₦airaland Forum

RESERVED SEATS FOR NIGERIAN WOMEN: IS IT NECESSARY?

Women in Nigeria constitute 49% of the population. This shows they are almost the same with the men population. The case in point is underrepresentation. It is very unfortunate, unfair and unjust that Nigerian women are not well represented vis-a-vis politics and governance. From the local government levels, to the state, and federal, the number of women in elective offices is little or nothing to write home about. Having undergone and overcame analysis paralysis,let me give the statistics:

Statistics has it that women occupy just 4.5% of seats in the current National Assembly. In the National Assembly, there are 469 members. Women are only 19. Women occupy only 64 of 1460 seats in Nigeria.
This is a stark signal of the persistent gender imbalance across leadership structures in Nigeria. Out of 48 federal ministers , only 8 are women while 10 of 34 president Tinubu's advisers are women. At the state level, women hold 49 of 988 house of assembly seats. This is less than 5%. It doesn't stop there. If you go to our local governments today, the story is the same. This is an act of inhumanity to humanity. Our women deserve better.

Thankfully,there is a bill in the National Assembly to reserve seats for women. If this sees the light of the day,our women will contribute tremendously to Nigeria as you don't expect meaningful development in a country that is politically hegemonized by one gender. Let me add this, it is non negotiable to allocate special legislative seats for women because if you make it a contest as usual, the men will continue to dominate. They have the financial backbones and otherwise when compared to the women. No woman in Nigeria today is a state governor. I think a woman from Adamawa almost became governor in 2023. Nearness as they say cannot kill a bird . History will be kind to Adamawa state for having three female senators in the current National Assembly. Does it mean women are RESERVED SEATS FOR NIGERIAN WOMEN: IS IT NECESSARY?

Women in Nigeria constitute 49% of the population. This shows they are almost the same with the men population. The case in point is underrepresentation. It is very unfortunate, unfair and unjust that Nigerian women are not well represented vis-a-vis politics and governance. From the local government levels, to the state, and federal, the number of women in elective offices is little or nothing to write home about. Having undergone and overcame analysis paralysis,let me give the statistics:

Statistics has it that women occupy just 4.5% of seats in the current National Assembly. In the National Assembly, there are 469 members. Women are only 19. Women occupy only 64 of 1460 seats in Nigeria.
This is a stark signal of the persistent gender imbalance across leadership structures in Nigeria. Out of 48 federal ministers , only 8 are women while 10 of 34 president Tinubu's advisers are women. At the state level, women hold 49 of 988 house of assembly seats. This is less than 5%. It doesn't stop there. If you go to our local governments today, the story is the same. This is an act of inhumanity to humanity. Our women deserve better.

Thankfully,there is a bill in the National Assembly to reserve seats for women. If this sees the light of the day,our women will contribute tremendously to Nigeria as you don't expect meaningful development in a country that is politically hegemonized by one gender. Let me add this, it is non negotiable to allocate special legislative seats for women because if you make it a contest as usual, the men will continue to dominate. They have the financial backbones and otherwise when compared to the women. No woman in Nigeria today is a state governor. I think a woman from Adamawa almost became governor in 2023. Nearness as they say cannot kill a bird . History will be kind to Adamawa state for having three female senators in the current National Assembly. Does it mean women are not good enough?. They contest but they don't win. In fact, when a woman contests for governor or president, many women prefer to vote for men. They don't like themselves when it comes to contest. The only way out is to reserve seats for them so they can compete among themselves. This is necessary and achievable if you ask me.

For more on Women and gender imbalance in Nigeria,read my paper in the comment section. The link is there. Shalom.

Author Sule Utenwojo Mohammed.

Writer, Author,editor ,and Policy Analyst.

31/12/2025.

WHY INSECURITY CANNOT END IN NIGERIA ANYTIME SOON

INTRODUCTION :
If you painstakingly look at the insecurity in Nigeria today, you will know that it is beyond what we see on social media platforms.

There is no gainsaying that Nigeria is in danger. The North Western and Eastern parts of Nigeria are regular customers to bokon haram. This has caused monumental damage to our economy.

