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 Education › Re: Idowu Farai: Tribute To My Teacher by Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 7:30pm On Apr 19, 2025 |
Drifter02:He was |
| Education › Idowu Farai: Tribute To My Teacher by Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 2:41pm On Apr 19, 2025 |
Idowu Farai: Tribute to My Teacher By: Deji Yesufu Prof. Idowu P. Farai died yesterday, 18th April 2025. He was seventy years old and had only recently retired from the services of the University of Ibadan, where he had been a teacher at the Department of Physics for a long time. Farai was a giant of a man, who encapsulated the phrase “gentle giant” in its truest form. He was easygoing, and in the little time I observed him, I never saw him bring the full weight of his powers on anyone. If he ever did, such an individual would be dust. Farai encapsulated meekness in its true sense. I write this tribute to honour a man who I observed to be truly committed to university education, with the hope that the system he left behind might take to some of the principles that people like him lived by. I also write this tribute for the family to take comfort in the fact that they had the honour of having a father who truly served the system he worked within. Prof. Farai taught me between 2011 and 2012 when I came to the University of Ibadan to do a Masters Degree in Radiation Physics. I enjoyed Prof.’s classes thoroughly. He had a masterful command of the subject he taught. He taught me Statistics, and I used to wonder how a Physics teacher had such a masterful command of a subject that ought to belong to the Mathematics department. That is a testament to Farai’s versatility. The best part of Prof.’s classes was, however, not the subject he taught but some of the stories he shared with us as side comments as he taught his topics. It has been some thirteen years since I had those classes and I remember those remarks vividly to date. One day, one of my classmates, a lady, one of those “SU” types – wrapped up in a head-tie and wearing no earrings, got into a conversation with Prof in the class. I think Prof. had asked her a question based on the topic being discussed, and she was not forthcoming with an answer which was quite an obvious one – if one had really been following the class. Then Prof. Farai asked the lady where she was at the weekend that just ended. She said she had gone to Redeemed Camp. Farai then pointed at the large Physics textbook she was carrying and said “…if the authors of that book had been spending all their time in prayer camps, they would never have had the wisdom to pen the textbooks you and I are using today…” That was vintage Farai. Those of us who had cut our niche in being anti-Pentecostal knew that there was something in Prof. that we could identify with. On another occasion, Prof. Farai explained to the class the reason why he, as head of the department of Physics at that time, had been quite particular about giving northern students admission to read Physics at the University of Ibadan. He said that universities all around Nigeria are losing their universal trait. He said that the idea behind a university is that an environment of intellectual persons could be built, where ideas are both taught and developed. He explained that no matter how advanced western Nigeria was, we still need to know something of what our brothers in Northern Nigeria are learning. He then mentioned that the reason why Professors go on sabbatical is so they can go to other environments and share the ideas they have they have developed in their fields of study, while they learn from their colleagues there. That this is why we have student exchange programs, and the reason why teachers should be encouraged to come from overseas to teach in Nigeria, while our own teachers go abroad. He then warned that the universality of the universities is being eroded when universities become ethnic or religious; or when people begin to clamor that the person who should lead a university must come from a certain part of the country. He told us in class that few northerners apply to Physics, and that he almost always gives them the opportunity to come and study in UI. The last anecdote on Farai I remember was when he taught us a course on ionization radiation. We had learnt from previous studies at the department that radiation combines with water molecules in the body to create ions that are deleterious to body cells. Farai then showed us in this course that there are two types of radiation: those that are ionizing and those that are not. Then he laid down the bombshell: “… the radiation that emits from mobile phone masts is not ionizing radiation…” And the class went agog. He allowed us to settle down from our noise and told us that people always argue with him over the subject. He was recently on a radio broadcast, and after he had made a similar remark, someone called in and gave him this long lecture that his credentials as a Prof. should be questioned. That there are many cases of mobile phones causing explosions with generators; that there have been proven cases of cancers from MTN masts; etc. Prof. replied that these things were possible, but that within the realm of what they have learnt in academia, at least up till that time, radiation from telecommunication masts is not ionizing and they do not cause cancers. I would see Prof. Farai from time to time when we were still attending the Chapel of the Resurrection. When he made the remark to the lady in my class, l had thought he was an irreligious man. But that is untrue. Farai was a faithful churchman. He is always in church, listening to the sermons, and he was also involved in a couple of church societies. His wife, Mrs. Farai, was with the children’s department of the Chapel. I had taught Prof. Farai’s youngest daughter, Tosin, at the Educational Advancement Center, Bodija, Ibadan. I taught her Physics there. I also worked with Taiwo, Prof’s second daughter, at the Chapel’s children’s church department. I would say that I know the family a little. Prof. Farai and my father, Disu Adeyemi Yesufu, were colleagues at the University of Ibadan in the early 1980s, before my dad left UI and headed to Ahmadu Bello University to work with their newly instituted radiation unit there. In 2019, when my dad returned to Nigeria from the University States to live out his retirement, we visited Prof. Farai at his office at the University of Ibadan. It was fun watching the two old men reminisce about the good old days. Obafemi Awolowo, while commenting on the demise of his son Segun, which occurred in 1963 in a ghastly motor accident, in his book: “My March Through Prison”, said that his greatest consolation was that the dead are not really dead. They have only simply gone from one state to another. There is a sense that they are still with us. People do not speak ill of the dead because you and I will one day die and we will not like to watch people speak ill of us – especially since we no longer possess the opportunity to give a response. I don’t believe in that theory. I think that if people do evil when they die, you should remind the world that they did evil. At the same time, there is no point raking out all the dirty linens of a dead man – we all have ours, and we wish that people will be considerate enough to cover them when we are gone. Prof. Idowu Farai was a human being, who obviously had his own flaws. I however would wish to remember him as the man who taught me Statistics and Radiation Physics at my last attempt to get a university education. Sleep well, Prof. Deji Yesufu is the pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY and VICTOR BANJO. He can be reached via newdejix@gmail.com Source
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| Nairaland General › Re: What Does Nairaland Need Right Now? by VBCampaign: 6:09am On Apr 15, 2025 |
Thank you Seun for this. I want to say that Nairaland is a lot more than a connecting social media platform now. I believe that this forum can become a tool to fix this country. I therefore suggest the following: 1. Give more space to opinion writers like us to air our views. 2. I noticed you have a rabid fear of the Biafran question. However Biafra is a national question that we can find answers to here. Our blog, textandpublishing.com, has written many articles on the Biafran question but you never put front page. 3. Consider bringing the brightest minds together in this forum for a meeting - a physical one. We can start with a virtual one. They can find their way to and from Lagos, but provide accommodation and feeding. Let these young men and women deliberate on the Nigerian question for two days, and then submit a memorandum to the government, while at the same time proffering some action points. Nairaland.com is a unifying platform for Nigeria. You can reach us privately for more ideas. Well done with what you do. 1 Like |
| Career › Re: Dear BOLT Driver By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 7:49pm On Apr 13, 2025 |
Sequence001:Check your messages |
| Christianity Etc › Re: Mother Earth: Reflections On Life, Death, And Redemption By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 9:15am On Apr 08, 2025*. Modified: 10:07am On Apr 08, 2025 |
