EXCELLENT HOME TRUTH FOR THE DISCERNING, FAIR MINDED YORUBA

BY OLUWOLE ADESINA

If I were to be the President of Nigeria, I will order the Commissioner of Police for Yoruba States to publish their crime reports at local government level backdated for one year in all the National Dailies, and then invite Alaafin for a meeting at the Villa.Alaafin’s recent Open Letter to the President is uncalled for and un-diplomatic. Whoever wrote the letter shouldn’t have included Hausa-Fulani in it. Alaafin should have walked into the Villa to register his displeasure to Mr President without mentioning any tribe responsible for the security lapse in some states in Yoruba Land.Without mincing word, Alaafin danced to the tune of the Nationalists. And it is sad. It seems we (Yorubas) don’t learn from history or refused to allow history to guide us.Adolf Hitler BLAMED the Jewish tribe for the economic crisis in Germany which made Jews the endangered people and ultimately led to the Second World War. The unsuspecting Germans fell for Hitler propaganda machine and they paid dearly for it.

In Ghana, General Fred Akuffo and President Hilla Limann BLAMED the Yorubas in Ghana for their economic crisis which ultimately led to the exodus of Yorubas out of the country to Lome, Togo while some moved up North to Ivory Coast. Fortunately for Ghanaians, Some radical left officers led by JJ Rawlings saw through their leaders lies and did the needful. Out of respect for Nigeria and Nigerians Rawlings moved their General Elections slated for October 1st, 1979, which happened to be our Independent Day a week backward.Ghanaians enjoyed political and economic stability under the leftist regime of Rawlings and Ghana is the only country out of four colonised by Britain that have not experienced civil war or uprising.In America, Trump BLAMED the Mexicans, Chinese and African America for all the problems in America and we know the result of his lies.Americans decided to vote him out of power in their recent Presidential Elections.In Britain, Boris Johnson BLAMED the EU citizens for the economic crisis here so he used their trademark to pull the entire country out of the UNION for his selfish interest.Are we better of now since EU citizens are no more taking their jobs or out of the Union? The answer lies with the Nigerian-British citizens.In Nigeria, Gov Ortom BLAMED the Fulani herdsmen for the insecurity in his state in order to win the second term in office and Benue unsuspecting voters fell for his lies.Is there any need to mention those caught for the insecurity in Benue State?Now, Gov Rotimi Akeredolu has joined them to blame Fulani herdsmen for his failure and cluelessness in office. Here is the question:What is the motive of Akeredolu for blaming Fulani herdsmen for security problem in Ondo state?

What is Akeredolu doing with his Security Vote?Did Alaafin deliberately mentioned Hausa-Fulani in the letter because the Commander-in- Chief is one?Why didn’t Sultan of Sokoto mention the tribe responsible for the insecurity in his state?*Are the Yoruba going to miss the opportunity to govern Nigeria again because of Nationalists’ propaganda?*New African Mag= Mr President Mandela: Blacks have political power but hold no economic power. White South Africans still dominate the economy. Mandela: I know Blacks still live in poverty despite having political power, but my job as the President is to roll out programme to alleviate their economic woes. *What has Akeredolu done to solve the security issues in his state?*A proactive Gov with sense of objectivity and patriotism will liaise with Security Agencies to form security outlet like Ambode/Sanwo-olu did in Lagos to tackle the problems.Ambode/Sanwo-olu never ever blamed any tribe for security issues in Lagos state so why Aketi?*How many Fulani herdsmen were among the suspects paraded today in Akure?* None.Do Alaafin and Aketi realise we have Rawlings in the Armed Forces who saw through their lies and propaganda?What happened after “Ghana Must Go” crisis in the 80s? Did Nigeria turn to London and New York?Since we blame the President for all the security problems in the country while Govs are blameless, can we then amend the constitution to stop the Security Votes given to the Govs while we give the money to someone else to be in charge of security in each state?After all, No Gov is in charge of security in any state in America, but Mayors. Sadiq Khan (Mayor of London) is in charge of the security in London and not the PM or any MP. Govs are pocketing billions of the security votes without doing anything while the president take the blame for their cluelessness. Trust me. The Nationalists will not have their way. They will not and cannot divide the country through their lies. The military will step in in case of any uprising in the West. Diplomacy equates to emotional intelligence.

Yorubas are infatuated with Academic intelligence while majority of them have zero emotional intelligence. The Northerners might not ‘have’ Academic intelligence, but their Emotional intelligence is top notch . Their emotional intelligence gives them the advantage to be ahead politically in Nigeria. Southerners’ pride and ego is responsible for their downfall, and they will fall again if the likes of Governor Akeredolu are not called to order.*TRUTH is bitter, but it heals the wounds*Let us have the courage to tell ourselves the bitter and gospel truth, and stop the game-blame. At the time of national crisis like the one at hand, we should avoid primordial sentiments and preach one Nigeria, one destiny. May Allah intervene in all our affairs and keep Nigeria as one indivisible and indissoluble Political Entity.