Today, the people of Benue and Plateau states are on the run. They are being killed on daily basis. It is high time we stopped calling these enemies Fulani herdsmen. These are not Fulani herdsmen we used to know. These people have another motive. The traditional herdsmen as we know don't carry guns. Calling them Fulani herdsmen is a wrong nomenclature. These people are fully armed. They are hired to take over our lands and nothing more. They don't look like Nigerians . If these people succeed in taking over the north central,other states should get ready. God forbid.

REASONS INSECURITY CANNOT END IN NIGERIA
1. Illegal importation of fire arms. As long as fire arms are illegally imported into Nigeria,the fight to end insecurity remains a mere bed dream. It's a mere academic exercise. I wrote something about the fire arms that were intercepted and confiscated by the Nigeria custom service in Delta State. This happened in July 2024. After commending their efforts, I told them to publish the names of those behind the act. Till this moment, nothing has been said about that. The matter has been swept under the carpet for reason best known to them. Let me say this without fear of contractions that our Custom and Immigration officers are not living up to the expectations. Their patriotism is questionable. They need to be more patriotic than this. No country of the world 🌎 can end insecurity when there is illegal importation of fire arms.

2. Allowing security personnel to serve outside their states of origin will continue to impede their efforts to end insecurity in Nigeria. I know my state more than you do. You know yours more than me. If you deploy an igbo man to Benue state,he cannot carry out his duties effectively because he is not from there . Whereas if you deploy a Tiv or an Idoma officer to Benue state, he will do well.

3.Selling fire arms to criminals. It was a show of shame last week when an officer of the law was caught selling ammunitions to criminals. Insecurity cannot end as long as we have people like him in our security system.

4. Not allowing our vigilantes to use Ak-47 and AK-49. Your enemies are carrying sophisticated weapons. You are carrying pump action. Wetin you wan do with am? No be Gadus be that. To end or reduce insecurity, every state that has vigilantes should be allowed by law to use sophisticated weapons.

5. Lack of motivation is another reason insecurity will not end in Nigeria. The government should take good care of our security personnel. They deserve better salary. A politician receives millions of naira as salary while our security personnel are underpaid. This must be looked into.

6. Foreign NGOs. Some of these foreign NGOs are impostors. They are in Nigeria to facilitate crimes and not what they claim they are here for.

7. Lack of state police

8. Unemployment

9. 36 states for over 200 million people. Nigerians need more than 36 states . Go to Taraba and see how Tivs and Jukuns are fighting over land. Same in other states of the federation.

10. Few security personnel . More personnel should be recruited into our security department.


Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo writes from Lagos

Pls, try read to the end..

MAKING VOTING COMPULSORY IN NIGERIA
It is no longer news that a bill seeking to make voting compulsory in Nigeria has scaled second reading in the House of Representatives. The penalty for lawbreakers is #100,000 or 6 months imprisonment. No be Gadus be that?

It is very infelicitous to come up with this idea at this moment of our history. Making voting compulsory now is like adding petrol to fire and salt to injury 🩸. Nigeria is not yet ripe to adopt compulsory voting. It can do that as soon as practicable.

At the moment, Nigeria is not well and political apathy is not the cause of the problems; Insecurity is the order of the day. Citizens have lost confidence in the Independent National Electoral Commission as winners are declared by courts and no longer INEC. Every election ends in the court of law. Unemployment and poverty are on the increase. You don't expect citizens to participate fully in Nigerian election when there is Electoral fraud,false declaration of election results and what have you.

Comparing Nigeria to Brazil, Belgium and Australia where voting is compulsory seems we don't know what we are doing. You wake up one day and begin to compare Nigeria and other countries without putting a lot of factors in to consideration. For it works in Brazil with a population of 212.7million doesn't mean it would work in Nigeria that we don't even know our number. The population of Belgium is just 11.7million whereas that of Australia 🌏 is 26.9 million.

