₦airaland Forum

[i](AN OPEN LETTER TO THE LEADERSHIP, ELDERS AND CRITICAL STAKEHOLDERS IN THE DELTA STATE CHAPTER OF THE PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC PARTY)[/b]

Dear Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders
I am writing to you today as a card-carrying member of our great party but most importantly as an extremely concerned Deltan. Now more than ever, it is critical we put aside individual and personal interests and come together for the safety and survival of our party in the best interests of Deltans.

One thing I know about life is that sacrifices must be made in order to emerge victorious in certain situations regardless of the challenges. I also understand that the answer to complex problems is sometimes simply doing the small right thing. Doing the small right thing often includes removing ego and applying honesty.

In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Whatever games are played with us, we must play no games with ourselves.” The famous founder of Ford Motors and richest man in the world during his time, Henry Ford said, “Coming together is a beginning, keeping together is progress, working together is success.” Now we must ask ourselves, we can not afford to play games and we can not afford division in our camp. Who the legitimate flagbearer of the PDP for the March 2023 Gubernatorial Elections is must be answered quickly and correctly!

Since we are all in one camp or the other to some the candidate should be Rt. Hon Sheriff Oborevwori. To others the right candidate is Olorogun David Edevbie. Some analysts have declared this a battle for supremacy between His Excellency the present Governor of Delta State, Sen. Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa and his predecessor (and former boss) His Excellency Chief James Onanefe Ibori. The purpose of my writing is not to analyze who is right and wrong but to ask certain pertinent questions.

Is Delta PDP heading to the supreme court?
Will the legal battles not cause more division within the party?
Were the May 25th primaries free and fair?
Will the opposition in Delta State led by the Deputy Senate President Olorogun Ovie Omo-Agege capitalize and benefit from the disunity and disorderliness in the PDP?
Will this ultimately lead to Delta State turning into an APC State?

These are five fundamental questions we must first answer honestly. Already we are witnessing high profile defections from the PDP to APC, but we must not dwell on that. Defections are normal but like everyone knows, ‘A ship can only be sunk by the water inside it and not by the water outside’. This is to say that if Delta PDP is going to sink, it will be an aftermath of the in-house fighting and division, not because of single individuals who defected from the party.

With the new Electoral Act which makes elections more transparent and with the new trend among the general population, which is to vote individuals over political parties, we must put our best foot forward! Perhaps too many people are underestimating the opposition party in Delta State. I believe that this is no more the old opposition in Delta State that had losing embedded in their DNA. They have found a champion and learnt how to win! They have two out of three senatorial seats in Delta State. That’s a solid foundation to build upon, that’s enough motivation and inspiration to aim for more! They have resources too as they are aligned with the government at the center (too many times people forget that PDP might be the ruling party in Delta State but is the opposition party at the federal level).

While I earnestly believe in and support the modernization agenda of Olorogun David Edevbie, what is more important is that Delta State remains a PDP state and we are on the right side of the law. The old ways of doing things are gone, legitimacy is the principal thing. By all indications we are heading to the supreme court, our prayer is that it doesn’t weaken our party. Losing Delta State to the APC is guaranteed 8 years in opposition except by a miracle and divine intervention.

I want to use this medium to congratulate our governor, H.E. Sen. Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa on his nomination as the Vice-Presidential Candidate of our great party and the running mate to H.E. Atiku Abubakar. The task ahead is herculean but with God and the people on our side, victory is sure! I implore his excellency to be at the forefront every effort to bring peace and unity to the party in Delta State. Every great leader must make sacrifices for the people and act in the best interest of the people.

I must conclude on the same note in which I started. Delta State is bigger than the personal interest of one man or a group of people. Priority must be the best interest of the people, the people’s mandate must be respected and granted! We must also be on the right side of the law, we are now in an era of Supreme Court Governors where number four can miraculously become number one. I humbly call on all leaders, elders and critical stakeholders to please come together and work in unison.

