Give Tinubu a bicycle
I wanna check something

APC card caring members will buy 85 Naira...


Non APC members will be buying 200 naira per liter . �

If you want your sanity, stop listening or believing Nigeria Media houses .
I was astonished when I saw the news in dailies.

Cos I was in the community on that day and I came in from Owerri town. I saw only one Small bus that were burnt.

They weren't even enforcing sit at home.
They had fracas with some guys from a neighboring community and the bus was a scapegoat.

After a three-month stay in the UK for knee surgery, the former governor of Lagos state returned to his compound in Nigeria’s wealthiest neighbourhood, Ikoyi, in a dozen-vehicle convoy, greeted by scores of supporters, praise singers and politicians.

Last October’s jamboree, broadcast on local television, underlined Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s status as the most powerful man in Lagos, the commercial engine of Africa’s biggest economy.

But it also made clear the challenges he faces as he runs for Nigeria’s presidency in February 2023: his age in a country where almost two-thirds of the population is under the age of 24, his wealth, and long-running questions about the source of it.


As party leader of president Muhammadu Buhari’s ruling All Progressives Congress, Tinubu, who is known as the “godfather of Lagos” to many in the country, is the frontrunner to secure his party’s nomination and the presidency. His declaration this month marked the unofficial launch of campaign season in Nigeria.

But it also set off questions such as those posed by an anchor on the Arise News channel to a Tinubu supporter the following day: “How did he make his wealth?” Oseni Rufai asked. “And how old is he?”

Tinubu is 69, according to his official bio, and has been dogged by allegations of corruption, which he has always denied. The huge influence of the man credited with shaping modern Lagos and securing Buhari’s path to victory in 2015 may yet hold him back.

“He’s too powerful . . . that’s not how Nigerian politics works,” said Amaka Anku, Africa director for Eurasia Group. “He’s powerful just sitting there in Lagos with no position. How can you let a man like that be president? You can’t, because you need someone who needs stuff from you, not someone who can just control everything on their own.”

Tinubu is pitching his stewardship of Lagos, which has a gross domestic product bigger than most African countries, as a template for how he will fix Nigeria. His tenure as governor from 1999-2007 transformed the city. He steered major infrastructure projects such as the rapid transport bus system, civil service reforms that removed ghost workers from the payroll, and fiscal reforms that set Lagos on the path to country-leading tax revenues. Each subsequent governor has been one of his protégés, largely following plans his administration laid out for Africa’s biggest city.

Some supporters derive hope from his performance as governor. When Tinubu was “governor of Lagos, which is the commercial city of Nigeria, business thrived”, a businessman in Lagos said. “One thing he’s shown is that he brings professionals to work with him.”


There are still doubts his candidacy will succeed. Nigeria’s two main political parties circulate power every eight years between the predominantly Muslim north and the mostly Christian south, and always nominate a ticket that has a member of each religion. The system complicates things for Tinubu, a southern Muslim, given the dearth of prominent northern Christian politicians.

It is also unclear if Tinubu will ultimately receive Buhari’s backing. The president campaigned on an anti-corruption platform in 2015, and may balk at the allegations against Tinubu, said Anku. “It’s still his party and he cares about the party,” she added.

A member of Tinubu’s campaign team dismissed the allegations. He said the ex-governor, a US-educated accountant, had made his money in business — he worked for Deloitte in the US and as an executive at Mobil Oil in Nigeria — and by making sound investments before entering politics that are still generating income. “He came from humble beginnings, but he has made money before he joined politics,” the official said, referring to his corporate jobs, a petrol pump he owned in the US and shares he holds.

In 2009, Tinubu was cleared alongside two other governors of money laundering allegations related to the sale of a mobile operator. Two years later, Nigeria’s Code of Conduct Tribunal dismissed charges that he operated foreign accounts while serving as governor.

During the 2019 election, Tinubu dismissed accusations of buying votes for Buhari after cameras captured an armoured bank truck pulling into his compound. “If I have money, if I like, I give it to the people free of charge, as long as [it’s] not to buy votes,” he said.

Age is another complicating factor. Many of the men on the political playing field when Tinubu first entered politics continue to dominate, even as they enter their seventies and eighties.

