₦airaland Forum

The Unveiling of Ogbeni.com: Preserving a Legacy of Service, Inspiring a Future of Leadership

Today marks the unveiling of www.ogbeni.com the official digital platform dedicated to the public service, leadership philosophy, and enduring contributions of Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, former Governor of Osun State and former Minister of Interior of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The launch of this platform is the creation of a permanent digital home for ideas, policies, achievements, and values that have defined decades of purposeful leadership and commitment to the progress of our people.

Throughout his years in public office, Ogbeni Aregbesola championed a profound conviction: that government exists to improve the quality of life of the greatest number of people. Whether through education reform, youth empowerment, infrastructure development, social protection, security, or institutional reforms, his public service has consistently been guided by the pursuit of justice, equity, and mass prosperity.

Ogbeni.com has been established to preserve this record faithfully and make it accessible to Nigerians and the global community. It is a living archive that documents his milestones in public office and the ideas and principles that informed them. It offers scholars, journalists, researchers, students, policymakers, and citizens an authoritative repository of verified information on one of Nigeria’s most consequential public servants.

The platform is built around four defining ideals that have shaped Ogbeni Aregbesola’s public life.

First is leadership; leadership founded on courage, discipline, accountability, innovation, and an unshakeable belief that public office is a sacred trust.

Second is inspiration; providing today’s young generation with practical lessons on visionary leadership, public service, integrity, and the transformative power of ideas. It is our hope that future leaders will find in these experiences both guidance and encouragement.

Third is Mass Prosperity; the enduring philosophy that governance must create opportunities for all, reduce inequality, expand access to education and social welfare, stimulate economic growth, and uplift every segment of society rather than a privileged few.

Finally, the platform serves as a comprehensive record of Impact. Through documented achievements, policy analyses, testimonials, historical records, speeches, photographs, and independent assessments, visitors can engage with an evidence-based account of programmes and reforms that touched millions of lives.

Beyond chronicling the past, Ogbeni.com is designed to stimulate meaningful conversations about the future of governance in Nigeria and across Africa. It is a platform where ideas meet history, where public policy meets evidence, and where leadership remains anchored in service to humanity.

Speaking on the launch, the spokesperson to Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Sola Fasure said:

“Leadership should never be reduced to political rhetoric or electoral victories. Its true measure lies in the lives transformed, the institutions strengthened, and the opportunities created for generations yet unborn. Ogbeni.com preserves this journey as a contribution to history and as a source of inspiration for those who believe that public service remains one of humanity’s noblest callings.”

The platform features an extensive biography, speeches, policy documents, an impact dashboard, a media gallery, a fact-check centre, and a curated collection of reflections and testimonials from respected voices across Nigeria’s political, civic, and professional landscape. It also provides channels for public engagement and correspondence.

www.ogbeni.com is now live and accessible to audiences around the world.

The National Leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), His Excellency Distinguished Senator Henry Seriake Dickson, on Sunday received in audience the party’s Vice Presidential candidate, His Excellency Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

The two leaders held a closed-door meeting during which they discussed issues of mutual interest concerning the party.

According to a statement from the NDC, both leaders reaffirmed their unwavering resolve to stand together in the defence and promotion of multi-party democracy in Nigeria.

Senator Dickson also briefed Senator Kwankwaso on the various measures being implemented by the party to address and redress the distractions arising from the recent ruling of the Federal High Court, which the party described as anomalous.

The meeting is seen as a strategic move to strengthen unity and coordination within the NDC ahead of upcoming political engagements.

In a post on her verified X (formerly Twitter) handle, Dr. Ezekwesili, a prominent scholar and anti-corruption advocate, praised Badejo-Okusanya’s credentials and vision for the Bar.

Delighted to see that the brilliant and amazing Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya SAN is running for NBA President.

“Her engagements frequently focus on professional ethics, arbitration, governance and improving conditions for young lawyers”. #Fact!

NBA surely needs her.🥇🏆
✍🏾✍🏾✍🏾 pic.twitter.com/nTdWy9EqEz

— Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) June 26, 2026

“I am delighted to see that the brilliant and amazing Oyinkansola Badejo-Okusanya, SAN, is running for NBA President,” Ezekwesili wrote.


She highlighted the candidate’s extensive experience, competence, and courage, noting that her consistent advocacy for professional ethics, arbitration, governance, and improved welfare for young lawyers aligns with the pressing needs of the legal profession.

