

    She does not want to identify with us and we do not want to identify with her.

    She sees us as being corrupt and evil and we see her as being the devil incarnate and the spawn of satan. There can be no fellowship between us.

    The truth is that she is no longer a mere irritant or the inconsequential object of our contempt and ridicule but she can now be comfortably and legitimately described as ‘public enemy number one’ of our beloved nation.

    She should stick to the affairs of her UK, face it’s ruling Labour Party and it’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer @Keir_Starmer and LEAVE NIGERIA ALONE!

    On a lighter note, it is a pity that I stopped playing polo many years ago, because if it had been in my days that she attempted to visit the Lagos Polo Club, she would not have got past the gate. And if she managed to do so, our grooms and horseboys would have pasted her self-hating, unpatriotic, ungrateful, treacherous and ever so plain face with Argentinian pony dung before tarring and feathering her.

    How times have changed!

    • Fani-Kayode is a former Minister of Aviation and former Minister of Culture.
  • Identity, heritage, and complexity: Unpacking the Badenoch-Shettima discourse

    Identity, heritage, and complexity: Unpacking the Badenoch-Shettima discourse

    The recent verbal exchange between Kemi Badenoch, the Nigerian-born leader of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom, and Kashim Shettima, Nigeria’s Vice President, has seemingly thrust into the global spotlight a profound and delicate discussion about national identity, ethnic heritage, and the intricate dynamics of postcolonial belonging.

    From Badenoch’s standpoint, the context of her statement saw her refer to herself as Yoruba rather than Nigerian. Such a statement has largely reverberated far beyond mere personal preference; it represents a complex narrative of historical tensions, cultural distinctions, and a personal reckoning with a multifaceted national identity.

    Badenoch’s critique fundamentally centers on the stark cultural and ideological differences she perceives between the Yoruba people and Northern Nigeria, with similar examples found throughout the country. While many may judge her statement as provocative, those who are true to themselves would rather view it as indicative of the long-standing ethnic and religious divisions that have historically characterized Nigerian sociopolitical landscapes and our failure at nation-building.

    However, her characterization of Northern Nigeria as a “haven for Islamism and Boko Haram” is inappropriate and should not be uttered by someone who may one day govern the United Kingdom. It is akin to calling Texans “Rednecks” or describing Germany as a haven for Nazis. It is important to remind Badenoch that no region has suffered more at the hands of Boko Haram and Banditry than the North she labels as its haven. In doing so, she does great disservice to the people of that region who have died or suffered immeasurably from the terrorist organization’s activities.

    Thus, the response by Vice President Kashim Shettima epitomizes the defense of our national pride. By challenging Badenoch to “change her name” if she doesn’t want association with Nigeria, Shettima represents a perspective that prioritizes national unity over ethnic distinctions.

    His retort reflects a broader Nigerian sentiment that seeks to transcend ethnic boundaries and promote a unified national identity. However, Badenoch’s stance suggests that such unity remains more aspirational than real.

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    Badenoch’s assertion that the Yoruba were “ethnic enemies” of Northern Nigerians reveals the deep-rooted historical tensions that continue to simmer beneath Nigeria’s national facade.

    Her comments challenge simplistic notions of national identity, suggesting that belonging is more nuanced than a mere administrative categorization. This serves as a warning to our leaders and those who insist on Nigeria remaining a united entity. If we must be one nation, one people, then we must sit down and tell ourselves the basic truth and create a template that will assure all Nigerians, irrespective of where we come from, that we are better off as a united nation than as splintered entities—an argument many Nigerians will not readily buy into, given our present circumstances.

    While Badenoch declares her commitment to “protect” and her willingness to “die protecting this country” (referring to the United Kingdom), she frames her identity not as a rejection but as a principled stance rooted in her understanding of her ancestral warrior ethos.

    Such a perspective suggests that true loyalty transcends geographical boundaries and is instead anchored in cultural values, historical narratives, and personal convictions.

    This is where a majority of past Nigerian leaders missed it! Whilst they demanded unalloyed loyalty from the Nigerian citizen, they paid lip service to the issues that confronted many a Nigerian from buying into such. Take for example, my Igbo brothers will readily scream marginalisation, my brothers within the Niger Delta have long cried about the exploitation of their resources without any visible infrastructural presence, while these calls have been long drawn, government after government have all failed to properly address such clamours.  Even now, Presidenr Bola Ahmed Tinubu, whom many felt would readily address the political lopsided nature of the nation has told the nation he much prefers to face the economic challenges before tinkering with the former.

    The Badenoch-Shettima discourse illuminates several critical contemporary issues, such as the limitations of postcolonial national identities, the persistent challenge of ethnic reconciliation, the complex ways individuals navigate multiple cultural affiliations, and the ongoing dialogue about belonging in an increasingly globalized world.