Nigerians are beginning to know that PresidentAsiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinububu is not their problem but their law makers at the Federal level and Governors. The National Assembly members receive not less than a billion naira for constituency projects. Today , Governors receive humongous allocation from the Federal Government which has never happened in the history of Nigeria. Hold your representatives and governors accountable instead of over blaming Tinubu. He may mean well for Nigerians but the saboteurs around him will make him fail.

WHAT MUST BE DONE TO END POLITICAL APATHY IN NIGERIA

1. Make a law that will sentence corrupt leaders to death. If you do this, Nigerians will come out in large number to vote. In fact ,na run dey run go vote. On part of the leaders ,they will perform well. Who go gree die? In Igala ,we say" Ahimu Ahimu ichemuna"
2. Make a law that will make votes count In Nigeria. If this is not put in place, then get ready to arrest and jail many Nigerians but don't forget to build plenty prisons
3. Amend 60% of the 1999 constitution. The Constitution is not for Nigerians. It was a military constitution. If you study the said constitution,you will know that it has elements of Unitarianism
4. The electoral Act of 2022 should be amended.

CONCLUSION
Voting apathy in Nigeria grows year by year especially among the youths. Making it compulsory at this moment of our history is not the best. It can come later but not now. Nigeria at the moment needs to undergo surgical operations vis-a-vis the constitution and the way elections are being conducted and the aftermath. Compulsory voting can come after the said surgical operations. Roma locuta infinta est.

Written by:
Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo.

Policy Analyst

2/5/2025

THE SHENANIGANS OF NIGERIAN POLITICIANS: WHEN WILL IT END?
Politics itself is not a dirty game. But our politicians have made it look dirty. The dirtiness in politics today makes many people not to go into it. It has become an instrument for pulling others down. It has become a matter of life and death. Politicians when not in the same party go on media houses to demarket others. The worse is to demarket your country before the international communities simply because you are not the one in power.

Politicians when in the same ruling party see themselves as one and as such would never see anything wrong with their government . They are ready to defend the government any time any day as long as they continue to benefit not minding the poor living condition of the people. No nation develops when those in power care only for their pockets and family members.

To ensure that the party in power performs maximally, the opposition members must rise up to the occasion. They must serve as the watchdog to and of the party in power. It is regrettable to say that opposition members in Nigeria lack this quality. Their house is not in order. They are not organized. Asking rhetorically,how can you oppose the ruling party when you lack unity of purpose? Can two work together except they agree? ( Amos 3:3). They are blaming president Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the crises in their own parties.

If the truth must be told,the crisis in the PDP started in the late 2014 when the then President declared to run against the wishes of the northerners in the same party. After he lost the election,the party became a shadow of its former self. That continues to affect the party till today. Today,only God knows if we have opposition parties in Nigeria as everybody is running to the ruling party. I don't blame them because their own parties are disorganized and those who caused the disorganization are not ready for reconciliation. Some have one leg in and one leg out. While others are neither here nor there. To buttresses this point concretely, ADC is in crisis, if you go to kogi state ,there is Leke faction which I perceive to be working for President Tinubu ahead of 2027. Kachikwu Dumebi accused Atiku,David Mark and others of hijacking the party. In the PDP, there is Turaki and Wike factions. In the Labour Party,they have more than two national chairmen. Even Peter Obi is confused. He is in dilemma. He doesn't know the party to join the moment.

By implication, if the People's Democratic Party, Labour Party and African Democratic Congress fail to come together as one in 2027, it will be a walkover for President Tinubu. They will blame INEC and Court again. In fact,they will bring television to the court room and nothing will change the results.

POLITICAL JIBES

Before I call it a day, let me advise our politicians vis-a-vis their behaviors in the public. Sowore and Peter Obi thrown jibes at each other in 2023. Two presidential candidates from opposition for that matter.

Recently,Dino Melaye and Leke Abejide did their own. I was speechless when I listened to the way Dino described Leke. In fact,if you take him to the market,no one would buy him. I think this does not speak well of our politicians. Coming to the public to insult each other is to me out of place. What are you teaching this younger generation? What are you teaching the generations to come. Remember, history will past its own judgement on your behavior today.

