₦airaland Forum

Like millions of Nigerians, I received with profound shock the news of the death early this morning of Mr. Yinka Odumakin, spokesman of Afenifere, committed fighter for democracy, dedicated civil society activist, courageous and outspoken defender of whatever ideals and principles he believed in and a patriotic citizen in every sense of the word.

Ever since his student days, Odumakin had been fearless and unrelenting in speaking up in promoting the cause of justice and what he perceived as the best interest of the citizens of Nigeria. He participated actively at the forefront in the various students and youth struggles against successive military dictatorships in the 1980s and 1990s. In the process, he was arrested, harassed and even detained several times. Yet, he never allowed himself to succumb to tyranny or be pressured into submissive and pliant silence.

In the struggle against the annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election and the perpetuation of military dictatorship, Odumakin was never found wanting. He was at the vanguard of the battle even at the risk of his life and liberty. It is impossible to credibly tell the story of the emergence of the democracy we enjoy in this dispensation today without emblazoning Odumakin’s name in gold. He was a doughty fighter for freedom and the rule of law. He was rock solid in his commitment to Afenifere, the Yoruba people and the several other civil society groups in which he played active roles.

Odumakin never held public office. But he has been a constant feature and part of our public consciousness over the last two decades of this unbroken democratic dispensation. He epitomized the true definition of the citizen; a patriot who was ever conscious of the fact that his life could not be complete or his humanity meaningful if he did not take an active interest in and join likeminded fellow citizens in seeking always to promote the common good of his community and country.

In the course of the last two and a half decades, Odumakin and I had cause to collaborate in various organizations and in pursuit of different political causes at different times and I can testify to his capacity for hard work, his brilliance, his tenacity in his loyalty to his cherished principles. Even if we differed politically, I had no cause to doubt his sincerity in charting his chosen path. He will forever remain a model of what a citizen who places the good of his country above his personal interest could be. For, given his talents and abilities, Odumakin could easily have opted to focus on his personal welfare and that of his family rather than embroil himself in the several struggles he dedicated his life to.

It is certainly not fortuitous that his wife, the indefatigable Amazon, Dr Joe Odumakin, was Yinka’s comrade in struggle and active collaborator in fighting for justice, liberty and the dignity of the underprivileged. They were iconic soul mates in the ceaseless battle for a better and greater Nigeria.

I join millions of Nigerians in condoling with Dr. Odumakin and her family in this sad hour. May God comfort and strengthen them even as they take solace in the massive outpouring of grief nationwide at Yinka’s painful passage.

I also express my heartfelt condolences to Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the Afenifere leader, and all other leaders and members of Afenifere as well as all Yinka’s associates in the civil society movement. His life vividly demonstrates once again, in the immortal words of Chief Obafemi Awolowo that “it is not life that matters but the courage you bring into it” and that it is not how long we live but how well and productively that matters. Odumakin is gone. But he lives on in the memory of millions of his compatriots. May his soul rest in peace.


SIGNED


ASIWAJU BOLA AHMED TINUBU

Tolexander:
I thought Buhari made the statement personally and not a release by Garba Shehu

You are a disgrace and utter disappointment to your parents and your community. Return to your village and pay all school fees from your parents back to them.

Sijo01:
You see your life!
Of all the emorgies to take book space, na this one you see use.

It is not "emorgies". It is emoji. No, you don't need to thank me.

We4all:
I need a link to download "cock crow at dawn" theme song. I just love the lyrics.

Audio:
https://qoret.com/download-mp3/bongos-ikwue-cock-crow-at-dawn/

Note:NL is changing c0ck to rooster. If you click the link it might not work. Copy the link and changing rooster to c0ck

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8xCRAnjc60

Veteran broadcaster and Nollywood actor, Sadiq Daba is dead.

He died around 8:30pm Wednesday evening, after a long battle with leukemia and prostrate cancer.

May his soul rest in peace

Why is AlexReport not in the pictures? Incomplete news...

November 27, 2020

A legal practitioner, Mr. Olaniyi Adekanla, Esq. is seeking the removal of Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, from the office of the Lagos Zonal Head of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The lawyer’s grouse against the Lagos Zonal Head of the Anti-Corruption agency borders on corruption tendency.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday in Lagos, Adekanla, Esq. stressed that the current zonal head is a misfit for the office.