In the words of our master and savior Jesus Christ, from Mark 3: 24-25 “And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”

Yours Sincerely,
Dr Fegor Okonedo
(Member, Delta State PDP)

Nigerian girls have turned social media apps designed for connecting with new people and staying in touch friends, family and acquaintances to a hub for digital prostitution. When Zuckerberg designed Facebook or when Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger built Instagram from a co-working space in San Francisco, when Sean Rad invented Tinder or when the trio of Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown created Snapchat, they probably didn’t envisage that their apps would become platforms for prostitutes to advertise their goods and services in Nigeria.

People who return to Nigeria for holidays are often shocked when they discover that they can’t get dates or meet decent people to start friendships with on Nigerian Tinder. A huge percentage of the girls you’d see there are for “strictly hookups or massage with happy ending” as some boldly indicate on their bio’s. It’s really embarrassing! According to them, when you meet a girl/guy on Tinder overseas, it’s never for sex, it can lead to sex but you’re very sure you matched with a person with a job/profession who genuinely wants to meet new people, make new friends or go out on dates. There are different apps/websites strictly for meeting with prostitutes.

According to Britannica, sex has always been one of the few pleasures of the poor and oppressed. Nigeria is the poverty capital of the world. Do the math! While sex is part of normal human behavior, prostitution on the other hand is frowned on morally and legally in Nigeria and has now evolved from the road side and brothels to social media apps. An unofficial survey revealed that the Transportation Network Industry in Lagos and Abuja (Uber and Taxify) generates 80% of it revenue from 8pm to 6am (with numerous instances where these females offer sex acts to drivers as payment for their ride fares #sexforrides).

It is left up to you to determine whether you support their lifestyle and professional choices or not. What should be a cause for concern is that the money these girls make from digital prostitution is tax-free. Our government is broke! Looking for loans here and there while we have millions of young females raking in an average of 200,000 Naira on a monthly basis tax free (using Lagos State and Abuja as our reference points) with an average income of 20,000 Naira per night.

In more developed countries you are obligated by law to pay your personal income tax regardless of your occupation. Businesses regardless of size and revenue across the country pay taxes, why shouldn’t these people pay taxes too? They can be classified as business owners because there is a monetary payment in exchange for a service(s) in multiple transactions. The sex-tax would be difficult to enforce because prostitution is illegal in Nigeria and social media space is simply uncontrollable. However, if the government is willing to generate more internal generated revenue this would be a gold mine! In the words of Nelson Mandela, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

Sadly, in Nigeria governance and religious doctrines go hand in hand! Nigerians are not objective with issues such as this, they are extremely sentimental. Too many revenue streams are ignored because of religious morality and laws fueled by religious morality. Nigeria might be the capital of hypocrisy in the world.

Fegor Okonedo
IG/Twitter: @fegurgreen

At the recently concluded Experience 14 which held at the Tafewa Balewa Sqaure and organized by House on the Rock Church, the sitting Governor of Lagos State made a very striking statement. In his own words, “At this same location (Tafewa Balewa Square) 193 days ago (as at December 6th, 2019) I took the oath of office. I was sworn in exactly in this same premises 193 days ago and that means that I have spent 193 days in office. I have spent 13.2% of my 1460 days in office, so what it means is that I am counting. I am counting down and I’m asking God to continue to lead me because at the end of that 1460 days I would stand accountable to God almighty and to the people of Lagos State that what have I done in those 1460 days.”

While the above statement may seem like a harmless and ascribes all the glory and power to God, we must acknowledge that it might be false to a large extent. If you replace ‘God’ with ‘Bola Ahmed Tinubu’ and replace ‘The People of Lagos State’ with ‘APC chieftains’ then the statement from H.E. Babajide Sanwo-olu (Governor Lagos State) seems to make more sense and sounds more in touch with reality! The corrected statement below would more accurate:

“At this same location (Tafewa Balewa Square) 193 days ago (as at December 6th, 2019) I took the oath of office. I was sworn in exactly in this same premises 193 days ago and that means that I have spent 193 days in office. I have spent 13.2% of my 1460 days in office, so what it means is that I am counting. I am counting down and I’m asking Bola Ahmed Tinubu to continue to lead me because at the end of that 1460 days I would stand accountable to Bola Ahmed Tinubu and to the APC Chieftains that what have I done in those 1460 days.”

