This is a battle between Tinubu+Oshiomole and Amaechi+El Rufai + Fayemi. The so called Mr chairman is just speaking the mind of Fayemi

There are extant laws and rules that govern the conduct of people in a work place. It is however appalling for security operatives at the seat of power to take laws into their hands. I think Mr President has taken the right and bold steps to nip the whole saga in the bud. It will aslo serve as deterrent to others.

Well said. He assumed the treacherous position of an emperor.

Giadom is hell bent to scatter Apc. How can he go against the wish of 16 Nwc members? He want to run a one man show. The onus of leadership lies on Ajimobi, in his absence the national vice chairman from South south takes charge.

House of commotion. A house divided against itself cannot stand.

iampeterben:
Nice move supporting his boss.
Its not gonna be an easy road in the coming months. But if he is serving Edo people well, he will win.

It won't be easy as you think. Remember, this is a staggered election.

This is a normal scenario. The Bible also buttress this in proverbs 22 verse 2, The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.
Verse 7 says, the rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is the servant to the lender.

This is not the best of times for so many families, especially those who have lost their loved ones to the cold hands of death. Here comes another tragedy. O death where is the victory? where is the sting?Rest in peace Nkiruka Udom.

vicdom:

The game is just starting. The short ugly looking swine of Edo state is finished already. PDP should make sure they take back Edo on the same ground that Devil did in 2007 with his "pseudo- No godfatherism in Edo state". All APC rigging apparatuses must be fought to standstill. ThankGod he's the incumbent. With the masses, South-South Governors and other PDP political enchiladas by his side, Osho and his Lagos landlord will be tamed. No going back, we must achieve all these together if PDP can be able manage some disaffections amongst the subsequent aggrieved members of the party who have fought to still keep the integrity of the party going after the famous 2015 tsunami that came and blew away almost all the party had laboured for many years. 2023 will be very interesting

Edo election is a staggered one being the only one for the day. In view of this, the Apc led govt will deploy all the arsenals at their disposal to capture Edo by all means. The scenario is going to be different because, the likes of wike, Edom Emmanuel, Okowa will be restricted from entering Edo to come and help on the day of election. Hope we remembered the Ekiti election of 2014, when Amaechi was stop in Akure from gaining entrance to Ekiti. However, it is going to be a hard nut for Obaseki to crack because the race is not to the Swift nor the battle to the strong but time and chance happen to them all.

Much expected. I wish him well in his political pursuits. This is to tell us that these politicians don't have the masses at heart. No ideology at all just after their selfish interest.

See where greed as led him. All he has worked for all his life gone like that. Let the law takes it's full course.

Let's see how Mrs Buhari and the cabals will outsmart themselves. However, they should remember that power is transient. They have also taken God out of their calculation who gives power to who He likes. I pray power change hands in this country soon for us to live a better lives we 've all dreamed to live in a country filled with milk and honey.

*DON'T CRY MR GODWIN*
THE Yoruba folk tale reminds one of Godwin Obaseki and his court jesters. It is about a swaggering elephant and the choir behind him. They tickle him with their songs of praise, the drum rolls and the dances. His head dizzy, he feels like deity in the confetti of flattery. The elephant swings right and left forward in slow, majestic strides.

“We are behind you, keep dancing ahead,” they reassure him. As he advances, he is not looking forward but at himself, impressed by the finery of his apparel and the bouquet of applause.

Suddenly, he reaches a precipice and falls over. Before he knows it, there is no more choir, no more drum rolls or applause. All silence. He alone, crestfallen, wounded, comically belly up.

Edo State Governor Obaseki is in such grand deception. He still struts in denial. He thinks he is just. His flatterers and court jesters inflate his pride. The screening committee belongs to Beelzebub. He will meet them, like Caesar, in the Battle of Philippi.

His story is not new in our politics. When Timipre Sylva was governor of Bayelsa State and eyed the second term, he was at odds with President Goodluck Jonathan and his cabal. They did not want Sylva to have a second term. They also deployed the National Working Committee against him, but in a different manner. He could run, but he could not win. They invoked the police, air force, army and navy. It was a farce of force, an onslaught to win a nomination. This column wailed and chided. The journalism world, dead from the neck up, even kept mute in complicity. The PDP did not care about law. They had force and they used it. It is the tyranny of democracy. The system lied against itself. The elephant fell over the precipice. It was a republican carapace covering a stench of dead men’s bones.

In the case of Obaseki, he inflicted his own woes. Why is he blaming the screening committee for lack of fairness? Did the committee ask him to get his name wrong on the NYSC certificate and made no effort to correct it? Did they ask him to make only three credits in his school certificate exam? Or did they ask for the inconsistencies in his university of Ibadan degree? By the way, I thought he attended Edo College, because I saw a picture a few years ago with Nduka Obaigbena – also an old boy of Government College Ughelli – and Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa. He presented a certificate from Eghosa Anglican Grammar School. Is it also his fault, or that of Adams Oshiomhole, that he lost his certificates and the court registrar could not vouch for any sworn affidavit?