Concluded: Now, a few of us have gotten these jobs and we earn this money, but because very few people are cultivating the ground, very many resources are pursuing small goods – a recipe for inflation. I realized that our people are fleeing this country, Japa, because we do not work the ground. And when we do not work the ground, we will leave the land and go to places where they work their ground – and where they have food to eat. The man at IITA told me that a man left Germany; came and acquired land in Nassarawa. The man grows cassava. Then turns this cassava into chips, makes them of various flavours, and exports them to Europe and America. While our people flee Nigeria, a German has come to reap from our land, without using a gun. If we do not work on Mother Earth, we will go hungry, and we will flee the land that God has given to us. I also thought of writing about the concept of death. My concern here is with murder – the spilling of another person’s blood. The biblical command is simply this: “Thou shall not kill”. At no time should any of us take our hands and spill the blood of another. If we do this, Mother Earth will ensure that our blood is also spilt – this is in line with both divine and natural justice. The only time blood can be spilt legally is if in a case of jurisprudence, a matter is adjudged correctly, and a judge in the land determines that a man has taken the life of another, therefore his own life must be taken. Even in such extreme cases, the judge must be dimmed to be fair – or else, God and Mother Earth will demand the blood of that innocent man from the hand of the Judge. Mother Earth listens to our conversation; she hears our debates; and she meddles in our controversy. Sometimes in the early part of the 20th century, a monarch and his wife were shot dead by a dissident in a little less known land in Europe – Austria. All the European nations took different sides on the matter. It was not resolved until Europe converged in the First World War which consumed no less than thirty million people. That conflict was still not resolved, and the world witnessed a second world war that consumed another 75 million people. An approximate 100 million people died because a conflict was not properly resolved in a little-known city in Europe. Similarly, Nigeria paid the price with three million people because everyone sat ideally back as Western Nigeria was consumed in 1962. Mother Earth judges our conflicts, and she stands with the man on the right. She obeys the laws of God, and she will bless man who obeys God’s laws. Mother Earth is grieved by the sins we commit in the land, and one day, like God, she will request from us the body she borrowed from us to walk upon the land of our birth. We cannot spill the blood of another man. Because when we do so, Mother Earth receives that blood, and ensures that justice is done. If you kill a man unjustly, your own blood will be spilt also. It brings me to the subject of redemption. Why did Jesus die? God the creator of heaven and earth, could simply have decreed redemption to all of God’s elect without the Son of God dying. In keeping with our reflection on Mother Earth, I think that our redemption will not be complete until God himself has taken up flesh. You and I are made from the dust of the ground: we are both body and spirit. Our bodies and blood are given to us by Mother Earth, while God breathes his spirit into us. Redemption must come in two ways: we must receive a renewing of our spirit by the Spirit of God giving our spirit new life. But it cannot end there. Our bodies must be redeemed also. Therefore, Jesus was born of a woman – he took up flesh. He was possessed of body and blood. He was born of Mother Earth too. At his death, Jesus’ blood had to be shed. With the piercing of his side, and the blood streaming from the thorn of his head, our Lord’s blood hit the ground and brought sanctification to mother earth. Therefore, any man, made from the ground, who will find redemption – justification and sanctification from sin – must believe in Jesus Christ. As you do this, Mother Earth ensures that your body is freed from the grip of sin. The blood of Jesus that was shed on earth still speaks redemption to every man-made from this earth. The same way the sin of Adam brought a curse on every man born of Adam; is the same way the righteousness of Christ brings redemption to every man born of Jesus. We cannot finish a reflection on Mother Earth without looking closely at how Christ’s death redeemed man. It should also be noted that although Christ took on flesh, his body could not be held down by Mother Earth. He must rise again to secure the salvation of God’s people; but even more importantly, Christ must rise again because Christ made Mother Earth. The earth could not hold him down. Amen. My father tells me that when he was ten years old, his grandfather used to take him to a land to farm. It is a land situated somewhere in Ilesha. This land is in hundreds of hectares. The land is still being farmed by the man great grandfather left to till the place – and his children. I am hoping to visit that land soon and claim what belongs to me, my siblings and my cousins. We all sit here in the city, living like paupers – managing monthly salaries, for those who have jobs. While a land stands to be cultivated, and if we do it well at least the immediate Yesufu family will have food to eat. Every Nigerian reading this article has such a land somewhere. Our fathers bought those lands and kept them for us so that the moment we get hungry we will return to those lands and work them – and then eat. If not, we will continue this nonsense called Japa. I hope you found this article inspiring – and I will be updating you here with regards to my venture into agriculture. Remain blessed. Deji Yesufu is the pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY and VICTOR BANJO. 1 Like 1 Share |
| Christianity Etc › Mother Earth: Reflections On Life, Death, And Redemption By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 9:12am On Apr 08, 2025*. Modified: 9:59am On Apr 08, 2025 |
Mother Earth: Reflections on Life, Death, and Redemption By: Deji Yesufu I am an indigene of Ilesha – Osun State, Nigeria. My great, great, grandfather, Yesufu, was a Muslim cleric that migrated from Ilorin and came to live in Ilesha. He would become a leading cleric in that town. My father, Disu Adeyemi Yesufu, tells me that my passion for religious reforms very likely came from that direction. The only difference is that my great, great grandfather was a Muslim, while I took the Christian faith. Recently my father has had to visit Ilesha and he found that his father’s home needed repairs. Incidentally, his father’s house and grandfather’s house are in the same compound. There are also a few people buried there. These two men had many wives and children in their days, but it happens that there is only one distant blood relation of us living in that compound now. The rest are strangers. When my father arrived, he gave quit notices to everyone – “I want to fix my father’s house”. They all left. Except for one particular person who had lived in the house for quite a while. Eventually, this person also left without any threat of police or legal action. I asked my dad why she left without a fuss. He replied that the house had become hot for her. In Ilesha, and I think other places in Nigeria also, no matter how long children have left the home – the day they return, the house returns to them. It might be the reason why the dead are buried in people’s houses – a pointer to the historical fact that that house was built by someone’s blood, and only those connected to them by blood can live there. In 2017, I went to Ilesha for a book launch. During a short break in the program, I took a bike to my grandfather’s house. I met the only surviving woman who had known my dad as a child. She looked at me and said “Who are you?” I said “Disu’s son”. She just embraced me. She did not ask for a birth certificate or make a phone call. Blood called unto blood. In this essay, I want to write about Mother Earth. I want to explain how we can honour the earth better, and live our lives to the full. I hope to end with the biblical story of redemption. The Bible tells us many stories about the earth. The earth was created by God. Then God used the earth to create the first man. Now, when we die, our bodies return to the earth, while our souls go back to the Father of spirits. What that means is that there are two who make contributions to the making of a man who walks on the earth today: God gives the spirit, and Mother Earth gives the body. There is a scripture in Jeremiah where someone calls on the earth to ensure that a king remains barren all of the days (Jeremiah 22:29-30). There are numerous scriptures that show that the earth is a living being – it is a creation of God and thus has eyes to see and ears to hear. Because the earth was created by God, the earthworks in harmony with God. In a similar vein, the earth will work in harmony with everyone who works in harmony with God. When God confronted Cain after that evil person had killed his brother, Abel, Cain denied it but God told him that he heard the blood of Abel calling out to him. The earth gave voice to the blood of a man. There have been instances in the Bible where the earth has opened up its mouth and swallowed people whole. So, it is safe to say the earth has ears, eyes, and mouth. God told the children of Israel that the land they were possessing spat out its former inhabitants because of sin. All of these were brought quite vividly to me a few days ago when I read Joshua 24, where Joshua, as he prepared to die, called the children of Israel and warned them to keep the laws of God. He told them that there was a rock close by that was hearing everything that was being said. Joshua said that that rock would stand to testify against Israel if and when they