    While Badenoch’s statements might seem controversial, aside from her derision of Northern Nigeria, the rest of her comments appear to represent a legitimate exploration of identity in a complex, multifaceted world. Her critique, though sharp, is not without merit and reflects genuine concerns about regional dynamics in Nigeria.

    Likewise, Vice President Shettima’s defense of national unity is equally valid, representing an alternative perspective that seeks to bridge ethnic divides. The dialogue between them is not a simple conflict but a nuanced conversation about belonging, heritage, and national identity.

    Ultimately, the Badenoch-Shettima exchange offers a profound insight into the intricate tapestry of modern identity politics, challenging us to look beyond simplistic narratives and appreciate the complexity of human experience.

  • Shettima criticises Kemi Badenoch for ‘denigrating’ Nigeria

    Shettima criticises Kemi Badenoch for ‘denigrating’ Nigeria

    Vice President Kashim Shettima has slammed the newly elected UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, for making disparaging remarks about Nigeria.

    Badenoch of Nigerian roots, had in November pledged to enforce stricter immigration policies, warning that the current pace of migration risks overwhelming public services and undermining social cohesion.

    However, speaking at the 10th Annual Migration Dialogue at the State House in Abuja on Monday, Shettima emphasized that migrants are a vital source of life in all societies.

    He said: “Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the British Labour or Conservative Party. We are proud of her in spite of her efforts at denigrating her nation of origin.

    “She is entitled to her own opinions; she has even every right to remove the Kemi from her name, but that does not underscore the fact that the greatest black nation on earth is the nation called Nigeria.

    Read Also: We will tackle migration challenges, Shettima assures

    “One out of every three, four black men is a Nigerian and by 2050, Nigeria will support the United States, will be the third most populous nation on earth.”

    In 2022, Badenoch faced criticism for remarks describing her experiences growing up in Nigeria, citing corruption, unfulfilled promises, and poverty.

    “I grew up in Nigeria and I saw firsthand when politicians are in it for themselves.

    “When they use private money as their piggybanks, when they promise the earth and they pollute not just the earth, but the whole political atmosphere with their failure to serve others.

    “I saw what socialism is for millions. I saw poverty and broken dreams. I came to Britain to make my way in a country where hard work and honest endeavour can take you anywhere.”

  • Kemi Badenoch’s ascent in UK politics

    Kemi Badenoch’s ascent in UK politics

    • By Magnus Onyibe

    As Great Britain, once a colonial power ruling over 56 nations now part of the Commonwealth transitions into a more inclusive society, a symbolic form of “reverse colonization” seems to be unfolding. This phenomenon, exemplified by individuals from formerly colonized nations rising to leadership roles in the UK, highlights the open-mindedness of Britons. Their inclusive approach has afforded immigrants, including those born in the UK, equal opportunities alongside the native population.

    The adventurous spirit of the British has also contributed to London’s evolution into a cosmopolitan hub. Home to people from various former colonies, London has become a melting pot of cultures and a global financial centre rivalling cities like New York, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.

    Historically, Britain’s dominance as a seafaring nation beginning after the founding of the country in 1707 enabled it to build an empire that spanned nearly a quarter of the globe. Through its control of vast territories in Africa, India, Australia, Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean, the British Empire left an indelible mark on the world. While the UK is no longer the imperial force it once was, it remains a vital player on the global stage.

    Should Kemi Badenoch—of Nigerian heritage now the leader of the Tory party currently in opposition—one day become the UK’s Prime Minister, it would be a monumental achievement not just for Nigerians but for Africans and the global Black community. Her rise would echo that of Barack Obama, whose election as the first Black President of the United States inspired millions worldwide.

    Nigerians must allow her to continue climbing the political ladder without the negativity that sometimes characterizes reactions to such achievements as evidenced by the vilification from Nigerians she is currently contending with.

    In the United States, Barack Obama deliberately distanced himself from Black identity politics during his presidential campaign, recognizing that such an approach might limit his appeal in a nation where Black Americans constitute just 13% of the population. In contrast, Hispanics account for approximately 14%, while Caucasians make up around 67%. The significant role of rural Caucasian voters in Donald Trump’s 2016 and 2024 victory—and their contribution to Keir Starmer’s Labour Party overtaking the Conservatives earlier this year, which Kemi Badenoch currently represents—underscores the importance of appealing to the broader majority in diverse democracies.

    For candidates from minority backgrounds aspiring to lead multi-ethnic nations, emphasizing racial or ethnic identity can create barriers. Hence Badenoch, like others before her, has to navigate this challenge.