He held the notion that an organisation at the vanguard of Anti-Corruption crusade should not allow Abdulrasheed Bawa to call the shots at the Lagos Office of the EFCC.

Reiterating his position, the lawyer explained, “It is therefore against this backdrop that the extant development in the Lagos Zonal office of EFCC, to wit its headship by one Abdulrasheed Bawa is considered inappropriate and a deviance to the gravity of sanitization of corruption which led to the establishment of this organisation, hence an erosion and bastadisation of its moral and functional values. For the umpteenth time, Lagos Zone of this institution is too important to be headed by any person carrying stigma of infamy either by allegation or otherwise!”, he said.

Bawa was alledged to have sometime last year confiscated dozens of petrol tankers and sold to his proxies.

Said Adekanla, “Last year, under the watch of Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa in the Port-Harcourt Zonal office of EFCC, dozens of petrol tankers were confiscated from suspected looters and same were auctioned to Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa proxies at ridiculous prices.

“This irked some junior colleagues who wrote anonymous petitions and sequel to which Mr. Bawa was arrested and detained for several days in Port-Harcourt before Magu, former head of the institution who consequently ordered his transfer to the agency’s training school in Abuja.

“Mr. Bawa was accused of selling at least 244 trucks worth between N20 to N30 Million each at N100,000 or slightly more per unit to his proxies! A proxy was said to have sold one of the tankers to a businessman in Ibadan for N14.8Million. This obscene deal was said to have denied Nigeria Government about N4.88 Billion Naira, an amount which is enough to take care of the yearly overhead of the organization, conservatively put at N4.5Million per annum.

“It may interest you to know that while forfeiture proceedings are ongoing no sale of any goods that forms subject matter of the criminal allegation can be made. In contradistinction to this avowed position Mr. Bawa put those trucks that were subject matter of criminal litigation at Federal High Court for sale.”

He expressed that it is unfortunate that Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa was rewarded with the headship of EFCC Lagos Zonal Division.


Juxtaposing his concerns, Mr. Adekanla said when Mr. Fowler was accused of mismanagement of funds at Federal Inland Revenue, he took a bow and subjected himself to investigation.

He however placed so much confidence in President Buhari led anti corruption drive.

He said the president does not support that men suspected of shady deal should occupy holy sanctuary like EFCC.

Adding that EFCC is a shrine of holiness where the officiating priests are supposed to be people without tainted integrity and blemished honour.

He summed his call for the removal of Bawa this way, “any person under criminal investigation like Bawa is the least person qualified to occupy the headship of EFCC Lagos Zonal office and I so hold that he should be unhorsed forthwith.

“I hereby urge the Federal Government to ask Mr. Bawa to step down from this exalted position of honour for holiness accountability and responsibility to reign.”

Casefileng.com however sought reaction to the allegation from the EFCC Spokeperson, Mr. Wilson Uwajaren, but he is yet to send his response.

https://www.casefileng.com/2020/11/27/lawyer-accuses-lagos-efcc-head-of-massive-corruption-seeks-his-removal/

Benbellamor:
Poo ....Trying hard to look relevant

Meanwhile CNNreport has yielded first fruit
Army that denied ever going to the Scene of massacre Has just admitted that they went with killer bullets
How.do you trust such double.mouthed
Thank you CNN for putting them on their toes

They admitted they went to the protest ground with live bullet not to use it on the protesters but to defend themselves

If you know how security agents work, you will agree that no soldier will go on such an assignment without being properly armed in case of any unexpected episode.

What does the Admin mean by "young Nairaland member"? Are you implying they are not ripe enough for marriage?

Do you know their ages?

Nairaland member is Nairaland member. Learn to respect people.

mazinaija:
if you say the toll gate isn't close to a river,then it means you don't know the toll gate properly

Can you tell me the distance of tollgate is to where you can access the river? Can you access the rivers just like that from the tollgate? Those buildings built by the road have blocked access to the river, except you want to tell me you jump their fences to access the rivers. Liars

Lies kee all of you die.

Do you know I far Lekki Toll Gate is to the river? It is no longer they were killed and their bodies thrown to the river. Now, they jumped into the river by themselves.

Stoopid liars

yanabasee:
When I buried my father.....It wasn't funny......

Sorry brotherman. Many Yibbo culture are backward. One of the reasons Biafraudd must not be allowed to see the light of the day.