broke the covenant of God (Joshua 24:27). Many years later when Israel sinned against God, that land spat them out. When I shared these thoughts with my children last Sunday, during devotion, my thirteen-year-old daughter observed that that rock is still there today – we just would not be able to hear it. The earth listens to our words. The earth hears our covenant. The earth will keep the covenant that generations upon generations make, as long as you and I choose to obey God’s commandments and honour the use of Mother Earth. I have written all these as an introduction to a more pressing subject I wish to write about. It is the problem of hunger in Nigeria. Why are we hungry in this country? I will explain with a story. As I go around the University of Ibadan, sharing the gospel with people, I often find people hungry – they have not eaten that day, or may not know where the next meal will come from. These are students. I would often have to give them N500 which could secure a meal ticket. It is then they would give me a listening ear. Recently, a congo of beans rose to as much as N5,000. I was concerned. How and why are we hungry in Nigeria in spite of arable lands all around us? So, I visited the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) based here in Ibadan, and I told the person I met there that I wanted to go into agriculture so I could help feed Nigerians. The man is the person in charge of the institute’s Cassava program. He was so excited. He took me around the institute in his car and explained to me how we could get the best cassava output. Then I got a piece of land, and have since started to cultivate the land. The aim, again, is so that we can feed ourselves in this country. Now, unfortunately with Nigerians, because many people are devoid of wisdom, people often jump on the bandwagon of a working idea. For agriculture, however, this is a win-win. If a lot more young people cultivate the groundwork on Mother Earth – we will have food to eat in the country, and we will have enough to export. The country’s productivity will heighten and the naira will gain strength. It occurred to me that we are hungry in Nigeria because somebody somewhere gave us the stupid idea that agriculture is a menial job, meant for old and tired men. We were told that every one of us should head to the city and acquire white-collar jobs.
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| Politics › Re: You Cannot Touch Wole Soyinka By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 9:39am On Mar 25, 2025 |
Salewa97:Precisely |
| Politics › Re: You Cannot Touch Wole Soyinka By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 8:49am On Mar 25, 2025 |
On the Soyinka Debate, Oluseye Fatoyinbo writes: "This is why I have very little hope in the so-called Gen Z. In fact, they scare me. A horde of humans with access to the most sophisticated gadgets ever known to mankind, vast sums of money and unfettered visibility but with no soul and no thoughts or respect for how sacred some things, ideas and people are is a group that will inevitably be the death of human civilization. "I'm not speaking in hyperbole. These brats will end humanity through their stupidity and arrogant ignorance" https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1AYsa4rtXU/ |
| Politics › You Cannot Touch Wole Soyinka By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 8:48am On Mar 25, 2025 |
You Cannot Touch Wole Soyinka I saw one "Gen-Z" on Facebook "dragging" Prof. Wole Soyinka. What was the lady's grouse? "Eh, Soyinka has kept mum over President Tinubu... He should be criticizing him... Soyinka has joined those people destroying Nigeria..." I engaged the lady on her wall to explain to her why Wole Soyinka is constrained on Tinubu matter. But since she appears not see my point, I have brought the matter to my wall. First, Wole Soyinka, perhaps only after Obafemi Awolowo, should be considered the most accomplished Nigerian. The man, at his death, will conveniently occupy a space below the pantheons of Yoruba gods. Soyinka cannot be criticized; he must be revered for one reason alone - if you desire greatness, you make excuse for the great. The biggest tragedy of my generation is that we will uphold people like Oyedepo and Adeboye as role models, and know very little about the contributions of Wole Soyinka, Obafemi Awolowo, and folks like them to Nigeria. Second. Bola Tinubu is in the mess he is today because he did not come into office prepared. He is not a philosopher king. He was more enamored with accomplishing a lifelong ambition, than serving people. That cannot be Soyinka's fault. Besides, the trouble with Nigeria is multifaceted, and solution will not come in one generation. It will require at least three generations of concerted and focused effort at governance before we can get things right. Third. I told this lady that all of us have people we never criticize out of loyalty. Soyinka tells the story of how Bola Tinubu was his benefactor at a particularly low period in his life. Since that time, Soyinka will criticize everyone but Bola Tinubu. And he has his right to this. Finally, Wole Soyinka is 90 years old. When the man was your age, dear lady, he took a gun, stuck up the announcing of polling results in 1965, and got the populace to stand against the brigandage that was occurring then by S.L.A Akintola and his political party. That event, added to others, led to the January 15th 1966 coup, that put Nigeria right back on track, despite plunging the country in a thirty month civil war. Wole Soyinka has done his best for this country. When you do yours, we will listen to what you have to say him. This is a special message to keyboard protesters. - Deji Yesufu Source 2 Likes
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| Christianity Etc › Re: When Pastors Arrest Pastors By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 6:10pm On Mar 24, 2025 |
MaxInDHouse:Agreed |
| Christianity Etc › Re: When Pastors Arrest Pastors By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 5:40pm On Mar 24, 2025 |
MaxInDHouse:Well... 1 Like |
| Christianity Etc › Re: When Pastors Arrest Pastors By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 4:38pm On Mar 24, 2025 |
OkCornel:I can imagine 2 Likes |
| Christianity Etc › Re: When Pastors Arrest Pastors By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 2:01pm On Mar 24, 2025 |
| Christianity Etc › When Pastors Arrest Pastors By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 6:54am On Mar 24, 2025*. Modified: 4:41pm On Mar 24, 2025 |
When Pastors Arrest Pastors By: Deji Yesufu The 5th of May, 1789 is regarded as the day the French Revolution commenced. It lasted another ten years and ended with the enthroning of Napoleon Bonaparte as the Emperor of the French. A lot of things led to this revolution but a few is worth mentioning. There was lack of food on the streets of Parish. France had committed a lot of money to support the United States of America in their war of independence against the English. The result was a country that was liable to economic depression – and it happened. 1788 was a year that left France with one of its worst harvests so that wheat became expensive and people could not find bread to eat. In the midst of all these, the King of France, Louis XVI, and his family were feasting away. There were also the clergy that paid little attention to the suffering of the people. Before the revolution, enlightenment thinkers like Voltaire had won the hearts of the French through their writings, calling for the end of the monarchy and the dominance of the church in civil life. Voltaire died in 1778 but his writings, like those of other Enlightenment thinkers, had sown seeds of revolution in France. I tell this story to state that society is watching and people know those who are their friends and those who are the enemies of the state. When the revolution comes, evil will be consumed with it. Today, it was reported that Apostle Festus Alilu was arrested yesterday evening by the Nigerian police. Saharareporters reported the news this way: “The arrest comes after Apostle Alilu posted a video on his official Facebook page in which he accused Pastor (Korede) Komaiya of misleading church members with fabricated prosperity teachings.” The popular online news medium stated that as of the time of making the report, Pastor Komaiya has not made any public statement on the matter. There is a popular Nigerian proverb that goes like this “… the witch cried yesterday, the child died today. Who does not know that it is the witch that killed the child…” There is no way we can know for a fact that Korede Komaiya arrested Festus Alilu until one takes the time to watch the video Alilu did and also to follow some recent trends, especially from individuals that Komaiya looks up to as a mentor in ministry. (After writing the draft of this article on Friday, 21st March 2025, I delayed publishing it; believing that a lot was still yet to be revealed. Today, Sunday, 23 March 2025, Festus Alilu published a video recanting his earlier statement and also admitting that it was Korede Komaiya that indeed got the police to arrest him). In the video released, Festus Alilu holds nothing back in his criticism of Korede Komaiya. It is almost as if the two of them had some hidden quarrel. One makes this conclusion because it is not the tradition for Pentecostals to criticize themselves publicly. These men know that they have very little credibility among Nigerians, and they understand that self-criticism will not improve that image – it will instead damage it