    Historically, Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson both campaigned for the U.S. presidency by centring on Black identity, but neither achieved electoral success. Barack Obama learned from these missteps, avoiding identity politics and instead galvanizing young voters through social media, ultimately winning the presidency in 2008. Similarly, Kamala Harris, the current U.S. Vice President, distanced herself from minority-focused identity politics. That is why she did not openly emphasize her Black heritage during her campaign, but celebrated her marriage to Doug Emhoff, a Caucasian, to further broaden her appeal.

    Kemi Badenoch appears to be following a comparable path in the UK. Her husband, Hamish Badenoch, is a successful Caucasian banker, a detail that could work in her favour when elections are called. As leader of the Conservative Party, this positioning may enhance her chances of becoming the UK’s next prime minister.

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    Meanwhile, the debate over reparations for the historical atrocities of slavery perpetrated against Africans continues to stir emotions. At the recent Commonwealth meeting in Apia, Samoa, African representatives renewed their call for reparations, but King Charles dismissed the demands, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer brushed them aside. This response frustrated African advocates and reignited debates about the relevance of the Commonwealth, especially if it primarily serves to promote the economic interests of the UK as the former colonial power, particularly the African continent as a market for her goods and services.

    The UK’s resistance to reparations—unlike Germany, which compensated Israel for the Holocaust—is likely rooted in the immense financial strain such a commitment would impose, particularly given the UK’s current economic difficulties.

    Nevertheless, Britons like Americans, have demonstrated a commendable level of inclusivity and liberalism by granting citizens of foreign ancestry the same rights and opportunities to rise to the highest echelons of political power. This inclusive approach could, for now, be seen as a symbolic form of reparation for the UK’s inability to meet Africa’s demands for financial reparations.

    In this context, Kemi Badenoch’s rise to prominence—an African woman occupying one of the most significant positions in British politics—offers a powerful symbolic acknowledgment of historical injustices and readiness of the former colonizer to atone for past atrocities such as slavery and the pillaging of the economic resources of the continent. Her potential candidacy for prime ministership would reaffirm this gesture of non-financial reparation, serving as a tribute to the historical exploitation of Africa, particularly the West African region.

    That said, I do not support those in Nigeria who have criticized Badenoch for her disparaging remarks about the country during her bid for Conservative Party leadership. Her ambition is legitimate and her approach reflects this aspiration. By aligning herself with the expectations of the British electorate, she has positioned herself as a candidate who embodies British political ideals. However, her portrayal of Nigeria, which has drawn criticism from Nigerians, serves to reassure sceptical voters in the UK of her commitment to those ideals, which differ markedly from the political climate in her ancestral home.

    Critics who find her comments about Nigeria disparaging may view them as unnecessary, but Napoleon Bonaparte’s assertion that “In politics, absurdity is not a handicap” offers a counterpoint. This underscores the reality that political manoeuvring often includes statements or actions perceived as controversial or unconventional.

    The ruthless ambition often associated with political pursuits is exemplified by Nicolae Ceaușescu, the former communist leader of Romania, who reportedly declared: “I will sell my mother to buy power. After getting power, I will buy my mother back.” While the literal feasibility of such a claim is questionable, it reflects the unrelenting drive and willingness to sacrifice personal relationships for political gain. Similarly, Ghanaian politician Freddie Blay echoed this sentiment, stating: “I love politics, and I would spend money to win power. If you are not careful, I will even be ready to sell my mother for money to retain my position.”

    This stark perspective highlights an inconvenient truth: such a mind-set underpins the actions of many politicians globally, particularly in authoritarian systems. Politics, after all, is a game of power and influence, often involving the orchestration of events to achieve specific objectives. While this doesn’t always imply malicious intent, it does illustrate the calculated nature of political strategy. As Groucho Marx wittily observed: “Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.”

    As Badenoch appears to have a strong chance of becoming the next UK Prime Minister, Nigerians should refrain from actions or criticisms that could undermine her ambitions.

    To Kemi Badenoch, my advice is simple: remain composed. Although you are British, your umbilical cord is still tied to Nigeria, and you will need the blessings of Nigerians as you ascend to the highest office in your current country of citizenship.

    I join others in wishing her as well as other politicians of Nigerian heritage climbing up the ladder of the political ecosystems in their respective countries of citizenship, the best of luck as they chase the dream of becoming prime minister/president.

    •Onyibe, entrepreneur, public policy analyst, author, democracy advocate, and development strategist is a former commissioner in the Delta State. He sent this piece from Lagos.

  • Fani-Kayode, Kemi Badenoch and an old fart from Leicester

    Fani-Kayode, Kemi Badenoch and an old fart from Leicester

    By Mohammed Bello Doka

    In a desperate attempt to remain relevant, Dr. Olusola Oni, a self-proclaimed Yoruba nationalist residing in Leicester, United Kingdom, has published a lengthy tirade (titled Fani-Kayode’s Fake Outrage About Kemi Badenoch, 14/11/2024) defending Kemi Badenoch’s recent ascent in British politics while launching an unprovoked attack on Chief Femi Fani-Kayode. 