“Her engagements frequently focus on professional ethics, arbitration, governance, and improving conditions for young lawyers,” Ezekwesili added. “These are the ideals the Bar needs at this moment, and she rightly represents them.”

Born on January 15, 1967, Badejo-Okusanya is a distinguished legal practitioner and scholar. She attended the University of Lagos Staff School for her primary education and proceeded to Federal Government College, Jos, for her secondary education.

She earned a B.A. (Hons) in English from the University of Lagos in 1987 and later obtained a Law degree from the same institution in 2000. She was called to the Nigerian Bar on May 14, 2002.

In July 2011, she was appointed General Counsel to the Governor of Lagos State. In that role, she played a pivotal part in developing the landmark Lagos State Home Ownership Mortgage Scheme (Lagos HOMS) under the Fashola administration.

Badejo-Okusanya returned to private legal practice in June 2015 and has remained actively engaged in the field. In September 2025, she was conferred with the prestigious rank of Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), an achievement she holds in high esteem.

If elected, she would make history as the first female President of the Nigerian Bar Association. Her mother, a seasoned university administrator who retired as the first female Registrar of the University of Lagos, also broke barriers in her own right.

Nigeria has a construction culture problem, but an even bigger maintenance culture problem.

For over two decades, the headquarters of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS) remained a dream delayed. Twenty-two years after its conception, the building is finally a reality. While this achievement deserves commendation, the bigger question is not how long it took to build; it is whether Nigeria can properly maintain it for the next twenty-two years.

Historically, Nigerians celebrate commissioning ceremonies with enthusiasm but pay little attention to preservation. We are excellent at cutting ribbons but often poor at protecting what those ribbons represent. Across the country, many public edifices that once symbolized progress have gradually become monuments of neglect due to poor maintenance culture.

Maintenance is not merely about repairing broken elevators, replacing damaged furniture, or repainting faded walls. It is a mindset that recognises public infrastructure as a collective national asset rather than government property without owners. The moment we stop seeing these structures as "government buildings" and start seeing them as "our buildings," our attitude towards preservation will begin to change.

The new NRS headquarters should become a model for a different national conversation. A world-class facility deserves world-class maintenance standards. This means preventive maintenance schedules, dedicated facility management teams, annual maintenance budgets, technology-driven monitoring systems, and strict accountability for misuse or vandalism.

The responsibility, however, does not rest solely with the management of the NRS. Every employee, contractor, visitor, and stakeholder who passes through the building has a role to play. A single act of negligence repeated daily by hundreds of people can undo years of investment.

Nigeria spends billions of naira constructing roads, schools, hospitals, airports, and office complexes, yet we often hesitate to allocate sufficient resources for their upkeep. This cycle has become expensive. Building from scratch repeatedly is far costlier than preserving what already exists.

Countries that have successfully developed sustainable infrastructure understand one simple principle: maintenance is an investment, not an expense. They do not wait for systems to collapse before taking action. They maintain proactively because they understand that deterioration is inevitable, but decay is preventable.

The NRS headquarters presents an opportunity to break an old habit and establish a new standard. Imagine a scenario where, twenty-two years from now, Nigerians walk into the building and find it operating at the same world-class standard as the day it was commissioned by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR. That would be a far greater achievement than completing the building itself.

Ultimately, the true legacy of any public edifice is not how impressive it looked on commissioning day, but how functional it remains decades later.

Perhaps this is the question every Nigerian should ask:

Twenty-two years from now, will we still be proud of the NRS headquarters, or will it become another symbol of our national struggle with maintenance culture?

The answer will not depend on architecture or engineering. It will depend on us.

Kunle Ogidi
Group Director, Support Services
Nigeria Revenue Service

Nigeria continues to navigate economic shifts, the conversation around sustainable development has found a definitive focal point in Kogi State: its youth population. Industry experts and socio-economic analysts agree that Kogi’s ultimate opportunity for rapid growth lies not beneath its soil, but in the untapped digital and entrepreneurial potential of its young people.

Founding Partner of Mentor-Box Foundation, Eunice Emmanuel-Agada says that over the past seven years, the foundation has dedicated its resources to bridging the critical gap between raw youth potential and economic opportunity across the state.

“Our mission is simple yet audacious: to make Kogi State a thriving epicenter of digital talent and self-sustaining economic growth. By investing in young people today, we are building a future where young professionals have the tools to build, grow, and thrive locally.”