While the sitting governor is a Christian, the former governor was also a Christian. Are we to now say that God removed H.E. Akinwumi Ambode from office? Did God and the people of Lagos that deny him the APC party ticket to run for a second term? If Ambode was accountable to God and the people of Lagos were his achievements as governor not enough to guarantee him of 8 years in office? Let’s all call a spade a spade! As far as the governance of Lagos State is concerned Bola Ahmed Tinubu is the god. All glory and adoration should be ascribed to him for him and he alone decides who sits, stands, runs, rises and falls from within the walls of the Bourdillon.

In what can be termed ‘the greatest political lesson on loyalty’ since 1999, a sitting Governor (Ambode) was outcampaigned, outnumbered and outed even before the expiration of his tenure. Campaign posters, billboards and adverts of Babajide Sanwo-Olu flooded the entirety of Lagos State one would think it was Sanwo-Olu versus Sanwo-Olu; was that the handiwork of God almighty and the people of Lagos State? That Babajide Sanwo-Olu scored 970,851 votes while Akinwunmi Ambode scored 72,901 votes amidst allegations of disenfranchisement and electoral malpractices from some quarters; was that the handiwork of God and the people of Lagos?

In a country with Yahya Bello’s, when it came to governance, Akinwunmi Ambode was arguably the best performing governor in the entire country. Good governance and projects couldn’t get him reelected. God almighty couldn’t save him; the people of Lagos couldn’t save him either. Why? In Nigeria, party politics reigns supreme and God/Allah is not a deciding factor! Your god is a man, the man who gave you the opportunity in the first place, the man who put you in office, that is your god! And you must serve your god! His bidding comes first, and your plans must align with his masterplan! If you sin against your god, you better be ready to either pay the price in full or overthrow your god and become god for yourself.

Let’s leave God almighty in heaven alone, He has other important issues to attend to and Nigeria doesn’t seem to be on His list. Even God knows that as long as Bola Ahmed Tinubu lives and breathes, Bola Ahmed Tinubu would decide if H.E. Babajide Sanwo-Olu gets a second term or not.

Fegor Okonedo
IG & Twitter @fegurgreen

For those who are not aware, The Experience convened by Pastor Paul Adefarasin (Lead Pastor, House on The Rock Church) is arguably the largest musical event in Africa and amongst the largest in the world. Narrowing it down to the gospel category, it’s probably the largest Christian musical concert in the world. Guinness World Book of Records might verify the above stated in the nearest future. December 6, 2019 would mark the 14th edition of The Experience and it promises to be exceptionally excellent as all previous editions have been. The excitement in the body of Christ in Nigeria is unrivalled right now as even those who would not be able to be a part of the 1 million-man crowd at Tafewa Balewa Square, Lagos would be able to stream online or watch live on terrestrial television. Over the years the biggest gospel artistes in the world have graced the stage. Think of a name, google search it and you’d see for yourself! As for Nigerian gospel artistes, the concert always catapults them unto the global stage. Some people even say, “you haven’t truly blown as a Nigerian gospel music minister until you have ministered at The Experience”.

Our dearest Grammy award winning ex-stripper cum rapper and social media sensation Cardi B (who benefited from the massive robbery of Nicki Minaj by The Academy) just happens to be in Lagos (for the first time ever) for a show slated on the 7th of December, somewhere on Lagos Island (Lifespot X Festival). We must congratulate the organizers of the Lifespot X Festival for avoiding what would have an untimely death because nobody fixes a show in Lagos on the same night with Pastor Paul Adefarasin’s The Experience. It doesn’t matter the nature of your show, event or concert! Once the date for The Experience is fixed and announced every wise show promoter knows to steer clear for their brand safety and to the glory of God. Perhaps they might be at TBS on Friday night singing praises to God and offering prayers for the success of their show on Saturday.