    If there’s one thing Oni’s diatribe accomplishes, it is confirming that he is little more than an “old fart” grasping for significance in the political world he abandoned decades ago. His absurd attempt to glorify Badenoch while denigrating Nigeria reeks of nostalgia, detached from the harsh realities faced by his fellow citizens back home.

    Misguided nostalgia and misplaced allegiances 

    Dr. Oni’s nostalgia shines through his meandering history lesson on Badenoch’s family background. He devotes an inordinate amount of space recounting irrelevant anecdotes about schools like Queen’s School in Ede and Ibadan Grammar School, desperately trying to paint Badenoch’s roots as noble and Yoruba-centered. But let’s get real: Badenoch’s success has nothing to do with these irrelevant family histories and everything to do with the British Conservative Party’s agenda—a reality Oni conveniently glosses over. He even had the audacity to dismiss the criticisms as “misguided Nigerians” who refuse to celebrate Badenoch’s “success.”

    Here’s the reality Dr. Oni refuses to accept: Kemi Badenoch’s policy positions, including her dismissal of reparations for slavery and her selective immigration stances, have drawn criticism for good reason. They are not about “protecting the UK from becoming another Nigeria,” as Oni implies, but are reflective of a hard line political stance that marginalises minorities, including Nigerians.

    Convenient amnesia about Nigeria’s realities 

    In his barely coherent rant, Oni lambasts Chief Femi Fani-Kayode for criticising Badenoch, suggesting that he is somehow stuck in the past. According to Oni, “Fani-Kayode thinks it is ok to live in a country where Fulani barbarians and savages use cattle to destroy Yoruba farmlands,” shamelessly generalising the entire Fulani population to fit his narrow narrative. The truth is, Fani-Kayode’s criticisms are about holding public figures accountable, regardless of their ethnic or cultural background—a principle Oni seems to have abandoned in his blind allegiance to a fellow Yoruba.

    Oni’s absurd declaration that “Fani-Kayode is angry because Kemi Badenoch does not want the UK to transform into another Nigeria” is laughable. He criticises the entire Nigerian system while comfortably residing in the UK, enjoying the privileges and comforts afforded by his long-abandoned citizenship. Yet, he condemns Nigerians like Fani-Kayode who chose to remain and challenge the status quo.

    Hypocrisy and Double Standards

    Oni’s hypocrisy knows no bounds. While he praises Badenoch for her achievements, he criticises Abike Dabiri-Erewa for seeking to engage with the Diaspora, dismissing her efforts as “an alarming emptiness” and deriding her attempts to connect with Nigerians abroad. The arrogance of such a statement is staggering, coming from someone who admits he has never spoken to Badenoch but feels qualified to speak on her behalf simply because he “knew her parents.” Oni’s notion of Yorubaness is limited to the privileges and accomplishments of those who, like him, abandoned Nigeria for greener pastures.

    The attempt to undermine Dabiri-Erewa’s role by asserting that the UK High Commission alone should handle such engagements is an excuse to delegitimise any effort that doesn’t come from his narrow definition of authority. He writes: “Dabiri-Erewa has no standing and no mandate to demand audience with the UK Leader of Opposition.” Dr. Oni, the reality is that engaging Nigerians abroad goes beyond your outdated notions of bureaucracy—it’s about fostering meaningful connections with the Diaspora.

    Selective history and misinformation 

    In Oni’s world, Kemi Badenoch is the embodiment of Yoruba pride, yet he offers little to substantiate his claims apart from vague recollections of Badenoch’s father’s nationalist leanings. He even dredges up old treaties from the 19th Century, like the “1888 Britain-Yorubaland Treaty,” to bolster his fanciful claim that “Yorubaland is a state within the confines of the country called Nigeria.” This distorted view of history conveniently ignores the realities of Nigeria’s current federal structure, which Badenoch, if anything, is less interested in engaging with than the average British politician.

    Furthermore, Oni’s defense of Badenoch’s refusal to support reparations is rooted in a flimsy argument. He justifies it by pointing out that “David Lammy, the British Foreign Secretary, a descendant of slaves, does not support ‘reparation’.” Yet he fails to grasp that reparations are not merely about “cash compensation” but about acknowledging historical injustices and taking concrete steps toward equity. His claim that “up to 90% of Black people in the UK are ambivalent about ‘reparation’” is an exaggeration unsupported by any factual evidence.

     An old man’s attempt to rewrite history

    Oni’s final assault on Fani-Kayode’s father, whom he labels a “political prostitute,” is a transparent effort to discredit the younger Fani-Kayode’s standing by invoking the sins of the father. His claim that Fani Power’s actions “arguably led to the 1966 coup d’état” is an exercise in historical revisionism, twisting facts to serve his present-day agenda. The reality is that Oni, having lived comfortably abroad for decades, is in no position to pass judgment on those who continue to fight for Nigeria’s future.