further. So, they stay away from criticizing themselves. If they do not support each other in public, they simply keep mum with regards to the ministry and style of others. Alilu brought an end to that tradition yesterday. He took a fellow Pentecostal and Prosperity preacher to the cleaners. He made it clear that Komaiya appears not to ever preach anything else but money. His grouse stems from the fact that critics of Pentecostals use the likes of Komaiya to lend credence to their position. He mentioned how Omoyele Sowore has said that Nigerian pastors cannot be trusted because they are simply in the ministry to make money. He explains that Komaiya’s message gives the likes of Sowore ammunition against the church. He was pretty scathing in his condemnation of Komaiya, while he appears to support David Oyedepo and Paul Eneche – the individuals that Komaiya is following in Christian ministry. Alilu would prefer that Komaiya is called to order, while the other preachers are left off the hook. To watch all of that and then hear that Alilu has been arrested, is to conclude quite easily that Komaiya might be behind Alilu’s predicament. Before we go any further with our discussion on when pastors arrest each other, it might help the readers to understand what the Bible teaches about the gospel of Prosperity. I wish to state unequivocally that the message of prosperity as it is taught by many preachers today, particularly those in the Pentecostal tradition, is patently false and it is a clear-cut heresy by biblical standards. The message of Prosperity is the offshoot of the Word of Faith doctrine which was propounded by Kenneth Hagin and his followers in ministry. The Word of Faith message teaches that Jesus Christ died to save men from sin and to make them healthy and wealthy. The first line of the previous sentence is biblical (Matthew 1:21; Luke 24:46-47; Ephesians 1:7). The second part of the line has no biblical basis whatsoever. The Christian message was invented by Jesus Christ himself and was made complete by the teachings of the Apostles – particularly Paul. There is no account in the whole of the New Testament that teaches that Jesus Christ died to make Christians healthy and wealthy. The Word of Faith enthusiasts go to the Old Testament and wrest the words of Moses from Deuteronomy 28 to teach that Christians could live by certain blessings or fall in danger of certain curses. When you realize that the covenant of Moses was based on some 613 laws, and by breaking one of such laws, one finds himself enmity with God, you realize the reason why there was a need for a New Covenant that is ratified by the blood of Jesus; and that is never founded on some blessing or curses. Rather, the Christian is a blessed man – only (Ephesians 1:3). We need not fear curses – including the curse of death, sickness or poverty. We are safe in Christ Jesus. Amen. Unfortunately, the gospel of prosperity knows nothing of true spiritual riches. Rather, they would that Christians continue in a covenant of curses and blessings. This is what has produced the likes of Korede Komaiya, and we are yet to see the end of the evil of these men’s teachings. Now, when pastors arrest pastors – especially those in the same theological tradition, understand that Jesus Christ is at work in the churches. The good thing about stories like these is that they give an opportunity for light to be shed on the question of what sound doctrine consists of. I can assure you that any pastor who resorts to the Nigerian police to silence his critics; such a person is not working according to biblical truths. Paul said that Christians should never resort to secular courts or authorities to resolve their issues (1 Corinthians 6:1ff). We bring those things to the courts of fellow believers – alone! Are there no Pentecostal pastors to whom these two men look up, and who can help resolve their issues? Why is it difficult for Korede Komaiya to take his own phone and make a response video to Alilu’s criticism? Why not a blog or an article to resolve the matter? Why do you have to use the Nigerian police to oppress your fellow pastor? I think I know why. You are now rich; you know people in the police force, and it will cost you nothing to pay them to oppress a fellow minister like you. When pastors resort to secular powers to arrest their fellow pastors, understand that there is no Holy Spirit to adjudge the matter between them. It has taken our Lord Jesus Christ two thousand years to bring the church to where it is today. He could have done it in fifty years, but he chose this long a time to produce the right kind of spirit among God’s people. I can assure you that churches where ministers arrest each other are not churches that Jesus Christ is building. It is good to see that Pentecostal pastors are calling themselves to order. While some of us think that the whole gamut of the Word of Faith message should be expunged from the churches, it is a good beginning to have ministers critic each other’s ministry. It is not an entirely evil thing: Paul rebuked Peter before all of God’s people Galatians 2:11ff. Sometimes you carry out extreme measures to save the church from extreme evils. Our Lord is building his church. Amen. Postscript: As I have stated earlier, this article was written before Festus Alilu made his apology public. From the words he uttered in that video, it is clear that the young man had been cowered. It is also clear that Alilu made his original statement not out of conviction but, perhaps, to play to the gallery. He underestimated how far that video will go. As I have stated in my article above, I wish to repeat it here: the gospel of prosperity is heresy. No one that believes this message will go to heaven. Every person that made Alilu recant that video is not a servant of Jesus Christ; they will not be found in the kingdom of God. Korede Komaiya is a false teacher – and it behoves every right-thinking Christian to stay away from preachers like him. Deji Yesufu is the pastor Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY and VICTOR BANJO. 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| Politics › Re: El-rufai And The SDP May Be A Worthy Political Option By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 12:31pm On Mar 17, 2025 |
Pierocash:  |
| Politics › Re: El-rufai And The SDP May Be A Worthy Political Option By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 11:02am On Mar 17, 2025 |
helinues:  |
| Politics › El-rufai And The SDP May Be A Worthy Political Option By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 10:38am On Mar 17, 2025 |
El-Rufai and the SDP May Be a Worthy Political Option By: Deji Yesufu When Ibrahim Babangida, former military president of Nigeria, published his memoirs recently, the Nigerian nation went agog. Most commentaries on the book were extreme: there was simply no middle line to the subject. It was either the writer hated Babangida’s guts or they loved him intensely. My position on the book is a middle line. I might have reached this position because I cannot say that Babangida’s actions affected me negatively when he was in government. When IBB was in power, I was a young Yoruba boy schooling in the far north, at Ahamdu Bello University, where I obtained my primary, secondary, and tertiary education. So, I find myself torn between the moral allegiance to my tribe – the Yorubas, whose decision to annul the June 12 elections IBB robbed, and the Hausas – whom I remain eternally grateful for affording my family and me a well-rounded education. One lesson that I take away from Babangida’s book is something I would like to call the mystery of history. Time has a way of helping all of us to heal. Most of the bad blood that follows the Nigerian civil war, and that is demonstrated through the insurgency of IPOB and groups like them, are the retelling of a one-sided story. If these individuals have the opportunity to live with the “other side” and hear their own story, it is very possible they will have a change of perspective. Babangida’s book showed one reality: Nigeria is the creation of the British under the gracious providence of the Almighty God. Nigeria is an excellent idea – the day we get governance right, we will save the world. Nigeria is therefore worth investing in, and this is what the British sought to do when the likes of Obafemi Awolowo and his Action Group began to call for self-government. The fact is that this country was not ready for self-rule when we asked for it, but the British granted it because they were running short on their investment in Nigeria and they needed to preserve those resources for their own country too. Another reality that Babangida’s book showed me was that while the likes of the Action Group had shown the world that they could handle modern government systems, other politicians were not sufficiently mature to do the same. So the moment we gained independence, this country simply began to slide from bad to worse, which all culminated in a thirty-month civil war. The Nigerian civil war produced two kinds of people – the dead and the living dead. The dead were those who were killed during the conflict. The living dead were those who emerged from the conflict but had been eternally scarred. Some of the individuals in this latter group would be the young men who fought the war. One such young man was Ibrahim Babangida. If you read the book carefully, you will understand that the policies that all the military governments implemented after 1970 were all done with one motive in mind: not to return to the chaos of the first republic. The boys in the barrack