TACKLING THE CURRENT SECURITY CHALLENGES AND THE NEED FOR CAUTION

By Senator Ahmed M. Makarfi
 
 
 
At every level of development, every society or nation cannot escape being confronted by challenges of various hues; the test for the strength, cohesion and maturity of the society and its system is not in playing the ostrich and trying to pretend that the challenges aren’t real, but in how they are confronted and dealt with. As Nigeria currently faces challenges of monumental proportions in virtually, all spheres of endeavour, it behoves on all of us to come pull together as one to confront and defeat these challenges.
 
Of all the challenges, to me, the biggest and most scary is the seeming breakdown of security in most parts of the country. That the provision of security is the primary purpose of government, is a trite and worn-out cliché, but it bears repeating here. Governments at all levels must therefore strive to remain faithful to this mandate, realising though that they need the support and understanding of all citizens to succeed.
 
Incidences of banditry, kidnapping and other forms of criminalities are becoming the order of the day across the country. Economic and social activities are therefore stalling, leading to a stagnation of our development as a people and a nation. There can be no development without stability; and there can be no stability without adequate security that affords all the chance to pursue various legitimate means of livelihood. And no investor, local or foreign will bring their capital to a place in which security of life and property is not guaranteed. So, North, South, East and West, we need to realise that we are in a deeper pit than we seem to acknowledge.   
 
Governments at all levels must therefore lead the quest for us to get out of this quagmire by upping the ante and tempo of this fight against insecurity in all its ramifications. The rejigging of the security architecture and equipping it with all the necessary wherewithal is paramount. Even though this is government’s primary responsibility, it cannot be effectively shouldered to the exclusion of the citizens. It is therefore incumbent on governments at all levels to embrace all and give all a sense of belonging through inviting and as much as practicable, working on the contributions of all, irrespective of political differences, ethnic or religious background to ensure the success of the fight. Every Nigerian is a critical stakeholder in this project; therefore, all perspectives should be harnessed and deployed in prosecuting this fight.
 
We, the led, must also realise that we have a part to play to ease the burden on the governments. And this we can all do by coming together, setting aside all differences, be they political, religious, tribal, geographical and any other, to launch a massive onslaught on this monster, which does not discriminate on who, where and when it attacks.
 
A situation in which we allow emotions to rule our decision-making faculties, leading to incendiary remarks by some of us from all parts of the Country who ordinarily ought to have known better is a recipe for loss of focus, which ultimately leads to doom. I therefore call on all of us, the leaders and the led, to put on our thinking caps and realise that we are all in this mess together and it takes the coming together of all of us to get out of it.  All of us, across all the partisan and other divides must also guard against the temptation to politicise the issue of security. We must realise that we have to have a country before we can play politics.  
 
Leaders, political, religious, traditional, socio cultural and others must also be smart and guard their utterances and actions, as the handling of some of the issues arising from some of the problems requires sensitivity, delicate balancing as well as the capacity to operate above the fray. It is in this light that I consider the issuance of ultimatums and counter ultimatums to Nigerians living in various parts of the country by leaders and cultural groups across the divides as counterproductive and a far cry from the real solution to the problem. This is not to say however that agitations against criminal elements are to be ignored. People have the legitimate rights to raise their voices against criminality perpetrated by anybody or group, while leaders must rise above sentiments and emotions by looking more broadly and more holistically at issues and their pros and cons, in order to ensure justice to all. In line with this spirit, I welcome the statement by the Chairman of Nigerian Governors Forum to the effect that no ultimatum has been given to anybody by any Governor.
 
 I also call on the Federal Government to intensify its partnership with the States and other leaders to bring an end to the banditry, kidnappings and other criminalities across the length and breadth of our dear Country
 
Governments at all levels would also do well to be more accommodating of critics and criticisms and avoid falling into the trap of always looking at and seeing critics as enemies. Critics are not necessarily enemies, not even opponents; they just happen to see things from different perspectives. By engaging positively with critics, governments have the dual advantage of analyses from alternative perspectives as well as the opportunity to educate the critics on the insights to their own perspectives that the critics may otherwise be unaware of.
 
I condole with families who lost dear ones to the various crises and criminalities arising from this situation of insecurity and also sympathise with those who lost properties or suffered any economic loss and also call on us all to support governments at all levels as they grapple with this challenge.
 
 