    Oni’s concluding plea for a “Yoruba Homeland” in response to reparations reveals his true intentions—a separatist agenda wrapped in the guise of Yoruba nationalism, divorced from the complexities of modern Nigeria. His portrayal of Yorubaland as a distinct state within Nigeria is nothing more than the wishful thinking of an old man yearning for a past that never was.

     A hollow defence

    Dr. Oni’s tirade is nothing more than a hollow defence of Kemi Badenoch—a woman he admits to never meeting—while dismissing the valid concerns of Nigerians like Fani-Kayode, who remain on the ground. Oni has chosen to glorify Badenoch’s achievements as if they somehow absolve her of accountability for her controversial political stances, and he has done so by disparaging those who dare to question her. In reality, his defence is a transparent attempt to remain relevant by attaching himself to a rising political star.

    On a final note, it is worth noting that the worst part of this old farts essay was his attempt to disparage the memory and legacy of Chief Femi Fani-Kayode’s father with all manner of lies and historical revisionism in an attempt to defend Kemi Badenoch. Thankfully, he failed because we know Chief Femi Fani-Kayode’s distinguished father who, like FFK himself, was a great and proud patriot and illustrious Nigerian who believed in our country and people passionately and who has established an enviable legacy. His name was Chief Remilekun Adetokunboh Fani-Kayode Q.C. SAN, CON who most politicians referred to as ‘Fani Power’ in his day.

    He was a brilliant, courageous and distinguished elder statesman and nationalist who was amongst those that fought for Nigeria’s independence from the British, who successfully moved the motion for that independence in Parliament in 1958, who was the third Nigerian lawyer to be made Q.C., who was the third Nigerian lawyer to become a SAN, who studied law at Downing College Cambridge University in 1941, who came top in the whole of the old British Commonwealth in the British Bar Exams and was called to the British Bar in 1945, who set up the first indigenous law firm in Nigeria with Chief FRA Williams and Chief Bode Thomas, who was the Balogun of Ile Ife, who was Deputy Premier of the old Western Region in the First Republic, who was Regional Minister for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in the First Republic and who played a leading role in the politics of the First and Second Republic in our country. 

    We also know Chief Femi Fani-Kayode’s grandfather, Justice Victor Adedapo Kayode, who studied law at Selwyn College, Cambridge University in 1917, who was called to the British Bar in 1922 and who was the third Nigerian to be appointed as a Judge. We also know Chief Femi Fani-Kayode’s great grandfather, Rev. Emmanuel Adebiyi Kayode, who got a degree and a masters degree in Theology at Furrogh Bay College in Sierra Leone (which at that time was an extended campus of Durham University in the UK) in 1897, who was ordained as an Anglican priest, who established the first Anglican Church in the ancient town of Ile-Ife, who went on to build and pastor churches in the old Ondo and Ijebu provinces for many years, who dedicated his entire life to Christian ministry and spreading of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and who was a well-respected, deeply courageous and highly inspirational preacher.  

    Read Also: Hotel manager, receptionist arrested over Fani-Kayode’s aide’s death

    It is pertinent to mention the fact that Chief Femi Fani-Kayode himself studied law at both London University (SOAS) and Pembroke College, Cambridge University in the early 1980’s and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1985. We know all this about his noble heritage and lineage but we know nothing about Kemi Badenoch’s other than the fact that her father is the progenitor of a self-hating monkey-bitch. As of the Useful Idiot from Leicester called Olusola Oni who attacked Fani-Kayode and attempted to defend Kemi it is clear that his forefathers crawled out of the rubbish dump and got lost in the sewer. He is indeed the proverbial bastard man child who used his left hand to point at his father’s house. 

    Oni may consider himself the “Leader of The Yoruba Party in the UK,” but in truth, he is a relic of a bygone era—an old fart trying desperately to rewrite history to suit his narrative. His selective outrage is as stale as his attempts at Yoruba nationalism; a nationalism that seems more interested in building castles in the air than addressing the pressing challenges Nigerians face today.

    Let me leave you with the words of prominent a Nigerian and loud voice in the UK, Mrs Shola Mos-Shogbamimu: “Kemi Badenoch is a caricature of the very system we’re saying needs to go; she is the black face of white supremacy.” She adds: “She is a racial gatekeeper; she did everything possible to suppress and oppress Black people… Kemi, at every opportunity she gets, throws Nigeria under the bus. I’ve never seen Rishi, Suella, Priti—none of them—throw their country of heritage under the bus.”

    This reflects the genuine sentiments of every right-thinking Nigerian who refuses to trade their conscience for crumbs at the altar of political relevance.