Oluseun Onigbinde, director of BudgIT, an open data good governance non-profit, pointed out that the septuagenarian Buhari this month said the rigours of the office were getting to him. “The age is telling on me, working now for six, seven, eight hours a day in the office is no joke,” the president said in an interview with the state-owned Nigerian Television Authority channel. “Does the candidate have the energy and tenacity to match current challenges?” Onigbinde said.

The campaign official pointed to Tinubu’s hectic post-announcement schedule as proof he’s up for the job. Tinubu spent the week after his announcement meeting governors in northern Nigeria, which has the most votes, in an attempt to shore up support. He announced a donation of 50m naira ($122,000) to victims of banditry in Niger state, sought the blessing of ex-dictator Ibrahim Babangida and met the governor of Nigeria’s most populous state, Kano.

If he fails to make it to the presidency “he will try to reprise his kingmaker role in exchange for him delivering this coalition he has built to that candidate, so he can maintain an influence in a post-Buhari Nigeria”, said Cheta Nwanze, of the SBM Intelligence consultancy. Among the ex-governor’s political protégés are vice-president Yemi Osinbajo, another potential Buhari successor, who is widely expected to declare if his mentor falters or drops out.

Whoever takes over faces huge challenges. Buhari has presided over a tumultuous seven years — his administration has undertaken large infrastructure projects but also seen the spread of insecurity to every corner of the country. The economy is slowly recovering from a recession brought on by the pandemic-induced oil price crash, but inflation remains high and half of Nigeria either has insufficient work or is unemployed.

A Lagos businessman was blunt: “Would we prefer a much younger candidate so Nigeria can move forward? Yes,” he added. “But if you are presented with the devil and the blue sea you’re best with the devil that is presented.”

https://www.ft.com/content/99066319-1932-4336-a564-37156063df82

By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo

Ahead of the 2023 General election, critical stakeholders from the North led by the leadership of the Northern Elders Forum ( NEF) who met under the aegis of Northern Leaders of Thought in Kaduna, have dismissed the notion that power is shifted to the South in 2023.



They insisted that Northerners have equal rights to aspire to all offices in Nigeria.

The stakeholders who included leaders of Northern based NGOs, CBOs and numerous faith-based organisations, agreed that such persons aspiring for leadership positions in 2023 must be competent, possess evidence of personal integrity and commitment to the rule of law above all other considerations.



In a communiqué of Northern Leaders of Thought, issued at Arewa House Kaduna, after a one-day meeting with a theme “Rebuilding the North” on 15 January 2022, they said

“we the Northern Leaders of Thought, on this historic day of January 15th 2022 at Arewa House Kaduna, deliberated on the theme “Rebuilding the North” after extensive discussions and deliberations on the affairs that affect the North and Nigeria as a whole, we hereby resolve as follows;”



“The meeting agreed to release this Communiqué, which was signed by Professor Doknan Decent Danjuma Shenni, a former Vice-Chancellor of the Plateau State University.”

“The current state of insecurity in the North is unprecedented and unacceptable. While commending the efforts of the nation’s defence and security forces in rolling back sundry threats that have weakened the Nigerian State and made life almost valueless, the meeting advises the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, Governors and Legislators to revisit and re-prioritize spending on security and addressing the scourge of poverty. We recommend the increase in recruitment of security personnel.”

“The Fundamental rights of all political parties to field candidates of their choices, and the right of voters to freely exercise choices over who leads them cannot be compromised.”

” Northerners have equal rights to aspire to all offices but they must raise competence, evidence of personal integrity and commitments to the rule of law above all other considerations.:

“Northerners should ignore provocative statements from groups in the South of Nigeria who appear to believe that Command Democracy in which threats and hate campaigns are their hallmarks or defining elements will work in Nigeria. North should vote for the best Leader.”

“The Meeting notes the desperate condition of the economic existence of most Northerners, poses additional threats to security and the democratic process. It recommends that leaders should avoid pushing the population into deeper poverty and desperation with challenging economic policies and a lack of empathy. Government at all levels should consider a form of the structured welfare system to alleviate poverty in the populace.”

” The Meeting advises the Federal Government to postpone the planned 2022 National Census in view of the large numbers of displaced Nigerians and the proximity of the census to the 2023 elections.”

“The Meeting urges the National and States Assemblies to prioritize constitutional amendments currently being processed. It further urges President Muhammadu Buhari to assent to the proposed amendments to the Electoral Act, as this will improve the quality of elections, starting from 2023.”