understand that if the politician messes the polity up again, it is they, the soldiers, that will again be thrown into a war, where they will be forced to kill their own brothers who they had shared barracks with in the past. A kind of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was what propelled the likes of Muritala, Obasanjo, Buhari, and Babangida when they led the country. The chaos of the first republic was seen in the fact that Nigerian politicians simply could not organize themselves in free and fair elections. It was either rigging was widespread, thugs were employed to mar election processes, or opponents were assassinated; or political groups made their homestead inaccessible to rival political parties. So, every time the boys in the barrack saw that things were about to go haywire, they employed extreme measures. They could either plan a coup and overthrow an existing government – with the potential danger that the coup could fail; or they would cancel elections. The only thing the boys in the barracks requested from the politicians was this: guys, behave yourself. This brings me to El-Rufai. I met Mallam El-Rufai sometime in 2012 when he came to Ibadan to promote the sale of his book in Booksellers, Dugbe. He was no different from the El-Rufai you see in the newspapers. Diminutive. Sharp-witted. Intelligent. Humorous and kind. I got a copy of his book, The Accidental Public Servant, and read it like a Bible afterwards. I stood on the line and got the book personally signed by him. I also stood by and watched as Edmund Obilo, our local media figure here in Ibadan, interviewed him. I cannot remember what Obilo might have asked him that triggered this statement from him, but suddenly Mallam raised his eyebrow and said “…oh, are you one of those who believe that Northerners think they are the only one born to rule Nigeria?” In other words, the former Governor of Kaduna State does not believe that only northerners should rule this country. El-Rufai expressed these sentiments again when he granted an interview to Arise TV in 2025, after years of not granting TV interviews to any media outlet. He stated that where he fell out with the northerners in the run-up to the 2023 elections was the position that Northern Nigeria has led this country for eight years under Muhammadu Buhari. It only makes perfect sense that power should go to the South. He said that power may go to the East or West – but certainly not the North again. I believe that this position he took was endeared to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who at that time had enough incline that Buhari might wish to hand power to a northerner like him. His famous “emi lokan” speech in Abeokuta was a reaction to this reality – and not necessarily an espousal of a selfish personal agenda. Today, El-Rufai has ditched the All Progressive Congress (APC) and joined the Social Democratic Party (SDP). El-Rufai gave his reasons in that interview with Arise News: he made it clear that the APC lacked internal democratic norms; he said that one money bag had stolen the party – he made it clear that money bags will be unable to steal the machinery of a political party if all members gave their dues faithfully. As far as I am concerned, I think El-Rufai is right and he was worth giving a listening ear. I will now explain how I reached this position. I will call myself an accidental politician – if I could employ Mallam El-Rufai’s expression too. My primary calling is to Christian ministry. In recent times when I go out on evangelism, I cannot help but notice the deep hunger on the streets. Many times, my team and I have to buy people food before they can give us a listening ear. It then occurred to me that we are hungry in this country because we have not been farming our lands. Many of us have acquired education and headed into the cities to get white-collared jobs – looking at a vocation like farming as beneath us. We have left the farms to illiterates, who are still using hoes to work the ground. It occurred to me that everybody eats grains and vegetables every day – yet none of us wish to be involved in its production. We have created a situation where scarce resources are chasing scarce goods – that is a simple recipe for inflation. Now as I thought about these phenomena, I remember the reason why the government of Obafemi Awolowo was so successful: they took farming seriously. The Action Group did not get a dime from oil; they got all their wealth from farmers who produced cocoa and palm kernel, and they built a thriving Western Region from these two crops alone. Cocoa House still stands in the middle of Ibadan as a testament to such visionary leadership. My last epiphany on politics was when it occurred to me that even the Western countries Nigerians are fleeing to in droves have thriving agriculture. “If we do not work the land, we will flee from it…” are the thoughts that ruled my mind recently. Therefore, how can you and I return back to a time when politics worked hand in hand with agriculture in Nigeria? Is there something we can learn from Obafemi Awolowo and the Action Group? Mallam El-Rufai may be the man who has stretched his hand across the Niger River to offer answers to these questions. My essay is made even more urgent by the fact that after years of bad leadership, progressive-minded individuals might come to the wrong decision that all politicians are bad. There is no doubt that Governor El-Rufai is not a saint – neither is any of us. What this man is doing is that he is offering all of us another option to the political question. It is clear that not one person can rule this country by himself – Nigeria is way too large and this is the reason why single-person candidature may be discouraged by our electoral processes. If we win elections in this country, two regions of the country must team up together. Bola Tinubu came to power when he rose from Lagos and joined up with Nigerians in the North. Similarly, if any of us will come to power, we must work with another region. I suggest that El-Rufai is a viable option. The Social Democratic Party has not been in the news since the days of M.K.O Abiola but it is clear that it is usually a powerful political figure that brings light to a political party, in the same manner that Peter Obi brought light to the Labour Party. Whether we agree with El-Rufai's style or not, what is clear is that this country is in dire need of a new political dispensation; we need good governance; we need a few good men to lead us; and one of such men might be Mallam El-Rufai. I believe he is a worthy political option. Deji Yesufu is the pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY and VICTOR BANJO. Source
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| Politics › Re: Today Is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous Birthday (webinar) by VBCampaign(op): 10:27am On Mar 06, 2025 |
The Awolowo's Foundation: video on the 30th anniversary of the Foundation - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHDrDqdTBAk |
| Politics › Re: Today Is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous Birthday (webinar) by VBCampaign(op): 8:19am On Mar 06, 2025 |
saintkel:I disagree |
| Politics › Re: Today Is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous Birthday (webinar) by VBCampaign(op): 7:05am On Mar 06, 2025 |
Redoil:We can avoid the tribal attacks for once... |
| Politics › Today Is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous Birthday (webinar) by VBCampaign(op): 6:06am On Mar 06, 2025 |
Today is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous Birthday (Webinar) Today is Obafemi Awolowo's 116th Posthumous birthday and a webinar is being organized by the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation to commemorate the day. Chief Obafemi Awolowo is regarded, along with Nnamdi Azikwe and Ahmadu Bello, as one of the founding fathers of Nigeria. Awolowo was the leader of the Action Group, whose party ruled Western Nigeria from 1951 to 1959. Awolowo became Premier of the Western Region in 1954 and was in office until December 1959. In 1963, Awolowo and some other leaders of the Action Group were jailed for treason by the Tafawa Balewa government. Some argue that this singular event precipitated the Nigeria Civil War. Reformed Naija Television did an awareness broadcast on today webinar yesterday on their internet TV. See: https://www.youtube.com/live/0I3twXwYl30?si=yJKUbJY9ByqPSymv The webinar will be hosted on Zoom and it is strictly on invitation. If you wish to be part of the webinar, send us an email at: naijareformed@gmail.com The chairman of today's event is Thabo Mbeki - former president of South Africa. Guest speaker is the famous American economist: Prof. Jeffrey Sachs. Other speakers include Prof. Kingsley Moghalu and Prof. Eghosa Osaghae. See the attached flyer for more information. Note: What is abundantly clear about Nigeria today is that the country is not where the founders of this country wishes for her. Awolowo knew the challenges that comes with nation building, and he left copious ideas in his writing for future generations to glean from and help salvage Nigeria at a time like this. We believe that nothing short of a movement similar to the Nigerian Youth Movement of the 1930s will save this country. Nairaland may be the largest congregation of Nigerian youths youths in the world - thanks to the internet. Let us come together and help salvage this nation. We can begin this by attending this webinar. Happy Birthday Obafemi Awolowo. This is written by Pastor Deji Yesufu for Reformed Naija TV.