The issues at stake are grave for Obaseki. It is not about APC. It is about the Nigerian constitution. He is expected to present genuine certificates or evidence to INEC and later, if challenged, to the court of law. Happily, the law does not expect him to have a university degree. He is supposed to scale secondary school. He might do that. That will mean he will have to contend with the issue of his NYSC certificate, and pray that the courts will accept that Obasek is the same as Obaseki. The avenging angels of technicality are fluttering above.
It is not a matter of whether he served but whether he served right. The law has its way of defining justice. It may be justice on the streets. It may not be in the vault of law. If Obaseki indeed did well in high school, the law did not see it. If he did well to enter the university and the law did not see it, who will see it? It is not a matter of who is on Obaseki’s side or Adam’s side. It is who the law sees. The constitution prevails. That is the definition of the rule of law. That is why Douri is governor today and not Lyon in Bayelsa State.

If he decides to apply this time through another political party, and does not present his certificates for university and higher school certificate, et al, Obaseki will unwittingly confirm the conclusions of Adams and the screening committee and make them heroes. That will make Obaseki disingenuous and make mockery of his own mockery of the process that disqualified him. If he presents the same papers and affidavit in another party, he will go through the same questioning that gave him the red card in APC. The worst is if he wins in a guber poll and has to go through the courts and meets a Napoleonic waterloo.

Whether he goes to PDP, or SDP or any party, he will have to contend with the same issues that have led his flatterers to cry foul. The matter will not only become a technical goblin for Obaseki but also a moral one. Is he sincere or is he dodgy? The public will face a candidate who will not only answer the lingering question of an ungrateful beneficiary, but whether he told the law the truth or told the public a lie.

So I ask, if he knew he had all these chinks in his armour, why did he go to battle? If you knew you had certificate booby-traps and a big mole in the eye, why dangle the dagger? He had seen this in the same party, in Bayelsa, yet he did not settle in silence. Maybe he thought he had a charmed life. He was following the lines in scripture that says, “Blessed are those whose sins are covered.” His sins were covered once, and he became governor. He ripped it open of his own accord and exposed a leaky sore. He did it when he ordered Adams to seek permission to enter his state, when even a farmer does not need it. He banned gatherings, hectored the opposition, sacked party members, banded with the opposition and supped with Oyegun. He began with a kangaroo legislature. He wanted to be a constitutional emperor. He speaks good English but lacks the polish of his sentences.

He did not learn from Ambode. “To stumble twice against a stone is a proverbial disgrace,” crooned Cicero. He thought he could be king in a democracy. Napoleon’s mother told her son that kings will always remain with us in different guises. Obaseki probably thought he would be Oba Ewuare the Great in the 21st century.

This essayist painstakingly reported how efforts towards reconciliation took place between stakeholders and Obaseki. This included fellow governors, men of means and lawyers. Obaseki would not listen. At a certain time, when all the parties gathered for him in Abuja, he had flown out of town. I made this revelation in this column, but rather than being solemn, Obaseki sent his errand boy after me on this page without addressing the reconciliation efforts I reported. When the fire came, he started seeking the help of those he pooh-poohed, including fellow governors.

If he has a way out, this essayist will wait and see. But the man has shot himself in the foot. He is limping, but he thinks he is dancing.

Thank God for life. Wish him quick recovery

There is more to it than meet the eyes. Rip to the decesead and for us that is left behind, it is appointed for a man to die once after this it's judgement.

Thank God you saw it before it stings. Something must have invited the scorpion to your room or house in general. Try and get rid of it because another might be lurking around the corner because you might not be as lucky as this next time.

Every day for the thief, one day for the owner.

Well deserved. But she should be watchful not to allow any pitfall to mar her job and long standing career. Congrats ma.

The last straw / punch that blow the carmel's back is on it's suicide mission. I hope Obaseki survive this.

Amanee:
How can you use an obscene amount of money for rent when you can make a lifetime investment and live rent free? It's simple logic forget all this living with the rich, a wise man once said 'cut your coat according to your cloth'. Don't go and live somewhere where you'll end up with hbp while trying to keep up with the Joneses.

A word is enough for the wise.

When you live among the rich, the demonstration effect comes in of relative income hypothesis as postulated by James Duesenbery : That is, individuals or household try to imitate or copy the consumption levels of their neighbours. Which could be detrimental because you end up spending a larger proportion of your income compare to their own lower proportion.

Secular state

*OPEN LETTER FROM COL. DANGIWA UMAR (RTD) TO PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI*



Muhammadu Buhari, Sunday 31st May 2020

President,

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces,

Federal Republic of Nigeria.