    Bello Doka is a journalist and a blogger.

  • Of Kemi Badenoch’s ‘living hell’

    Of Kemi Badenoch’s ‘living hell’

    • By Femi Fani-Kayode

    “I don’t want this country to turn into the one I ran away from”—Kemi Badenoch MP

    HE Rt. Hon. Kemi Badenoch MP, former Minister of Women and Equalities of the United Kingdom and the newly-elected leader of the British Conservative party deserves to be tarred and feathered for the sort of things she says about Nigeria.

    Apart from her insulting categorisations about Northern Nigerian Muslims, which I shall come to later in this contribution, this woman had the impudence to describe Nigeria, her country of origin, as a “living hell”, a place where she had to “walk one mile to get running water” and a country where “lizards run out of the taps!”

    She constantly launches heavy salvos against the Nigerian people  and our ruling elites, including politicians, legislators, members of the judiciary and those that are in the private sector calling us thieves and labelling us as corrupt and inept.

    She snubbed the Federal Government on two occasions by ignoring them when they attempted to reach out to her through Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Eweka, the Chairman/CEO of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, which provoked the latter to say that she was yet “to find the Nigerianess in her”.

    As far as Kemi Badenoch is concerned, Nigeria is a land of demons whilst the UK is a nation of angels. She forgets that the country that she lives in has a long history of corruption, looting and barbarism, and that London remains the world’s capital for money laundering.

    Again, unlike the UK, Nigeria is not supporting the holocaust in Gaza and is not complicit in the genocide that has been unleashed on the Palestinians.

    Sadly, some of our people have not only applauded her for her offensive sentiments but have also become her loudest cheerleaders. I suspect that those that do this may well be suffering from a disease known as Stockholm syndrome; an affliction that causes its victims to fall in love with their oppressors. It compels them to cultivate affection for those who seek to place them in servitude and who treat them with contempt.

    The victims of this malaise are masochists whilst Badenoch herself is the female version of Marquis De Sade, the world’s most notorious sadist. Her Nigerian cheerleaders have a chip on their shoulder. They are unpatriotic and have no honour.

    No matter how much she pisses on the graves of our heroes past and defecates on our flag, they continue to worship her. This is pitiful.

    It is a reflection of their malevolent disposition towards their own country and their low self-esteem. We may have issues as a nation, but we must never support those that denigrate our country for political gain.

    Kemi sold her soul to the right wing of the British Tory party and sought to put to shame the land of her forefathers just to become their leader. Nothing can be more despicable.

    I have seen many attempts to rationalise her insolence and none makes any sense. Loving those that hate you and consider you not only their inferior but also sub-human, in my view, is not a virtue but a vice.

    The demonisation of our country should not be a pre-requisite to winning a leadership contest of a political party in a foreign land. And if it is, one would not expect any self-respecting Nigerian to applaud it.

    Her victory in the contest for the leadership of the UK’s Conservative party does not in any way ameliorate my disgust and repugnance for her or the foul stench that trails her wherever she goes. She reminds me of the creature that the black American leader, Malcom X, described as “a house n*gger”.

    In order to comprehend her self-loathing and reprehensible mindset, I urge those that are interested to read the black French writer Franz Fanon’s book titled Black Skin, White Mask. The author had the likes of Badenoch in mind when he compiled this insightful masterpiece.

    Kemi is a vile, cunning, dangerous and willing tool of the colonialists, neo-colonialists and imperialists and she is everything that any patriotic Nigerian and every Pan Africanist should despise. Unless and until she purges herself of her contempt, I shall continue to regard her in the same light as William Shakespeare’s character, Brutus, whose treachery and betrayal was heart wrenching and whose cut was “the deepest of all”.

    Read Also: British-Nigerian Kemi Badenoch elected UK Conservative Party leader

    Again she reminds me of the character known as Richard Rich in William Bolt’s famous play, A Man for All Seasons, who betrayed England’s most famous martyr, Sir Thomas Moore, and sent him to the gallows with his false testimony and lies in return for a title and landed property in the province of Wales! It is in the same way that Kemi has betrayed, misrepresented and murdered Nigeria in return for her position as Leader of the Opposition in the UK.

    Anyone that calls my country “hell on earth” is fair game, and this is especially if that person does so in order to curry favour with members of her political party and win their support. Such a person is nothing but a specious liar, an unconscionable opportunist, a bigoted racist and a cheap political hustler who will do or say anything, including selling her own people down the river, for political power.

    Institutional racism is real in the UK. And the worst type of racist is a self-hating black African who feels the need to rubbish his heritage, who believes that he must disparage the land of his forefathers and who consistently reinforces the negative stereotyping of Africa and Africans in order to be accepted into the highest echelons of the British political class.