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| Christianity Etc › My Thoughts On Trump Vs. Zelenskyy By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 10:26am On Mar 04, 2025 |
My Thoughts on Trump vs. Zelenskyy By: Deji Yesufu In the past few days, our world which is already inundated with too many viral videos, was forced to watch as President Donald Trump of the United States of America lampoons another President of a sovereign country – Volodymr Zelenskyy. As the gory scene played out, the American Vice President also joined in the chastisement: Zelenskyy is reputed to be an ungrateful person, who is ever demanding more and more resources from the USA, in a war that has very little economic benefit to the US. With a new administration in Washington, American foreign policy has shifted almost one hundred and eighty degrees. If Americans will continue to support Ukraine in this costly war, Trump and Vance are saying, Ukraine would also have to give something back. America wants a deal that will give the US greater access to Ukrainian minerals. Trump is a businessman and has long vowed to end Former President Biden’s father-Christmas posture toward Ukraine. When there is a diplomatic spat like this, captured on camera, a lot more is left unsaid than what we hear. My concern in this essay is not Russia Ukraine or America; my concern is Africa. And I’ll explain. The Napoleonic wars that tore through Europe ended around 1820. Between that time and 1945, when the nuclear bomb was dropped on Japan by the United States to end the Second World War, there was a space of 120 years and there had been an astronomic rise in the development of weapons of war. The most lethal weapon Napoleon used was the canon gun. In a little over a century, we had the nuclear bomb. What made this clear-cut difference in technological advancement was education. Europeans found themselves in a rat race to gain knowledge, develop scientific ideas, and utilise these ideas to both better their nations and protect themselves. While the scientists were working at the labs, the social scientists were also working on ideas for better communal relationships among peoples and nations. Europe was tired of wars, and ideas were being proffered that would reduce conflicts. One of such ideas was the concept of a nation’s sovereignty. In those days, a powerful country could just invade a weaker nation, and colonise it. But by the turn of the 20th century, colonialism was increasingly regarded as barbaric. We should note however that this concept was not that developed in Eastern Europe. Ideas around capitalism, freedom, democracy, and national sovereignty were merely tolerated by Russia – they are not inherently their values. When the opportunity came for Putin to invade Ukraine, he did it with little concern for conscience or world opinion. What is the lesson for Africa and Nigeria? I’ll explain this with some anecdotes. The church I pastor rents a space in the University of Ibadan. Before we commence service, I take a moment to observe the students around me, those we are preparing for a very competitive world. Many of them appear to be in the university to become prayer warriors. Young men who should be developing scientific ideas that will enhance our national security, and those who should be positing social theories that will safeguard our children from foreign attacks, are spending the better part of their time in school leading fellowships and becoming pastors. One day these children will wake in the future and find that their country has been colonised again by nations that paid attention to educating their young people. Why do I say this? The things that hold our world together and help to maintain steady cohesion among nations are Western ideas – particularly those of the United States of America. This followed America’s victory in the Second World War and her becoming the sole superpower after the splinting of the USSR in 1991. There is however no guarantee that America’s hegemonic hold on both World ideas and economy will continue. China is fast catching up with the USA, and Trump’s effort at preserving American resources is aimed more at maintaining her leadership among the nations – Ukraine is therefore secondary. What is however certain is that America will not be the sole superpower forever. Sooner or later, she will have to share the stage with China, who for diplomatic reasons, are more in sync with Russia and North Korea than the West as far as ideas and values are concerned. I fear that by the day America can no longer direct nations and influence foreign policy like they do today, weak countries like Nigeria will become pawns in the hands of Russia and North Korea. The latter is an atheistic country that gives no hoot for human rights or democracy. If our children do not pay attention to their books and become leading thinkers in the sciences and social arts, we will become like President Zelenskyy who will forever be running around looking for help to ward off foreign invaders. The only thing preserving our national borders is a commitment among nations that all countries should respect each other’s sovereignty. No one guarantees that in the future this commitment will continue. The Trump-Zelenskyy debacle is a parable to Nigeria. No one owes you anything. Nations make long-lasting efforts towards building their national security. Somebody told me that America coerced Ukraine to ditch their nuclear weapon program in 1994. If Ukraine still had its nuclear powers, Putin would never have dared to invade that country. Today, America is committing herself to support Ukraine because of the 1994 deal. Now that America’s support to the Ukrainians has become a drain on their purse, they have a right to rethink that support. Nigerians should realize that no one owes us anything. No one cares about our national sovereignty. While our nation sinks in corrupt practices and our national assembly spend all their time debating who is sleeping with whose wives, countries are developing ideas that will make them superpowers tomorrow. My greater concern is not even our political class; my concern is our young people. I do hope that this overly preoccupation with prayers and vigils will stop. Our young people must develop their minds, and proffer workable solutions for national issues. There is no reason why by this time something akin to the Nigerian Youth Movement of the 1930s, which was the precursor to the Action Group and the NCNC, had not been born in Nigeria. Nigeria youths can come together, and form a political movement that will wrest power from these people in government. And while the youths fix the social problems, they can also find ideas along science that will strengthen our military and protect our borders. Deji Yesufu is the Pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY and VICTOR BANJO. Source
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| Politics › Re: Electronic Voting: University Of Ibadan As Case In Point by VBCampaign(op): 6:14am On Feb 28, 2025 |
Racoon:I agree |
| Politics › Re: Kemi Badenoch is God's Anointed By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 8:33am On Feb 27, 2025 |
Bar1941:I'm sure if you were in her shoes, you'll do the same thing. |
| Politics › Re: Kemi Badenoch is God's Anointed By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 7:56am On Feb 26, 2025 |
Jomonix:The author appreciates your comment 8 Likes |
| Politics › Kemi Badenoch is God's Anointed By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 5:09am On Feb 26, 2025 |
𝐊𝐞𝐦𝐢 𝐁𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐝’𝐬 𝐀𝐧𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞: https://textandpublishing.com/kemi-badenoch-is-gods-anointed/ 9 Likes 2 Shares
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| Travel › My Multi-millionaire Uber Driver By Charles A. Adeogun-philips by VBCampaign(op): 8:48am On Feb 15, 2025*. Modified: 9:39am On Feb 15, 2025 |