As if that is not all, the governor of Oyo state,Seyi Makinde in his media chat blasted the FCT MINISTER,Nyesom Ezenwo Wike. His media chat was 50% about Wike. I think our politicians need to do more than this. Politics should not be divorced from good morals. Put it in another way, It should not be devoid of it. Wike that I know will reply him in no distant time. He doesn't start what he cannot finish. Peace makes Wike to be weak, problem makes him stronger. He wants problems always. If Wike could blast Dele Momodu that way,who again? Don't ask me for the video please.

For posterity to be kind to you as a politician,you don't say everything that comes to your mind. You don't respond to every question asked by journalists. A journalist can sometimes try to test how mature and politically sagacious you are by asking sensitive questions.You must not respond. Again,your people's welfare should be your priority and not what the other person says about you. Shalom.

By:
Author Sule Utenwojo Mohammed
24/12/2025.

MY ADVICE TO SENATOR NATASHA AKPOTI

The distinguished, I deem it necessary at this point in time to advise you. Advice as they say is a second mother to a child. I know you have many advisers but I can see that they are advising you wrongly.

You are a woman of substance whose contribution is direly needed in Nigeria. You are too young to truncate your political career. The path you are going will end your political career and history on its part wil pass judgement.

The distinguished senator, the people of Kogi state particularly and Nigeria generally are lucky to have you because you have proved that leadership is about the people. You proved to Nigerians that the end of politics is not knowledge but actions.and governance is more than election.

A testament of your good performance is the recent Empowerment where you did not only empower and train your constituents but went ahead to empower and train the people of Zamfara, Akwaibom, Imo, Abia,Delta,Cross River, Edo,Ondo and Borno states.

Numerically, you empowered 250 people with drone technology, 70 HP laptops for data analytics, 50 engineering tool boxes and safety kits, 50 welding machines and safety kits. Only Messiah can do this. You did not only give them but went ahead to organize training for them. This is like marrying for a man and provide bed for him to do kerewa with his wife.
No doubt ,you deserve a chapter in the book of History and I am sure posterity will be kind to you. I wish I am from kogi central.

The distinguished senator, your absence in the National Assembly is a monumental miss and deprivation to the people of Kogi central. I watched a video where you wanted to enter the National Assembly. Anyone that loves you would tell you to do the needful before resuming.

In Government, there is what we call " SOVEREIGNTY". It has two connotations. One is sovereignty as a state of political independence( external sovereignty) and the other is internal sovereignty. Speaking about the internal sovereignty, no country of the world 🌎 would allow her citizens to disobey her institutions. If you have had your way into the National Assembly, it would have been a big slap on the face of Judiciary in particular and Nigerian Government in general. It would have meant that Nigeria doesn't have control over her citizens.

One of the 14 Principles of Management by Henri Fayol is " Subordination of employee's interest to general interest. This means one person cannot be bigger than a group of people or government. You are not bigger than the Senate or judiciary.

The court decision was simple to understand. You are a lawyer. I can see that people are pushing you to do the opposite which like I said earlier will be inimical to your political career. Only God knows if this will not affect your reelection in 2027. The fact is , you have a long way to go in Nigeria's politics. You may be the first female governor elect in Nigeria. I see you going far in politics because of your charisma. This can only be possible if you stop listening to wrong advice. You don't need advice from Aisha Yesufu. She is an activist whereas you are a politician cum philanthropist. As a politician,you don't surround yourself with activists. Be careful with all these activists. They can put you into problem. You need a good politician like you to advise you. I saw Aisha with you that day and I laughed in Igala.

I expected you to learn from what happened to the likes of Dino Melaye, Aliyu Ndumeh, Abdul Ningi, Saraki and Shehu Sani. Where are these people today? You know the story.

This is the court judgment: Pay 5 million naira, apologize on two national dailies and Facebook. If you do these, you don't need a prophet or prophetess to tell you that Senate will call you back. Apologizing doesn't mean you are weak. It rather means you are mature and law abiding. Just do this for the sake of your constituents and your political career. Don't listen to anything outside this.