    The Bible asks: what profiteth a man to lose his soul in order to gain the world? I ask: what profiteth a woman to lose her dignity and self-respect in return for the leadership of a political party in a distant land? This is made worse by the fact that it is a political party whose star has dimmed, whose days of glory are over and may not be back in power for the next 10 years!

    The truth is even if the Englanders proclaimed Kemi Badenoch as their Queen, yours truly will continue to loathe her because she has contempt for my country.

    No fewer than 250 million people live in Nigeria, and she is not the dark, evil, beast-infested forest and wild jungle that Badenoch portrays her to be. She is not filled with ignorant, grass skirt-wearing, ape-looking, monkey-sounding, primitive barbarians and heinous cannibals that she would have others believe.

    We are not a land of sub-human creatures that have no decency, no decorum, no knowledge, no heritage and no history. We are not uncivilized. We do not live in trees, we do not behave like animals and neither are we godless, unruly, ignorant or incompetent.

    Just like any other country, including the UK itself, we are not infallible and we have our own fair share of flaws and challenges. Yet that does not diminish us, and I am not constrained to feel any sense of elation when a person that has displayed such disdain for our people achieves anything simply because that person has her roots in my country or in my ethnic nationality.

    The fact that Kemi is of Yoruba descent does not absolve her of her rancid bigotry and does not constrain me to give her a free pass. To those from Yorubaland who say we must celebrate her despite her foibles because she is Yoruba I ask: must we support a Yoruba who hates her ancestry, heritage, values and culture and who sees and says nothing good in our history?

    Must we endorse the acts and words of an individual who has denied us before the world, who has nothing good to say about us and who has insulted and denigrated our forefathers? Surely, doing so would be the height of clannish and cultic behaviour and an inglorious display of a crude and primitive disposition. We are far bigger and better than that. Even if she was a mass murderer those that think like that would still hail her because she is Yoruba.

    This surely is not our way and neither does it bring honour to our name. We must judge her on what she says and does and not on the basis of her tribe, gender, nationality, religious faith or the colour of her skin.

    Outside of that, it says a lot about the values of the British Conservative Party when a vainglorious, dangerously ambitious, self-deprecating, Uncle Tom and Aunty Jemima-like figure could be elected as their leader. This is a far cry from the Conservative Party of Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher.

    I have little doubt that they both turned in their graves upon hearing about Badenoch’s ascension in the firm knowledge that their party had been handed a poisoned chalice.

    Misguided Nigerians that celebrate her simply because she is from our shores are hugging a snake that hates them with passion. Eventually she will turn around and bite them and they will curse the day she was born.

    The truth is that I fear for the plight of the Nigerian community in the UK in the unlikely event of her ever being elected Prime Minister.

    Permit me to end this contribution with the following: in Kemi’s most graphic display of ignorance, mendacity, religious bigotry, tribalism and racism, she said she does not believe that Northern Nigerian Muslims should be allowed into the UK because they are, in her view, “Islamists”. She went on to say that Northern Muslims support terror and that an example of this is the ugly event in Chibok, Northern Nigeria 10 years ago when more than 200 schoolgirls were kidnapped!

    She also said that Muslims that do not support Israel in its relentless ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians and it’s genocidal acts in Gaza are “not welcome in the UK”.

    The fact that she had to single out Nigeria and cast aspersions on the character of not less than 50% of our population, describing them as “Islamists” and alluding to the malicious falsehood that they are terrorists, speaks volumes.

    On the quest for reparations for the slave trade Badenoch had the following to say: “This is the past. We need to talk about the future. There are many countries now that want to use guilt to try and exploit the UK. They ask for reparations. I saw it as a Trade Minister. It’s not culture wars.

    “I was at the WTO, I won’t name the Minister from another country, and he was telling me that we needed to give up some of the things we were doing because of colonialism and because they needed time to develop. These arguments are a scam. Don’t fall for it.

    “We need to make sure that we put this country first. We work well with our neighbours, we work with other countries, but we have to look after ourselves too.”

    Imagine this coming from a black African woman millions of whose ancestors were enslaved and shipped off to the West!

    She is dumb, deaf and blind to the fact that those advocating for reparations rightly believe that the UK and the rest of the West should make up for the damage that they did through slavery.

    @Africa.Echo put it well when they posted the following on X: “Germany and the rest of the West continue to provide financial recompense to Israel but Kemi Badenoch believes Africans do not deserve reparations for decades of colonialism and centuries of enslavement.”

    If Kemi’s views about the quest for reparations does not open the eyes of Badenoch’s Nigerian cheerleaders nothing will.

    She also stands against multi-culturalism even though she is the Leader of the Opposition in a multi-cultural, multi-racial and multi-religious nation and she is married to a white English man. What a contradiction!