By working at the strategic intersection of education, employability, entrepreneurship, innovation, and leadership development, Mentor-Box is actively dismantling the barriers preventing underserved youth from transitioning into job creators and economic architects.

To move Kogi State from a passive beneficiary of development to a self-sustaining innovation ecosystem, Mentor-Box operates on three core strategic pillars:

Enterprise Development: The hub transforms local ideas into scalable ventures through structured accelerator and incubation cohorts, sustainable livelihood initiatives for women and community entrepreneurs, and pairing emerging founders with seasoned industry mentors.

Employability: To bridge the talent-to-market divide, Mentor-Box delivers high-impact digital and vocational training. The foundation designs comprehensive IT pipelines training students in high-growth fields like UI/UX design, Data Science, AI/Machine Learning, and Software Development.

Innovation & Ecosystem Building:
Operating as a regional node for digital inclusion, the hub collaborates with local communities and international development partners to anchor tech infrastructure and advocate for youth-centered development policies.

The leadership of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has put a lie to insinuations that its recently concluded presidential, National Assembly, Governorship and State Houses of Assembly primaries were fraught with irregularities and alleged imposition of candidates.

In a statement released to the press late Thursday, the NDC said the wrong narrative about its otherwise overwhelmingly successful primary elections nationwide was largely informed by both ignorance of the new party's constitution and established guidelines, and outright mischief by those, who are intimidated by NDC’s fast- rising profile.

The statement, signed by Ikenna Morgan Enekweizu Esq, the party’s National Secretary, the NDC should rather be commended for the innovative way it carried out its primaries nationwide, pointing out that there was a huge emphasis on pre-election consensus building to reduce areas of rancour and disagreement
The statement, titled Understanding the Just Concluded NDC Primary Elections, read in part;

“The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), the fastest-growing political party in Nigeria, is founded on the principles of leadership, consultation, inclusiveness, and consensus-building”.

Enekweizu cited the specific instance of the South East, from where a lot of the misrepresentations have come from, saying the NDC approach proved particularly commendable.

“In the South-East geopolitical zone, our presidential candidate, His Excellency Peter Obi, came into the party with an established leadership structure comprising respected elder statesmen and political leaders who serve as caucus heads in their respective states.

The caucus leaders are:
• Abia State – Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, respected veteran journalist and former Chairman of the NDDC Board
.
• Ebonyi State – His Excellency Dr. Sam Egwu, former Ebonyi State Governor, former Minister, and former Senator.

• Enugu State – His Excellency Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, former Enugu Governor, former National Secretary, and former National Chairman of the PDP.

• Imo State – His Excellency Chief Achike Udenwa, former Governor and former federal Minister.

• Anambra State – Since His Excellency Peter Obi is our presidential candidate, his team coordinates the process in his home state, Anambra “

The NDC scribe explained that these leaders were entrusted with conducting stakeholder consultations, building consensus, and making recommendations to the party based on their understanding of the peculiar political dynamics in their respective states. “In addition, each state has recognized stakeholders and grassroots leaders who participate in consultations and make recommendations regarding party affairs”.
Enekweizu said: “This process was conducted without prejudice to the rights of any aspirant. Where aspirants disagreed with recommendations made by stakeholders or caucus leaders, they were free to test their popularity through the democratic process at the grassroots level, and this was duly accommodated.

“At no time has the NDC National Secretariat been involved in the business of picking, choosing, or imposing candidates on any constituency or state. Every aspirant who approached the party was received, attended to, and directed to engage with the appropriate caucus leaders, stakeholders, and grassroots members of the party in their respective states”.

The statement further added:

In line with its affirmative action policy, the party has demonstrated a commitment to encouraging and supporting female participation in elective office and has done so in some cases. The party has also expressed an interest in protecting and supporting serving members of parliament. Beyond these considerations, all aspirants were referred to their state caucus leaders and all those who bought Expression of Interest Forms were asked to go into the field and participate in the primaries. We are aware of reports of some aspirants prematurely declaring themselves as candidates, as well as complaints raised by others regarding aspects of the process. These issues have been brought to the attention of the Appeal Panel and the leadership of the party and have been addressed accordingly.