The court did not order the Senate to call you back. It identified her limitations by giving opinion or advice which in the legal milieu we call Obiter dicta which is a decision,comment, opinion or observation made by a judge that is not relevant to the case. The court advised and suggested and this can not have binding force on anyone.

The Distinguished, I am looking forward to seeing your actions. Shalom !

Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
Writer and Policy Analyst
26/7/2025.

MY ADVICE TO SENATOR NATASHA AKPOTI

The distinguished, I deem it necessary at this point in time to advise you. Advice as they say is a second mother to a child. I know you have many advisers but I can see that they are advising you wrongly.

You are a woman of substance whose contribution is direly needed in Nigeria. You are too young to truncate your political career. The path you are going will end your political career and history on its part wil pass judgement.

The distinguished senator, the people of Kogi state particularly and Nigeria generally are lucky to have you because you have proved that leadership is about the people. You proved to Nigerians that the end of politics is not knowledge but actions.and governance is more than election.

A testament of your good performance is the recent Empowerment where you did not only empower and train your constituents but went ahead to empower and train the people of Zamfara, Akwaibom, Imo, Abia,Delta,Cross River, Edo,Ondo and Borno states.

Numerically, you empowered 250 people with drone technology, 70 HP laptops for data analytics, 50 engineering tool boxes and safety kits, 50 welding machines and safety kits. Only Messiah can do this. You did not only give them but went ahead to organize training for them. This is like marrying for a man and provide bed for him to do kerewa with his wife.
No doubt ,you deserve a chapter in the book of History and I am sure posterity will be kind to you. I wish I am from kogi central.

The distinguished senator, your absence in the National Assembly is a monumental miss and deprivation to the people of Kogi central. I watched a video where you wanted to enter the National Assembly. Anyone that loves you would tell you to do the needful before resuming.

In Government, there is what we call " SOVEREIGNTY". It has two connotations. One is sovereignty as a state of political independence( external sovereignty) and the other is internal sovereignty. Speaking about the internal sovereignty, no country of the world 🌎 would allow her citizens to disobey her institutions. If you have had your way into the National Assembly, it would have been a big slap on the face of Judiciary in particular and Nigerian Government in general. It would have meant that Nigeria doesn't have control over her citizens.

One of the 14 Principles of Management by Henri Fayol is " Subordination of employee's interest to general interest. This means one person cannot be bigger than a group of people or government. You are not bigger than the Senate or judiciary.

The court decision was simple to understand. You are a lawyer. I can see that people are pushing you to do the opposite which like I said earlier will be inimical to your political career. Only God knows if this will not affect your reelection in 2027. The fact is , you have a long way to go in Nigeria's politics. You may be the first female governor elect in Nigeria. I see you going far in politics because of your charisma. This can only be possible if you stop listening to wrong advice. You don't need advice from Aisha Yesufu. She is an activist whereas you are a politician cum philanthropist. As a politician,you don't surround yourself with activists. Be careful with all these activists. They can put you into problem. You need a good politician like you to advise you. I saw Aisha with you that day and I laughed in Igala.

I expected you to learn from what happened to the likes of Dino Melaye, Aliyu Ndumeh, Abdul Ningi, Saraki and Shehu Sani. Where are these people today? You know the story.

This is the court judgment: Pay 5 million naira, apologize on two national dailies and Facebook. If you do these, you don't need a prophet or prophetess to tell you that Senate will call you back. Apologizing doesn't mean you are weak. It rather means you are mature and law abiding. Just do this for the sake of your constituents and your political career. Don't listen to anything outside this.

The court did not order the Senate to call you back. It identified her limitations by giving opinion or advice which in the legal milieu we call Obiter dicta which is a decision,comment, opinion or observation made by a judge that is not relevant to the case. The court advised and suggested and this can not have binding force on anyone.

The Distinguished, I am looking forward to seeing your actions. Shalom !

Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
Writer and Policy Analyst
26/7/2025.

THE NEED TO CONDUCT POPULATION CENSUS IN NIGERIA
BY :Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
INTRODUCTION : Let me start by offering the prolegomenon of this topic. The need to know the actual number of people living in Nigeria cannot be ignored. Population census no doubt is the bedrock of development planning. In fact, conducting a population census or knowing the total number of people living in Nigeria is the same as solving the problems of Nigeria.