” The Meeting urges key Northern Groups to engage groups from the South to improve understanding, lower tensions and contribute to the creation of an atmosphere that allows all Nigerian to live in peace with each other.”

“The Meeting recognizes our ethnoreligious diversity in the North which is a source of strength that should be celebrated. The Meeting further observed that all faiths teach us to imbibe the spirit of tolerance and not hate or attack those who worship in a different way. Our religious differences should be an invaluable asset, not a liability or a potent weapon in the hands of our desperate and failed leaders.”

Earlier in a keynote address, Dr Hakeem Baba Ahmed of the Northern Elders Forum said “millions of Northerners are justifiably angry and frustrated that they are worse off today than they were before 2015 when they voted for an administration that promised to improve and secure lives.”

While urging Northerners not to make the ” mistake of 2015″, he said “many think voting another set of leaders will add no value to their lives. We say turn your anger into an asset by voting in better people into office this time. There are politicians that will continue where the present administration stopped, and, while angry citizens refuse to vote, they will buy votes and get power.”

” So, the most important thing a Northerner will do for himself and the community is to register and vote in 2023. Do not exchange your votes for another four or eight years in a country where your dignity and your life have little value.”

“Distinguished participants, please look around these premises, and you will draw inspiration from strong, purposeful leadership, not just of the Sardauna, but the team he was a part of. From Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Sir Kashim Ibrahim, Aliyu Makaman Nupe, Turaki Ali, Sunday Awoniyi, Ali Akilu and dozens of Northerners who reflected the true diversity of the North and shared a common vision and purpose, there was a North which knew its place in Nigeria and gave all it took to defend it.

That North is still available to be recreated, but it needs to recognise the place of good leaders, hardworking and honest citizenry, a diversity that demands the highest standards of justice to manage, and a strong sense of destiny as a strong community for all who are part of it. In this hallowed hall, there is powerful history and a great potential to re-invent a region that will be great again. Please make that potential reality, and God in His infinite mercy will help us all,” he said.

“The Meeting advises Northern Groups to visit and engage President Muhammadu Buhari to discuss with him on ways in which the security and economic condition of Northerners can be improved.”

“The Meeting recognized that education in the region has never been more imperiled than now. Insecurity has exponentially increased the number of out of school children. School abductions closures and excruciating poverty have set back education in the region for many generations. The Meeting calls on the state and Federal Governments to protect all our schools and rescue all our children in the hand of Bandits, and insurgents.”

“The Meeting notes the disconnect between citizens Vs Leaders: The Meeting observed the widening gap and disconnect between the citizens and their elected representatives as an existential threat to the security of this nation. The meeting, therefore, calls on all strata of our leadership to reconnect with the citizens.”

“The Meeting notes the widespread insecurity, poverty and discontent with the leadership has resulted in serious voter apathy that is unhelpful to our fragile democracy. It calls on all Nigerians particularly the youth not to despair but to register to vote for a leadership that can change the fortunes of Nigeria.”

“The meeting recommends the need to have a working partnership with government agencies and other non-government organs to restore and re-instate the traumatized and displaced communities (IDP) to their villages as we initiate trauma healing sessions for them as well as de-radicalization programmes targeting the youths in the affected areas.”

Vanguard News Nigeria

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/01/2023-northern-elders-beg-nigerians-not-to-elect-the-likes-of-buhari/

God

Naso ooh!

Na people wey dey raid houses now
I want to d bite ooh!��

This Umahi should rest pls. We have had enough.

Chai!

Pls have he said anything about the Southern Kaduna killings?
Clown.

There's rapture in the north

China left the WhatsApp group

The Deputy Governor is about to be elevated
Wonderful

My villa

60k people

The whole of Emirates Stadium

Imagine?

Thanks to our Northern Brothers

Correct

Where are the Nigerians?

The fear of IPOB is the beginning of wisdom

Television and remote

This one is mad.

If you don't need Thailand passport please give it to me.

Do you even need to ask before you accept

30m

I will contest for house assembly here and I will win and get treble of that money in 6months

Cherrybae:
This man will soon be sacked by the tribunal.

The worst governor in Nigeria. No vision at all.

Ndi Imo will soon begin to miss Rochad

Just shutup!

Gov. This is too early nah

He's unromantic not me. I am.

Oh setigo!

Weah is a good student.

Ours here was rat,

His is � snake.

Meaning his, is more dangerous

Africa is a joke.