I read your story to the end. However, another version has it that Efunsetan actually committed suicide by poisoning herself. This version is the more acceptable one as we even watched it in Efunsetan Aniwura movies.

Please do more research and revert.

Well done...

Cityqueengirl:
The child belongs to the mother, Chioma and it's the mother that will ensure the name she wants her Child to eb known by

IPOB girl. That happens in a backward Yibbo culture like yours. In global culture of which Omoluabi's is one, the man has the child and the mother.

When you have your child for your husband, you are free to change their surname to your fathers.

Eediot

Hazlett1988:
You are an idiot and a fool,I trust you don't know who you are talking too,by looking at your profile don't make me track you down and do you something you will ever regret in your life time, its not everybody on here you talk too anyhow dare me and regret this for the rest of your life

F*Polish IPOB boy. It is now 12 hours I challenged you to track down your father in ypur village, you have not done so. What happened, Mr. Ignoramus. A boy of 1988 challenging me. Sango fire thunder and destroy your blokos. Son of a b*tch

Hazlett1988:
You are an idiot and a fool,I trust you don't know who you are talking too,by looking at your profile don't make me track you down and do you something you will ever regret in your life time, its not everybody on here you talk too anyhow dare me and regret this for the rest of your life

Eediott. Mr. Anonymous. Na your papa you want track down for your potopoto village? I dare you. If you can not, you are a first-class goat. Ewu.

Hazlett1988:
Ops you are a damn idiot for been tribalistic,you all are all stupid for falling for all this to make us hate one another,for the fact that this can not hit a front page I will just say this, The politicians has all made us to hate one another all in the name of of thier selfish interest which you all can not see it but I will tell you this that no matter what they made you believe or whoever made you believe remember one thing will never change,we all run a red blood in our body not blue not white but red blood and which it signify that no matter what happen we are all one,One blood,One Nigeria regardless Igbo,house or Yoruba.stop been tribalistic and embrace all as your brothers and sisters,the moment you start thinking the same the better our country.Peace out

Shutup. Yibboboy. Who started tribalism in Nigeria? You back to history.

Who thinks he is more wise and smart than every other tribe in the world? Yibbo

Which tribe has problems whereever it goes in the world? Yibbo

Which tribe carried out the first coup in Nigeria? Yibbo

Which tribe cause the civil war? Yibbo

Which tribe is still beating the drum of war up till tomorrow? Yibbo

Whether it is Lagos, Sokoto, Kano, Rivers, India, Japan, South Africa or Asian countries, which tribe dey cause problems there? No be Yibbo?

Ahmadu Bello saw you as far back as early 60s that you the problem in this country and the earlier you are put where you belong the better.

No one will join in appealing to you again. Henceforth, what you sow is what you reap.

Try and watch this and see the man that saw you early enough

Anuofia


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_odAy4rVz8

Dimmatic:
Until ur frog voice brother pays the bride price, that boy is not yet his son

Potopoto people. Your girls can't stop coming. They like Afonja preeek and money

FFK chop Bianca clean mouth. Chop Precious send am out. Another one go still put head. Afonja preeek dey sweet...

Dovegrey:
Oga u are very useless
Who is dragging him with you

Then stop calling him Ifeanyi. His name is David. Ewu. Goat

Nigeriabiafra80:
Nawaooo
Is he not Ifeanyi adeleke
Are you sure mad people are not here?

Shutup. Nnamdi KANU boy

His first name is David,not Ifeanyi

Nnamdi KANU boy. E shock you?

Yibbos with entitlement mentality.

Have you noticed that whenever they want to address Davido's son, they call him Ifeanyi Adeleke? Why??

That boys is not Ifeanyi Adeleke. He is not a Yibbo. Stop claiming what is not yours.

When the boy was born and Davido was introducing him, he called him David Adedeji Adeleke (See below) He only added Ifeanyi later on as an addendum, a middle name sort of.

In Yorubaland, as it is practised globally (I wouldn't know of Yibboland anyway) you call and address people by their first name. You only introduce middle name when you are asked for the full name.

So stop calling the young boy Ifeanyi. His first name is David. So call him David Adeleke or David Adedeji Adeleke. You can add Junior to differentiate him from his dad.

The boy is an omoluabi, a proud Yorubaboy.

Stop this entitlement mentality...