No country of the world 🌎 can develop when the number of people is not known. Rhetorically , how can you provide your family needs when you don't know the number of your children. No be Gadus be that.

To set the record straight, the census of 1921 shown that Nigeria had population of 18.8 million.. The population of Nigeria according to 1963 census was 47.9 million.. In 1973,the population of Nigeria was 79.76million. According to National Population Commission, the population of Nigeria in 1991 was 88.5 million. The last population census in Nigeria was that of 2006 under Baba Iyabo. The population and housing results were 140 million. 19 years after, Nigeria is yet to know her population. Year in year out, they tell us we are over 200 million people. It is high time we stopped guessing our number. Let us stop deceiving ourselves.

Like I said earlier, no country develops when and if the total number of people living in it is not known.

Our security personnel are not up to 1 million. How can they solve insecurity problems in a country that they guessed to have over 200 million people?. It is unthinkable and unfortunate that our government keeps making decisions using a census as outdated ,superannuated, anachronistic or obsolete as 2006.

At this juncture, let me particularise the need for urgent conduct of a population census in Nigeria :

WHY POPULATION CENSUS IS NECESSARY IN NIGERIA

1. With the aid of population census, Nigerian government would know the rate of unemployment in the country. It enables the government to know the actual number employed and those unemployed.
2. Government needs population census to make decisions..You cannot solve the insecurity challenge in Benue and Plateau states when you don't know the population of people living there.
3. The population of one state in Nigeria is different from the other. In other words, states in Nigeria do not have equal or the same population. Knowing their population will assist the government in the allocation of resources. You can't allot the same resources to Kogi state and Kano state.
4. With the aid of population census, Nigerian government will know what her citizens need in years to come.
5. It is needed to know how many security personnel needed in Nigeria. President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu promised to recruit 50 thousand police and 100,000 soldiers and feed with rice and agbado. We are yet to see the recruitment. It would not be out of place if he conducts the census before massive recruitment.
6. It makes the government to know the structure and the population size of the country.

CONCLUSION
Nation building is an unending exercise . There is no way to develop or solve the problems of Nigeria better than to first know the number of people living in it. Ideally,Census is to take place every ten years. The time to conduct it is now that insecurity is on the increase. The Federal Government through the instrumentality of the National Population Commission must carry out this exercise as doing it is a big step in solving the problems bedeviling Nigeria.

Roma locuta, causa finita est..

15/6/2025

STOP BLAMING SEYI MAKINDE FOR PDP CRISIS

The crisis in the People's Democratic Party today started on September 17,2014 when Godswill Akpabio and others endorsed Good Luck Ebele Jonathan as the party's sole candidate for the 2015 presidential election. This no doubt was the genesis of the PDP crisis.

There was agreement that Jonathan should not recontest but he went ahead and recontested. This did not go down well with some of the governors from the north. They withdrew their support. Hence the failure of Jonathan in the 2015 presidential election and the emergence of Buhari.

I remember how people hailed Jonathan for conceding defeat. Some even called him hero of democracy. A tenant stays in your house and his tenancy expires and he leaves , neighbours begin to call him hero. Jonathan's administration up to this moment appears to me as a nostalgia. It was not as good as when he was vice president under the late Umar Musa Yar'adua but better than Buhari.

The crisis in the People's Democratic Party if not well managed will lead to party oblivion. This is the political party that once had 31 State governors out of 36. The party is today accusing APC of turning Nigeria into a - one party state. No be Gadus be this?

In 2023 ,the Waziri of Adamawa refused to give chance to a southern candidate. The aggrieved governors of the PDP led by Wike decided to support another party. Some supported Tinubu while others Peter Obi.

On January 8,2024, governor Samuel Ioraer Ortom said that the five governors who fought the PDP In the 2023 general election will continue to support the ruling party until their party ( PDP) put her house in order.