“As resolved at yesterday's NEC meeting, we now look forward to the commencement of a comprehensive reconciliation process. We count on our esteemed caucus leaders, state chairmen, stakeholders, and party leaders to engage all aspirants and members in the interest of unity, cohesion, and the continued growth of our party.
“For this reason, throughout the past several months, whenever aspirants or stakeholders approached the party regarding elective positions, we consistently referred them to their respective state caucus leaders. Likewise, those with concerns or grievances were advised to channel such matters through their caucuses for resolution.”

The NDC Secretary said the party’s role during this period has been to receive new members and prospective aspirants into the NDC, welcome them to the party, reassure them of our commitment to fairness, transparency, and inclusiveness, and direct them to engage with their respective caucus leaders for guidance and participation in the process.”

“This approach”, he said, “reflects our unwavering commitment to consultation, respect for established leadership structures, internal democracy, and the collective pursuit of unity and progress within the party.”
The NDC which formally received its certificate of registration February 5, 2026, has within 90 days, been able to put in place much of the constitutional party structures from the Ward to the national levels, held two National Executive Committee meetings and organized a nationwide presidential, National Assembly, Governorship, and State Assembly primaries.

It is said to now be the second largest party in the country, by virtue of its representation at the National Assembly.

APC Stakeholders Petition Party Leadership Over Alleged Imposition Of Senatorial Aspirant's Brother-In-Law As AMAC/Bwari Reps Candidate pic.twitter.com/ZF2aF93d9w

— ODOGWU AREWA (@Princess_Of_Nig) June 4, 2026

Concerned Citizens of Osun State, a civic group led by Segun Alokan and Omolara Sodiya, has petitioned the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), calling for the disqualification of an aspirant in the party’s House of Representatives primary for the Ifelodun, Boripe, and Odo Otin federal constituency over alleged discrepancies in his academic credentials.

The group also alleged that the outcome of the primary election was altered, resulting in the aspirant who originally emerged first being moved to second position while another contender was declared the winner.

Addressing a press conference, the petitioners said the rightful winner of the primary election was being neglected amid attempts to uphold the candidature of Hon. Eniade Francis Oluwadamilare.

According to the group, its petition is not intended to secure the ticket for any particular aspirant but to ensure that the APC upholds its internal processes and investigates the allegations surrounding the credentials submitted by Eniade.

Alokan said:

“Our position is clear. If Hon. Eniade Damilare is disqualified after a thorough investigation, it is not for us to determine who gets the ticket. The responsibility of deciding the next line of action rests entirely with the leadership of the APC in accordance with the party’s constitution and established guidelines.

“Our major concern is the discrepancies we discovered between the WAEC certificate presented by Hon. Damilare and the online WAEC result printout attributed to him.

“The names appearing on the WAEC certificate do not correspond with the names reflected in the online WAEC record. This inconsistency raises serious questions that deserve proper scrutiny.”

“While the WAEC certificate bears four names, the online result reflects a different name arrangement. We believe this discrepancy should be investigated thoroughly by the party before any final decision is taken.”

The group argued that WAEC records typically contain three names and questioned the appearance of four names on the certificate presented by the aspirant.

The petitioners further alleged that the photograph appearing on the certificate did not originate from WAEC and was not reflected in the online result verification portal.

Also speaking, Sodiya said:

“The certificate presented does not correspond with the information available on WAEC’s online verification platform, and that raises serious concerns about its authenticity.

“We also observed discrepancies in the way the candidate’s school was represented on the certificate.

“The certificate contains the abbreviation ‘INT’ as part of the school name. To the best of our knowledge, WAEC does not abbreviate school names on its certificates. This is one of the issues we believe the party and relevant authorities should investigate thoroughly.”

The petitioners further alleged discrepancies in the aspirant's NECO records.

They claimed that the candidate's name was abbreviated as “Francis M” on the NECO document, a detail they said was inconsistent with other records attributed to the aspirant.

The group argued that the differences across the educational records raised questions that required investigation by the party.

The petitioners also alleged that manipulation of figures characterised the APC primary election.

The group further claimed that some influential individuals were backing Damilare's candidacy despite the allegations surrounding his credentials.

“There are powerful interests working to impose a candidate on the party despite the concerns raised by members and stakeholders,” the petitioners said.

The petitioners urged the APC national chairman and the party's national working committee to investigate the allegations and take appropriate action.

They warned that failure to address the issues could undermine confidence in the party's internal democratic processes.

The group also called on the APC leadership to ensure that the authentic outcome of the primary election is upheld in accordance with the party's rules and guidelines.