Dear Mr. President,



*MR. PRESIDENT; PLEASE BELONG TO ALL OF US.*



“One of the swiftest ways of destroying a Kingdom is to give preference of one particular tribe over another or show favor to one group of people rather than another. And to draw near those who should be kept away and keep away those who should be drawn near” Sheikh Usman Dan Fodio.


I have been prompted to write you this open letter, Mr. President, by the loud sounds of drums, singing and dancing that erupted within many groups in the last few days on the grounds that you attained the 5th year in office as President of Nigeria. It comes as no surprise that enthusiasm for the celebration is not shared equally by segments of the public. While your admirers and supporters believe you have performed well, many others believe the five years you have been in office as our President has not met the yearnings, expectations and change promised Nigerians.

Mr. President, you know me well enough and my position on issues to realize that I can be neither a rabid supporter nor a fanatical opponent of yours. I believe being a responsible citizen is enough reason to wish you well and to work for your success. As we have seen all too clearly these past few years, your success is ours as is your failure. We swim or sink with you!

You might wish to recall that after the results of the 23rd of February 2019 presidential elections were announced, giving you victory, I addressed a press conference during which I urged the runner-up, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar of the PDP, to concede defeat. The reason was clear: tensions were running high and little missteps by the leaders might ignite violence, as often happened after major elections. Some supporters of Abubakar Atiku disagreed with me and told me off. As it happened, Alhaji Atiku went ahead to mount a legal challenge to the outcome of the elections up to the Supreme Court. Mercifully, his actions did not result in an outbreak of violence as we feared.

At the same occasion, I counselled the declared winner, your good self, to use the opportunity of your second term to redeem your pledge of being a leader and president of all Nigerians.

On the occasion of the first-year anniversary into your second four-year term, I feel there is an urgent need to revisit this subject matter.

Mr. President, you have often expressed the hope that history will be kind to you. It is within your competence to write that history. But you have less than three years in which to do it. You may wish to note that any authentic history must be devoid of myth. It will be a true, factual rendition of the record of your performance.

And truth be told, Mr. President, there are quite a lot of things that speak to your remarkable accomplishments, not least of which is that for the first time in our democratic history, a sitting President was defeated. That feat was achieved by Muhammadu Buhari. The reason was the public belief of you as a man of integrity.

The corollary to this is that at the expiration of your 8-year tenure in 2023, your achievements will not be measured solely by the physical infrastructure your administration built. An enduring legacy would be based on those intangible things like how much you uplifted the spirit and moral tone of the nation. How well have you secured the nation from ourselves and from external enemies?

At this time and in the light of all that have happened since you took office, any conversation with you Mr. President cannot gloss over the chaos that has overtaken appointments into government offices in your administration. All those who wish you and the country well must mince no words in warning you that Nigeria has become dangerously polarized and risk sliding into crisis on account of your administration’s lopsided appointments which continues to give undue preference to some sections of the country over others.

Nowhere is this more glaring than in the leadership cadre of our security services.

Mr. President, I regret that there are no kind or gentle words to tell you that your skewed appointments into the offices of the federal government, favoring some and frustrating others, shall bring ruin and destruction to this nation.

I need not remind you, Mr. President, that our political history is replete with great acts of exemplary leadership which, at critical moments, managed to pull this nation back from the precipice and assured its continued existence.


A few examples will demonstrate this:

In February, 1965, the NPC-led Federal Government was faced with a decision to appoint a successor to the outgoing Nigerian Army General Officer Commanding (GOC), General Welby Everard, a Briton. Four most senior officers were nominated; namely, Brigadiers Aguiyi Ironsi, Ogundipe, Ademulegun and Maimalari. The first three were senior to Maimalari but he was deemed to be more qualified due to his superior commission. He was the first Sandhurst Regular trained officer in the Nigerian Army. His being a Muslim Northerner like the Minister of Defense, Alhaji Muhammadu Ribadu and the Prime Minister, Alhaji Abubakar Tafawa Balewa granted him added advantage by today’s standards. But to the surprise of even the Igbos, and opposition from some senior NPC members, Minister Ribadu recommended Ironsi, pointing to his seniority. The Prime Minister concurred and Aguiyi Ironsi was confirmed as the first indigenous GOC of the Nigerian Army.

When on 13 February 1976, the Commander-in-Chief, General Murtala Muhammed, was assassinated in a failed Coup de tat, General Olusegun Obasanjo, his deputy and the most senior officer at the time, was sworn in as his successor. The Chief of Army Staff, General T.Y Danjuma, a Northern Christian, was next in line to succeed Obasanjo as the Chief of Staff, SHQ and Deputy Commander in Chief. General Danjuma however waived his right and recommended a much junior officer, Lt. Col. Shehu Musa Yar’adua, for the post. Shehu was promoted two steps up to the rank of Brigadier and appointed Chief of Staff SHQ and Deputy Commander-in-Chief. Lt. Col. Muhammadu Buhari was appointed Minister of Petroleum. This was done to placate Muslim North which was deemed to have lost one of its own, Murtala Muhammed.