If I must be honest here,Seyi MAKINDE is not the problem of PDP. In Management, there is what we call PROBLEMS OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL. One of the problems is " Recent Incident Biase". It means rating or assessing your employees based on their recent achievements,services or behaviors and not how they performed in the past.

Speaking relatedly, Wike should not blame Seyi MAKINDE based on any recent dealings. Jonathan and Abubakar Atiku contributed to where PDP is today. Jonathan is neither here nor there. No one knows where he belongs . The party made him to be governor and president. He owes a lot to this party . The party didn't fail him but he failed himself in 2015 by not keeping to his promise. The party needs him now than ever but he is nowhere to be found. Atiku doesn't want to leave the party but his presence is tantamount to failure if he continues to contest instead of supporting a candidate. His presence alone makes some PDP members to defect to another party because they know what he can do. It he contests for the party's primaries, nobody in the party can defeat him.

The panpharmacon for the crisis in the People's Democratic Party is to have a :
1. Stronger merger with NNPP ,LP, APGA, SDP and other minor political parties
2. Reconciliation with Jonathan and other aggrieved members
3. Selfless ambition on part of those aspiring for the number one seat etc. It is better to come up with a candidate who can defeat the Jagaban of Africa 🌍 than fielding a rich politician who will eventually lose.
NOTE: The failure of the party to put her house in order and have a merger against 2027 will make the members to think that the election was rigged. Buhari surprised a ruling president. You can do it .

Rome locuta infinta est.

Written by:
Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
Policy Analyst.
15/6/2025

RELOCATION OF CHIEF OF ARMY STAFF TO BENUE STATE IS A MEANS TO AN END AND NOT THE END ITSELF

The Federal Government of Nigeria under Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has relocated the Chief of Army Staff to Benue state. This is commendable. The journey to end insecurity in Benue state just begun. It is not the end itself but a means to an end. Put it in another way, it is not yet Uhuru for the people of Benue state vis-a-vis insecurity.

The insecurity in Benue state has taken another dimension as no part of the state is safe. The residents of the state capital and its environs are killed on daily basis. The only place that is safe in Benue state today is the government house. Asking rhetorically,what is the offence of the people of Benue state?, Where do they go from here?. Why under a revered servant of God?

If the truth must be told, the killing in Benue state is not something of today. It has been there from time immemorial. It has been a recurring decimal but the rate at which the people are being killed under this administration is questionable and alarming.

The governor blamed foreign invaders ( Fulanis) for the killing of his people. He exonerated the traditional Fulanis who are known for carrying sticks. My questions are : How many traditional Fulanis have come out to condemn this killing?. The northern governors were quick to condemn the jungle justice in Edo State. Why are they silent over the killing in Benue state? . What has Zege Mule Tiv ( ATIKU Abubakar) said over the killing?

Let me say this without pussyfooting that the solution to the insecurity in Benue state is more of internal than external. Relocating the Chief of Army Staff to the state is not the créme dela créme . It's just to quench the burning fire but not to stop the fire permanently. The fire will come again.

I have said it umpteenth times that the governor of Benue state knows what to do to a larger extent bring an end to this. There is politics in the church but there is no church in politics. He is not the first Priest to be governor of Benue state. The late Father Adasu was there. The governor should work on his relationship with the past governors of the state. He also needs members of the state and National Assemblies. This is not a matter of politics. He should put politics aside. He needs these people more than they need him. The enemies of his time are sabotaging his efforts in making sure that he fails. By implication,if this continues, a state of emergency will be declared and the rest will be history.

I remember the words of the late Tor Sankera,HRM Abu King Sholua when advising the governor. He said" Allow the boys in the bush to come home. They are tired. I am tired of their calls. You promised to return them when elected. They are waiting for you. If they return home, let them be given amnesty that will better their lives"
Thanks to Bishop Dugu Isaac for bringing the boys back home. Posterity will remember him for good. The Bishop's effort is about to end in futility as the governor hitherto has not done anything since the return of the boys. Ideally,he is to engage them immediately,keep them busy and possibly enroll them in schools,skills, Vigilante Groups, Volunteer guards and so on. By doing so,the boys will contribute their quota to the insecurity in the state. They are not the cause of the insecurity in Benue state but they can be of immense help in fighting to their last blood. Deploying Military personnel , Mobile Police and other security agents to Benue state without engaging the boys will not give 100% results. This is not opinion but fact.