Some anti-church crusaders would have been triggered already. Well, that’s your cup of tea. Imagine how bad Lagos traffic would be tonight! Taxify (Bolt) and Uber prices would surge, hotels would fully booked, internet services around the Lagos Island metropolis would certainly have issue regardless of your network provider. Security would be beefed up everywhere: The Vice President and his bulletproof Mercedes Benz might just be in town. Top politicians and the real Lagos billionaires and socialites (1% of the 1% of which the Adefarasin family is a part of) would be in attendance. Let’s be honest, The Experience might be a gospel music concert meant to promote Jesus and the church, but it is a socio-economic and cultural event which has in attendance individuals from all strata of society right from the very echelon and zenith to the bedrock and nadir. From a business perspective having two shows on the same night in Lagos would be detrimental to the smaller/newer brand. It would have been a nightmare for Lifespot X Festival to have clashed with The Experience.

Undoubtedly Cardi B is one of the biggest stars in the world and a role model to many young Nigerian Instagram-twerking, Snapchat, InMessage and Tinder females. Her show is most likely to be sold out already because apparently the bad economic policies of the President (Muhammadu Buhari) might affect the Naira but doesn’t affect “clitocurrency” and judging from a video of Pastor Ifeanyi Adefarasin which went viral sometime this year a good percentage of “clitocurrency” trading females on Lagos Island can be found in the bleachers of the Rock Cathedral on a Sunday morning service in their skimpy outfits unable to withstand the cold from the air conditioning systems then struggling with descent and ascent of the imperial staircases while their male customers weigh and evaluate their options.

However, our God is gracious and kind! As some would surely be lifting Holy Hands at TBS on Friday night then proceed to dance half naked and rock while Cardi B performs live on Saturday. He alone can judge, forgive and decide our fate. As for myself, I’d be at home streaming or watching The Experience from the early hours of 7th December waiting for Chioma Jesus to minister. Specifically waiting for the part where she sings “If you say war! Your visa mma mma mma! Amen!” because my 2020 plan is to gather all I can and leave Nigeria for good.

Do enjoy your weekend! Thank you for your time.
Fegor Okonedo
IG and Twitter @fegurgreen

Thanks everyone for the comments and reviews.

Whether daddy freeze likes it or not by virtue of call, commission and ministry he has become a G.O. himself. The final destination is to start his own church (which he has done “online”) then the next step would be to migrate from online gatherings to physical meetings of some sort.
Personally I know so many people who do not have kind words for him and his bandwagon of disciples and followers for one simple reason: their visible bias and preference to a very unfriendly vocabulary (If you have ever been on Instablog or exchanged pleasantries with one drews african barbie then you might have an idea as to the matter).

However, today’s piece is not to discuss the obvious communication challenge faced by the free the sheeple movement. Yes, it exists and there is nothing I can do about that! I’d rather talk about something important I have learnt from the man for almost two years now as I have carefully followed and watched Daddy Freeze since the very first post declaring war against G. O’s and Pastors in Nigeria.

Daddy Freeze proved that many Christians do not read their Bibles and do not have enough conviction to stand up for what they believe in. Most people end their study of God’s word once the Pastor finishes his/her sermon. Let’s be honest, it wasn’t cool to argue scriptures on social media until free the sheeple came along!
Sadly, most people fail to realize that tithing has never been the issue! Tithing has never been the problem! I believe that even Daddy Freeze himself knows deep down that the issue is not really tithing.