Both the chief of staff, Mr. Sunday Awoniyi, and the personal physician Dr Ishaya Audu to the Premier of Northern Nigeria, Alhaji Sir Ahmadu Bello, a direct descendant of Sheikh Usman Dan Fodio, were Christians.

Barely nine years after the civil war in 1979, the NPN Presidential candidate, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, picked an Igbo, Dr Alex Ekwueme, as his running mate. They enjoyed a truly brotherly relationship as President and Vice President. President Shagari’s political advisor, Dr Chuba Okadigbo and National Assembly Liaison, assistant, Dr K.O Mbadiwe, were both Igbos. His economic advisor, Prof. Emmanuel Edozien and his Chief of Personnel Staff Dr Michael Prest, were of Niger Delta extraction. Remarkably, all his military service chiefs were Christians with the exception of his last Chief Army Staff, General Inuwa Wushishi under whose tenure he was removed in a military coup de tat.

Mr. President, as a witness and beneficiary, it is our expectation that you would emulate these great acts of statesmanship. Which is why we have continued to engage with you.

You may wish to recall that I had cause to appeal to you, to confirm Justice Onnoghen as the substantive Chief Justice of Nigeria a few days before the expiration of his three months tenure of acting appointment to be replaced by a Muslim Northerner. We were saved that embarrassment when his nomination was sent to the senate by the then acting President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo. When he was finally confirmed a few days to the end of his tenure, he was removed after a few months and replaced by Justice Muhammed, a Muslim from the North.

May I also invite the attention of Mr. President to the pending matter of appointment of a Chief Judge of the Nigerian Court Appeal which appears to be generating public interest. As it is, the most senior Judge, Justice Monica Dongban Mensem, a northern Christian, is serving out her second three-month term as acting Chief Judge without firm prospects that she will be confirmed substantive head. I do not know Justice Mensem but those who do attest to her competence, honesty and humility. She appears eminently qualified for appointment as the substantive Chief Judge of the Court of Appeal as she is also said to be highly recommended by the National Judicial Council. If she is not and is bypassed in favor of the next in line who happens to be another northern Muslim, that would be truly odd. In which case, even the largest contingent of PR gurus would struggle to rebut the charges that you, Mr. President, is either unwilling or incapable of acting on your pledge to belong to everyone -- and to no one. I hope you would see your way into pausing and reflecting on the very grave consequences of such failure not just to your legacy but to the future of our great country.

Thank you for your time, Mr. President.


COL. ABUBAKAR DANGIWA UMAR (RTD)

This is barbaric and inhuman in all standard. May the wrath of God be kindled against the perpetrators of this wicked act.

Oshiomole is a stakeholder in Edo state being a former state governor likewise any other indigene of the state.

Lesson to all. Choose your fight wisely. At times you don't need injury to earn victory. All you need is wisdom. Ask queen Esther as she triumphed over Haman.

Hofbrauhaus:
Obaseki's sin was that he didn't hand over Edo treasury to OSHIOMOLE who had already indebted the state.

Only evil people support OSHIOMOLE. Tufiakwa.

What a country. See youths.

Who told you?

Follow peace with all men. Meaning tolerate one another and mind your business. All better still, walk away since you are not the owner of the house by looking for another apartment to stay .

There is more to this than meet the eye. Let's see how the events will unfold. However, let the peace makers go there to settle the matter.

PRESIDENT BUHARI RECONSTITUTES NNPC BOARD

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the reconstitution of the Board of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), after the expiration of the term of the board members appointed in 2016.
Members of the new Board are: Mohammed Lawal (North West), Tajudeen Umar (North East), Adamu Mahmood Attah (North Central), Senator Magnus Abe (South South), Dr Stephen Dike (South East), and Chief Pius Akinyelure (South West).
The new board will be in place for three years.

Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President
(Media and Publicity)
May 30, 2020

Why not call him if he hasn't call.

The governors of Ondo, Ekiti, Osun, Edo were sacked by court of appeal been the highest court to hear governorship election matters as eshrined in the electoral act before it was amended in 2010. The electoral act 2010 now makes it possible for governorship election tribunal to get to supreme Court level being the highest court of the land.
Remember, that was what brought dissentment between Jonathan and justice salami president of court of appeal then. Salami was accused to have used his position to favour ACN , as they were the beneficiary of the judgements. The latter was elevated to supreme Court which he rejected.

Moving backward geometrically at a very high speed.