    She says she believes that “not all cultures are equally valid” and from her divisive rhetoric it is clear that she also believes that not all races are equally valid.

    An even greater contradiction is the fact that she is staunchly anti-immigration. She asserts that “Britain must not be a sponge for migrants” forgetting that she is a first generation migrant and a beneficiary of the British immigration system that she now seeks to discredit.

    These contradictions and asinine assertions betray a level of perfidy, deceit, intellectual barrenness and scholarly ineptitude that beggars belief.

    Another display of her crass ignorance is her assertion that Nigeria, a country that she was raised in, has been run by “socialist governments”. This is arrant nonsense. I guess her definition of “socialism” is anything that does not share her fascist, ultra-conservative, neo-colonialist and neo-imperialist views.

    The irony of it all is that despite her pretence at being more English than the English and more conservative than Enoch Powell, by the time the British right wing finishes using her, they will flush her down the toilet.

    She deserves no better.

    • Chief Femi Fani-Kayode is the Sadaukin Shinkafi, a former Minister of Aviation and a former Minister of Culture and Tourism of Nigeria
  • Lawyer greets UK Conservative Party Leader Kemi Badenoch

    Lawyer greets UK Conservative Party Leader Kemi Badenoch

    lawyer and politician, Oba Mekunu Owolabi Salis, has hailed Nigerian-born Kemi Badenoch as leader of Conservative Party in Britain.

    He greeted King Charles, British Prime Minister, Keir Stamer, and British community, and described the  attainment as a symbol of the racial permissiveness of the society.

     “That Kemi Badenoch from Nigeria could attain such position in a foreign land as Britain is a development that Nigeria should emulate, the scholar, author and researcher, said

     He described the appointment as a milestone which showcases the endemic genius in the African genes and Nigerians, in particular, as one of the richly endowed races.

     “It is pleasing to know our Kemi Badenoch was born and bred in Lagos, Nigeria and did not travel to stay in the U.K.until she was  16 years.

    ‘‘This implies she spent the formative years, most important period shaping character.

     “Had it been she was born and grew up in Britain, one would have thought she was only able to attain that height because of that. This means  our Kemi Badenoch was made here before she went abroad.

     Against this background, he enjoined the younger ones self-defeat  and failure-induced-inferiority-complex that often impelled some to a short-circuited get-rich-quick criminality and rather be fired by ideals of greatness as actuated by Kemi Badenoch.

     He recalled that Kemi Badenoch’s achievements highlights the question why Nigerians remain unsung, stagnant and stagnated here, only to travel abroad and shine…

    ‘‘It is apparent  that the problem lies not in the person, but rather in the decadent socio-political order that chokes and stifles talents and endowments, which otherwise might have been harnessed for the benefit of society”.

     “Many Kemi Badenochs and potential ones abound in this country. Unfortunately, they exist as a nobody.Infact, if Badenoch had resided in Nigeria, it is doubtful whether she could ever be chair of a ward, let alone a local government”, he said.

    “No wonder the best brains are leaving the country in droves denying their fatherland of talents, which could have been harnessed for development of their land,”Salis noted.

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    In another development, Salis disclosed that he had just republished an updated edition of his epic book titled: “Equitocracy – Diversity Based Democracy” .

    The work introduces a revolutionary framework for an all-inclusive governance, designed to address persistent issues of political marginalisation, rivalry and religious tensions.

     In the book, Salis offers a fresh political model that seeks to eliminate systemic vices such as domination,election-rigging and political violence, while emphasizing the democratic values of proportional representation and equitable participation from all states and ethnic groups just as it ensures fair opportunities for leadership across diverse geo-political zones.

     According to Salis,this bold and imaginative vision of region-based governance effectively addresses the complexities of religious and ethnic diversities, fostering co-operation over competition.

    With empirical examples,Salis offers practical insight into creating a new political landscape that empowers citizens to restore trust in leadership and eradicates toxic practices undermining the beauty of democracy. Owolabi Salis, a renowned scholar,writer,researcher, global tourist, politician,human rights activist, social critics and public affairs commentator, is a professional lawyer and Finance technocrat with a rich pool of experience spanning about  40 years.

    As a former member of the New York State Bar Association,he runs a successful legal firm based in Brooklyn New York.

     As a research professor, Owolabi Salis is widely known for his expertise in equitable governance.

     A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University and the University of Lagos in Nigeria, Salis is a member of numerous prestigious professional organizations. As a humanitarian icon, motivational speaker, life-coach and youth mentor, Salis is renowned for his immense philanthropic gestures 

    Through his work with Equity Union inc. Salis offers customized political model, workshop and lectures to advance political equity. His latest book reflects his life-long commitment to effectuating a creative imaginative and pragmatic and equitable all-inclusive governance system which ultimately converges to maximizing the values of democracy.