 
Senator Ahmed Mohammed Makarfi, CON write from Kaduna Nigeria
 

Point Blank: Mustapha Jokolo replies Bishop Kukah

Nobody can defend the unfortunately continuous denigrating utterances of Bishop Mathieu Kukah against Islam . Don’t even attempt it! If he has any quarrel with President Buhari that’s their onions but any castigation of President Buhari because he is a Muslim will earn him the wrath of every believing Muslim. What a Shame on Dr Ahmad Gummi who teamed up with Bishop Kukah to fly in a “ jet plane” to meet Olusegun Obasanjo to reconcile him with Atiku Abubakar ( who did not hide his hatred for Islam & Emirs especially the late Emir of Gwandu, Alhaji Haruna Rashid, whom he consistently falsely maligned and none of his asssociates called him to order!). We may criticize President Buhari but we must NEVER malign his RELIGION ( Islam) and his Tribe ( Fulani ). Otherwise we shall justifiably fight on his side if it so happens. These are areas that are non negotiable!
If Sultan Saad Abubakar was discerning & had not the temerity to freely open the doors of the Sultanate Council for biased People like Bishop Kukah & Governor Wike of Rivers State to prowl around they would not have the guts to be denigrating Islam, Muslims & Islamic Leaders. Decent Christian Leaders like John Cardinal Onaikan, Arch Bishop Ola Makinde, Arch Bishop Achigil, Arch Bishop Dr Mbang etc will never abuse the hospitality of their hosts. I hope he has learnt his lesson to be less carefreeness & be more circumspect. The less his utterances the better for his dignity & the dignity of the Sultanate. He should at least take a dressing from both his late father, Sultan Abubakar 111 and his late brother, Sultan Muhammadu Maccido both of whom personified the dignity of themselves & the Sultanate.

Try browsing the website of “ DURO ONABULE TODAY, 07059484642 duroonabule @gmail.com” in DAILYSUN Friday, August 28, 2020 titled “Baiting South West and South East “. It will give an insight of what the Yoruba perceive as the ploy by Bishop Kukah, TY Danjuma, Jerry Gana and all those MiddleBelt Noisemakers. The Yoruba are too intelligent to allow anyone pull wool over their eyes.

There was another write up on Bishop Kukah that I wrote in 2005, while on admission in the National Hospital, Abuja, under Pseudonym Modupe Foluwa ( meaning : I am grateful to God )titled “ THIS PRIEST HAS FALLEN “ published in the Daily Trust Newspaper.I shall send you a copy.

We should take note that General TY Danjuma not long ago was denigrating & berating the Military and even inciting the Nigerians to take law into their hands by defending themselves against the Armed Forces of Nigeria who he falsely accused of being biased. Recently, President Obasanjo has been relentless in his personal attacks on President Buhari even predicting that Nigeria will soon go to war. Recall that in 1983 these same Generals denigrated President Shagari which resulted in the 1983 Coup de tat. We have not forgotten their atrocities in ODI & ZAKI BIAM. Now they have Bishop Mathieu Kukah & Dr Ahmad Gummi in their sustained call to arms preaching against President Buhari. We will not expose their plans & treacherous ploys if they had been honourable, sincere & patriotic. But the whole plots are only self serving & not in the interest of Nigeria! Which rulers committed more atrocities in the history of Nigeria like the Duo of Olusegun Obasanjo & TY Danjuma? We are tired of these rotten eggs continuously messing us up.
As for President Muhammadu BUHARI, though I personally believe he is under SPELL and total control of the CABAL led by his nephew, Malam Mamman DAURA, he cannot exonerate himself from the atrocities happening Nigeria. Everyone, high & low have offered wise counsel which he is turning deaf ears to. He will not only answer to the Nigerians but worse, he will answer to the Divine & Supreme Judge, Almighty Allah SWT here on earth and the Hereafter.

The way he came in supported by majority of Nigerians no other leader in the past had it( 17 out of 19 States in the North; 5 out of 6 States in the South West; Edo State in the South South & Imo State in the South East ). He should kindly listen to the advices given him by such notables like Dr Junaidu Muhammad,Hajiya Najaatu Muhammad, Major General Ishola Williams, Col Abubakar Dangiwa Umar, Simeon Kolawole, Chief Duro Onabule, Dr Ahmad Gummi ( when he is not too personal )Sheik Dahiru Bauchi, Sheik Sherif Saleh, Engineer DAURA, Alhaji Tijjani Zangon DAURA, Sheik Yahaya Jingir & scores of others too numerous to mention. He should send Mamman Daura back to Kaduna,drop two thirds of his ministers, change his Security Chiefs ( except DG DSS ), change his Personal Staff. All Boards of Parastatals that need change should be changed.

While making new appointments, he should reflect Federal Character as enshrined in the Constitution of Nigeria. He should also initiate a Constitutional Review to reduce the preponderance of the National Assembly Members to one Senator per State & one Representative per Senatorial District. He should also ensure the compliance of his Executive Order whereby the State Governors should hands off Local Government & State Judiciary Funds. No State Governor should leave his State except on very dire circumstances.

All State Governor’s Lodges must be sold & funds returned to the State Treasury. Abolish State INEC to allow people choose their representatives without the control of the Governors. Monitor the Judiciary & Lawyers at all levels closely & get rid of the bad eggs. Encourage InterFaith Relationship by strengthening NIREC. Establish a National Traditonal Rulers Council with State Council of Chiefs Chairmen as members.

Also have a Commission to discipline the Traditional Rulers like the National Judicial Council is rather than the State Governors . Establish Zonal Presidential Liaison Offices to monitor the Federal & State Activities, to avoid embarrassments like the State Governors hoarding Palliatives, unknown to the Federal Government.

There should also be Committees at Federal, State & Local Governments Levels charged with moral discipline & prayers for Almighty God’s Salvation & Divine Intervention. May Almighty God defend, protect, guide Nigeria & Nigerians, amen,

Alhaji Almustapha H. Jokolo
The former Emir of Gwandu