My Multi-millionaire Uber Driver By: Charles A. Adeogun-Philips A Life Lesson in Humility Delivered in an Uber. Something quite spectacular happened to me in London yesterday. I needed to buy some household items from a hardware store. Hardware stores are usually suitated in retail parks which are more often than not located in Greater London. Being a Sunday, the retail park wasn’t open until 12 noon. I ordered and embarked on my Uber ride from my location in the W8 area at about 12.26pm. The journey to the retail park in the NW2 area of London was estimated to take 34 minutes – it was quite a long one spanning about 23 miles. I got into the back of a black Toyota Pirus sedan and exchanged the usual pleasantries with my driver, an elderly south Asian looking man. His name had appeared as Gul Nabi on the Uber booking confirmation. Shortly after the journey began, in my usual chatty manner, I asked my driver how his day was going and whether he had been busy prior to my ride? He responded that i was only his 2nd client that day as he had only started work at 11am that morning and planned retire to his home by 4pm that afternoon. I have often been told that it is the flexibility that Uber affords its drivers that is the key to its global success. But as it was later to be revealed, Mr Gul Nabi was no ordinary Uber driver. In fact there was nothing that could have prepared me for my encounter with this unusual Uber driver, yesterday. And i mean, nothing. As we continued ourjourney from West to North West London through Holland Park, Ladbroke Grove, Kensal Rise, Willesden Green and Cricklewood areas, Mr Nabi returned the courtesy by asking the same question of me. How is your day sir? I responded that it was my first time out that day and complained about the bitterly cold weather, how expensive London had become and how I couldn’t wait to return to Lagos the following day. We talked generally about the UK ecomony vis-a-vis the increased cost of living, compared to how things were when i lived in London almost 3 decades ago. I told him how i left the UK at the end of 1997 and how thankful I was that I never had to live there permanently. Mr Nabi replied that he had contemplated doing the same thing after he won the lottery in 2002. At first, on account of his accent, I didn’t think I heard him correctly. So I responded? Did you just say you won the lottery? Sir, the money came from God and so I shared about half a million pounds and I still had plenty left. I am still a millionaire. My children are old now and I live in a nice brand new 2 bed flat opposite Wembley Staduim. Again, I looked at this man’s face through the rear view mirror of this Toyota Pirus car i was riding in. This guy was at peace driving his little car and telling me about his life as a millionaire. He had this smile on his face as if to say.. Mr “Charlice”… you need to calm down. He knew that I was completely beliwedered by his life story and seemed to be enjoying himself. I looked at his clothes, they were just regular. Primark type even. Not even M&S. I looked at his wrist.. I don’t recall seeing a watch, let alone a fancy one. Before I could ask another question, he promptly volunteered to inform me that he spent another 500k acquiring two properties in the Wembley area which is where he lived prior to winning. He told me that he also purchased a massive farm by a lake in Northern Pakistan which is where he originates from. He told me how he lived in a 4 bed semi detacted home before 2002 which he later had converted to a 7 bedroom home following which, he has allowed some relatives to stay there at a very reduced rent just enough to maintain the outgoings therefrom. So I asked him, so have you stopped playing the lottery? He replied, No sir. Then I asked again, is it possible to win the lottery twice? He replied, yes. I won 1300 pounds recently. I had 5 out of the 6 numbers! 34 minutes later we arrived at the retail park and Mr. Nabi alighted first to open the trunk where i had kept a shopping bag. As he handed my bag to me, I shook his hand in gratitude to this humble mutli-millionaire Uber driver! As I walked away, I turned back to him and said; I have never met a lottery winner, talk less of being driven by one. This is one encounter that would remain with me for the rest of my life. He responded ” yes sir, I won 3 million pounds in 2002″ At that stage forgetting I had strapped myself into my seat, I attempted to lean forward in order to touch his shoulder… as I uttered the following question… “Did you actually receive 3 million pounds? Mr Nabi responded…”sir not one penny was taken from of it. I was paid 3 million pounds into my bank account. He continued, I intially kept it in a regular high street bank account but later I transferred it an investment bank where i got a much better interest. I couldn’t hold myself back when I asked the next question; so what are you doing driving an Uber when you have been a multi-millionaire for 23 years? He laughed as though he was awaiting that question. I have always been a cab driver, sir. I have done this job for 45 years now. I have a farm in Northern Pakistan but its winter there now so not much is happening. What would I be doing sitting at home all day? By now, we were about half way into our journey and had become a little more relaxed with each other. So I asked, do you mind me asking how did you spend your 3 million pounds? Do you have any of it left? Again he smiled. I could see his face through the rear view mirror! He replied; I shared about half a million. I needed to do that. I gave my family. I started with my only sister and then my 5 brothers. There are 7 of us. Then my grand uncle who is now 95 years old, i gave him money too. I paid off his mortgage. Charles A. Adeogun-Philips is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria. He led the UN team of prosecutors on the Rwandan Genocide between 1998 and 2010. Philips sent this piece to Text and Publishing from Lagos. Source Inset photo 1: Adeogun-Philips leading a prosecuting team at Arusha, Tanzania. Inset photo 2: Receipt from the uber ride 1 Like 1 Share
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| Politics › Re: Adeola Fayehun And Kemi Badenoch: The Science Of Government By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 8:21pm On Feb 11, 2025 |
https://www.youtube.com/live/0NM34rw26NI?si=YlygvbcLxTKYqnyD Coming up Wednesday, 12th February, 2025 at 7 pm. Join RNTV for more on the subject |
| Politics › Re: Adeola Fayehun And Kemi Badenoch: The Science Of Government By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 6:04pm On Feb 10, 2025 |
Acekidc4:Consider |
| Politics › Adeola Fayehun And Kemi Badenoch: The Science Of Government By Deji Yesufu by VBCampaign(op): 12:18pm On Feb 10, 2025 |
Adeola Fayehun and Kemi Badenoch: The Science of Government By: Deji Yesufu Kemi Badenoch has been caught up in the eye of the storm again with Nigerians, particularly those in the diaspora. For some inexplicable reasons, Nigerians in the United Kingdom think they elected Kemi into the public office she presently occupies. Therefore she should be enacting policies with her party, the Conservative Party, that will benefit them alone. When you point out the fact that Kemi may have Nigerian roots but she is primarily British, put into office by the British people, they tell you that when Kemi was seeking to be MP (member of parliament) she depended a great deal on her Nigerian roots to curry votes from Nigerians living in the UK. This point can very easily be refuted. Kemi Badenoch is a politician. Politicians work with numbers: “The more the merrier” is usually the spirit that operates on the campaign trail. When they come into office, however, they serve the primary constituency that elected them into office. So, it is not surprising that Kemi courted Nigerian votes and appealed to them to be elected into office – and she will very likely do the same when it is time for the UK to go to the polls again. However, her main goals in office are the British people and helping to solve their concerns. Until Nigerians become the majority voters in Britain, they will have to rest content with a Kemi Badenoch as we have here today. My primary concern in this essay is with regards to a video that Adeola Fayehun made on the recent policy position of the Conservative Party, which Kemi leads, where they made it clear that their party will champion laws that will make it increasingly difficult for foreigners to become UK citizens. In a video that Kemi made to make public this policy concerns, which hopefully the Conservative Party will make law when they come to office, Kemi is seen stating that citizenship rights which hitherto could be obtained over a three to five-year period, will now take between ten and fifteen years. Fayehun, in her video, felt that Kemi was unfair to deny others the benefit of a system that she had enjoyed in the past. Fayehun reminded Kemi that when she was born, the UK had birthright policies – where individuals born in the UK were given rights to be citizens of the country merely on the fact that they were born in the UK. A year or two after Kemi was born, the birthright citizenship was cancelled – just as the United States have also cancelled birthright citizenship under Donald Trump this year. Fayehun felt that Kemi ought not to be burning the bridge that she had used to cross over to the UK to obtain a better life for herself and her family. Ignoring the simplistic reasoning behind most of Fayehun’s rant, and the unserious and jocular tone she used in her video, I still think that Fayehun’s video deserves a response. Adeola Fayehun could be regarded as a populist. She makes videos on the internet mostly to reflect the views of those who watch her channel, and since most of those who see her videos are Nigerians, and Nigerians are quite a number around the world, her videos gather viewership and she earns money from the number of views she gets – that is how social media works. So, since her views reflect the position of most Nigerians, particularly those in the diaspora, I think it is worth the effort to respond to what she has said. Nigerians need to appreciate the fact that white people have a strong sense of history. They pay attention to where they are heading to, mostly from a healthy knowledge of where they are coming from. Many white people live off something called “old money” – the inheritances of their fathers. They understand how their parents got this wealth, and they are very careful about preserving these resources, while at the same time bequeathing it to their children’s children. While Nigerians eat family inheritance, and demand that no one question how they use monies stored up in their hands, white men are very careful about preserving their heritages. You visit a white man in his house, and he tells you that he is living in a house that his great-grandparents built in the early 1800s. This sense of history and tradition is even more pronounced with the Conservative Party. So, when Kemi Badenoch joined the Conservative Party as a twenty-five-year-old and then went on to marry a white Conservative Party member, she was learning their ways and committing her life to realizing the vision of these great people. Kemi says in one of her interviews that she is the leader of the Conservative Party today because her husband recognized her gifts and supported her forward. This man one day turned to his wife and said “You are better at this thing than I”, and began to give his wife full support. Kemi has served in many high-ranking offices under governments led by the Conservative Party. Most of us only heard of her after she became the leader of the party, and also the opposition leader. This kind of a person will not suddenly jettison the will and desires of her people, all because she has Nigerian roots. Now, as we examine British history, perhaps it would be good that Nigerians also revisit their history – despite it being a very recent history at that. Many of the things I will write here might seem like news to Nigerians because my generation was sent to school with an accursed syllabus – one buffoon somewhere uprooted history from our curriculum. So that we learnt everything but the history of our country. In the latter parts of the 19th century, the British took over the administration of Nigeria. Before they came, this country was not a nation in the strict sense. We were a conglomerate of nations that were mostly at war with each other. The British brought order to the country by enacting laws for the peaceful running of our society. They also brought forth modern governmental systems. England is a monarchy. Yet, through the years the English people discovered that the science of government was better left to elected persons. That is to say, the people elected a few people to govern them on behalf of the monarchy. The British monarch is not a figurehead, as many of us think. They are a custodian of their history, etiquette, and general way of life. But the very act of governing a nation, via democratic means, must be left to a few people. Britain learnt from the French Revolution that if the monarchy is given absolute powers, and the country is run down, the people will turn on their rulers and there will be endless anarchy and wars. It was this science of government that Britain bequeathed to Nigerians. The story does not end here. After the Second World War, Britain was finding it difficult to cover the whole Commonwealth it held sway over. The British people had lost many able men to the First and the Second World Wars, and the countries that they governed in the Commonwealth were beginning to have educated and able men who themselves could handle the science of government. By the time India gained its independence from the British in 1947, all other countries in the British commonwealth, particularly those in Africa, knew that they also could ask for independence. Britain was ready to give these countries independence but she will not sit back and allow her years of labour and investments to go down the drain. Those who will take over the science of government would have to be able men like themselves. The Action Group, led by Chief Obafemi Awolowo, could read the reasoning of the British and they quickly got to work. Awolowo led a team of technocrats to govern Western Nigeria from 1951 up to 1959. The Action Group had as its goal three things: to serve the people of Western Nigeria in such a way that the people would understand that a black man could do the same thing that the British had done. They also needed to prove to the numerous monarchies on the ground that they were better at handling office than the uneducated old men sitting on some age-long stool. The Action Group also needed to show the British that the black man could handle her affairs. With the success of the Action Group in the South West, and with constitutional democracy beginning to take root in most of Nigeria, the British handed the country to Nigerians to run. And to be sincere, from day-one, the Nigerian people began to make a mess of things. Things eventually culminated in a thirty-month civil war that claimed the lives of no less than three million people. As if Providence sort to give us a second chance, this country entered into an oil boom in the early to mid-1970s and she squandered all her wealth on frivolous things. Today, after a generation has ruined the country, they have now decided to japa and go to their mother country - England. This is why Kemi Badenoch frequently refrains: “I will not allow what happened to my country of birth (Nigeria), to happen to Britain”. And she has every right to this position. Now, to Adeola Fayehun’s credit, she did mention in her video that Nigerians must commit to fixing their country so that this incessant embarrassment of her citizens abroad will cease. But the fact that it was a passing comment, shows that it was not a point she wished to emphasise. It is unfortunate that Fayehun has lived abroad for so long and still does not understand the mindset of the white man. The white man understands that he is here for only a moment. He understands that he has a duty to posterity to leave his country better than he met it. The white man is concerned with his name and reputation – rarely concerned with the money he can make from a system. It is the reason why British people are quick to resign from public office. They understand that such an office is not their birthright; that they are holding trust for generations to come. They also understand that if they fail in office, the only thing that will be said to their credit is that they resign when the people who put them in office lose confidence in them. Rather than castigate Kemi Badenoch, Nigerians should learn from this woman. First, learn what party ideologies and policies mean. Then understand how public office is run and held in trust. And then imitate what is good. There is no reason why Nigerians should not jettison this extremely expensive presidential system of government. The United States can run this type of government because they are a very wealthy country. Nigeria could consider returning to the Parliamentary System of government. Where there is a party in power, pursuing to implement policies. Where there is a healthy opposition keeping them on their toes. And where the public is watching the debate, observing whether or not the party in power is meeting expectations. And where they fail, they are simply voted out of office. Kemi Badenoch is not Nigeria’s problem. I hope that Adeola Fayehun’s viewers will understand this. Deji Yesufu is the pastor of Providence Reformed Baptist Church Ibadan. He is the author of HUMANITY. Source
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