Recently,local militias were arrested and paraded for collaborating with Fulanis in killing about 50 people around Makurdi. This is a testament that the Fulanis are not alone in this killing. Hence the need for government to engage the boys( amnesty). You don't expect people to return home from bush and die of hunger. You must provide foods for them. Better amnesty should be given to them. It shouldn't be the type that was given to the late Gana which ended his life.

At this juncture, I urge all Nigerians to pray for the good people of Benue state as any injury to Benue state is an injury to every Nigerian. Shalom !

Written by:
Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
Policy Analyst

MY ADVICE TO PETER OBI OVER 2027 AMBITION

Your Excellency, you have written your name in gold but you are about to make the biggest mistake of your political journey. Any discussion on the presidential election of 2023 would be incomplete if your performance at the polls is not mentioned. Despite being a first timer in a minority party, you were able to secure 6.1million votes. This must be placed on record. You were able to build your political bridges across Nigeria.

Your Excellency, I learnt that some politicians from the NORTH told you to be Atiku's running mate come 2027. Tell the northerners to forget about 2027. Its still the turn of the South. South till 2031 and nothing more.

Your Excellency, tell Atiku Abubakar and others to support you as a southerner come 2027. If they refuse, no need for you to join any coalition. They want to use your political star ⭐ to shine. In fact, one thing I do tell people is, If you cannot use your head, they will use it for you. Any coalition without you is tantamount to failure. In short,its dead on arrival.

Your Excellency, it is better to remain in the Labour Party than to be used by any politician to score political goals from even off side position. If I were you, I would borrow my ideas to Tinubu on how to transform Nigeria instead of joining a coalition that will not see the light of the day. If the northerners are serious, let them give the ticket to you or a Yoruba to compete Jagaban. Jagaban that I know is not an amateur when it comes to politics. He is a politician that knows his onions. It is not easy to defeat him.

Your Excellency, your future is bright. Precautions must be taken otherwise you will not rule NIGERIA. It would not be out of place if you decide not to contest in 2027. Use the break to build a stronger structure that will yield results in years to come. Advice is a second mother to a child. The choice is yours.
Rome locuta infinta est.

Written by:
Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo

Public Affairs Analyst
6/6/2025

ANOTHER BLOW FOR ATIKU ABUBAKAR

It is no longer news that some stakeholders of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) in their last meeting concluded that the party must zone its presidential ticket to the South come 2027. In attendance were: Nyesom Wike, Samuel Ioraer Ortom, Okezie Victor Ikpeazu, Ifeanyi Lawrence Ugwuanyi ( Gburugburu) and others . In their pursuit to ensure justice, fairness and equity, they unanimously agreed that no northerner will flag the party's ticket in 2027.

I don't think this will go down well with Atiku Abubakar I don't think he is ready to drop his political ambition anytime soon. Remember,age is not on his side. This is the man who has been contesting since 1993 and he is ready to continue as long as he lives. He has served Nigeria to the best of his ability and history will not forget him.

Wike and other stakeholders of the People's Democratic Party are not ready to cooperate with Waziri of Adamawa. They are ready to confront and frustrate his ambition of 2027. Ipso facto, I have decided to offer two candid advice to ATIKU ABUBAKAR:

1. Support a southern candidate in 2027 whether the candidate loses or not. Let it be on record that you support a southern candidate.
2. Contest in 2031 if you wish to. If you decide otherwise, hang your political boots👢 🥾 and play the roles of elderstatesman.
Waziri of Adamawa,the Zege Mule U Tiv, the choice is yours.

Rome Locuta Causa Finita est.Atiku Abubakar HausasIfeanyi Lawrence UgwuanyiyNyesom Ezenwo Wike - CON, GSSRSRS

Author Sule Mohammed Utenwojo
Policy Analyst
14/6/2025.