So what is the issue? Most of us fail to realize that different churches and different sects in Christianity have their different doctrines. For example: Catholics believe in the rosary, saints and Mary; Pentecostals don’t pray the rosary or believe in Mary. Jehovah witnesses don’t believe in miracles but Catholics, Pentecostals, Baptists etc. believe in Miracles. It’s the same Jesus, same Bible, same God, same Heaven but different doctrines.
I stumbled across a post from Dr. Sonnie Badu (a man I love and admire so much) where he wrote about pastors fighting pastors and bishops fighting bishops. It all comes down to doctrine! There was a time when I was much younger as a child we used to gather round the T.V every 4pm on Saturdays to watch “Atmosphere for Miracles” by Rev. Chris Oyakhilome, then suddenly it stopped airing and I remember always wondering what happened. As a young teenager I later came across some theories online that some men of God in Nigeria supposedly led by Bishop Mike Okonkwo and the PFN (including Rev. Chris Okotie and Pastor Tunde Bakare) spear headed the drive to stop “Atmosphere for Miracles” from airing on T.V. because miracles shouldn’t be on television! Theorists claim that this is not unconnected to the visit of Pastor Chris to T.B. Joshua in 2001 where they performed several miracles together at the synagogue church of all nations (you can do your research online and arrive at your own conclusions). This must have been why Christ Embassy Pioneered the first ever 24/7 Christian Network from Africa on their own decoder.

Many times we tend to forget that just because we seem to have a different view on certain issues doesn’t mean we should discredit the entirety of the next person’s case (using 2001/2002 PFN and CAN crisis as a case study. Over the decade a lot of backtracking has taken place). There are some certain people waiting to see if God’s power will manifest through Daddy Freeze and he will be used to heal the sick and perform miracles, seeing as many “yahoo boy pastors” have been used by God by perform tremendous miracles leading to countless numbers of testimonies and transformed lives. The same “yahoo boy” Pastors that have been brutally discredited by Daddy Freeze.

Daddy Freeze won’t be the last and he certainly is not the first to bring up supposed issues facing the church, prescribe his own set of doctrines and start his own movement. We have people receiving calls every day and starting their ministries all around the world based on what they read in the Bible/what they heard or supposedly heard from God. There are churches all around the world where they don’t believe in paying of tithes so this is not new by any means. As for the supposed luxurious lifestyle of men of God, those well versed in history will know that the magnificent cathedrals and works of art commissioned by the Catholic church centuries ago are claimed to have come from proceeds of corruption and gross misconduct by the church. Truly there is nothing new under the sun!

So while tithing and luxury lifestyle has never been and will never be the problem, the problem remains DOCTRINE! I make bold to say today that as long as different churches have different doctrines, there will always be a battle for supremacy in the body of Christ. However, I strongly believe that a time will come as appointed by God where the church will set aside it’s man-made doctrine and focus solely on JESUS. There will be a unity of Christians all around the world in voice, ideology and purpose. I know for a fact that the more of JESUS we have in us, the less of us we have in us! Different men will continue to bring up different interpretations of the scriptures and build doctrines on them. If all doctrine was built solely on the word of God, it would have been a glory to behold. Sadly, personal convictions and experiences will always be a factor when men develop doctrines for their followers to abide by.

I once heard a preacher say, “the entire Christian body in Nigeria is made up of all the Christians in Nigeria!”. Some Christians won’t like to hear this but the moment it truly dawns on you that regardless of denomination or doctrine we serve the same God and are probably headed to the same Heaven then you would stop fighting your fellow Christians and focus on the common ground you share…, at every given point in time, our focus must be on JESUS.
So you might wonder, what did I possibly learn from Daddy Freeze?
I learnt two things:
1. When you believe in something you must stand up and fight for it!
2. The principle of divide and conquer still works today as effectively as it worked 4000 years ago.

In conclusion, people will always believe what they want to believe! People will always fight for what they want to fight for! I hope you are fully aware that there are people from Israel who were Jesus’ neighbours but they are still waiting for the Messiah to come! Also don’t forget the ones who say Jesus was just an ordinary prophet.
Stay beautiful and blessed.

https://fegurgreen./2018/03/27/daddy-freeze-division-church/