POS operators buy Atiku Campaign says

naira notes from Tinubu behind naira crisis

petrol stations P25
PDP candidate is public enemy — APC PCC P4

SINCE 1949

NO 1,501 4 FEBRUARY, 2023 NIGERIA’S MOST INFORMATIVE NEWSPAPER N250

Nigerians stage street

www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng

protests over scarcity P3

of Naira notes
•Violence in Ibadan, protesters block roads in Warri, Benin
•I will tackle it in
7 days —Buhari P4

•Makinde suspends campaign, condemns naira scarcity

Protest in Ibadan on Friday Protesters in Ibadan on Friday. Photos: Gbenga Olugbodi.

Tinubu in Ekiti:
Yoruba are not servants, it
is our turn to be president
•Says Feb. 25 election is for liberation P5
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
2 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Klieglight

Nigerian filmmakers
need to show more 
originality —Egbowon
Actor and movie producer, Felix Omolola Egbowon, gives insight into his career and his production
scheme in this interview by ADERONKE ADESANYA.

W
HAT prompted you to begin a career in
acting?
For my career, acting has been a craft that
I have been passionate about from time im-
memorial. Whenever I watched home videos
in my formative years, I so much adored thespians that I got
determined from a tender age that I would make it my ambi-
tion. By the time I got the opportunity to become one, I joined
the Icon School of Performing Art owned by boss, Ibrahim
Yekini Bakare (King Kesari)    Recruiting crew members for a movie production is an im-
 
How long have you been a movie producer and an actor?
I’ve been a movie producerfor two and a half years?
 
How and when did you discover your passion for acting?
Of course, during my formative years, I was always featuring
in drama in school and in the church. All of those made me
passionate about the job.
 
So far, how has the industry been for you? Any challenges?
Incontestably, it has not been easy being in the industry. No
doubt, every field has its own challenges, similarly, acting does
too. But I keep going as a result of my passions for it. It is easy
for an audience to dismiss a movie as unreasonable but it only
takes a professional to know what has gone into any production
psychologically, physically, financially and so on. Well, as I would
always say, our job is our audience’ fun, thus, my passion for
the job keeps me going when challenges surface.
 
Apart from acting, is there any other thing you engage in?
Aside from acting, I have a boutique and I am an entrepre-
neur. However, none of them compares to acting for me.  ie production?
How profitable have acting and producing career been for
you?
I am still in the process. Of course, it is not bad. I’m doing fine.  bers and their skill sets. I would use my network of contacts in
 
Tell us about your latest production, Tani Mi. What was the
inspiration for the movie?
Tani Mi, the movie is a dream come through for me. It’s a
true life story given to me by my boss, Ibrahim Yekini Bakare.
That was supposed to be my first production but I wasn’t ready
for that role then so I produced another one entitled, Jomi .
 
Who is your role model in the industry?
There are a lot of people I look up to in the industry. The list
is endless. My number one mentor is my boss, Ibrahim Yekini
Bakara ( President Kuti).
 
Do you have a dream role?
No, I don’t have a dream role. I can play any role, I love a
challenging role.
 
How do you go about recruiting crew members for a mov-
portant part of the job for a movie producer. My approach to
recruiting would begin with researching potential crew mem-
the industry, such as other producers, directors, actors, etc.,
to find out who has the best experience and skill set for any
particular project.
 
How do you react to a negative review of a your work?
Negative reviews are part of the tools that will make me do
better next time. I love it when people correct me. I’m open
to correction. I can separate negative criticism from positive
criticism. Both are useful. We can’t know it all.
CONTINUES ON PAGE 14

3 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Feature
Nigerians
protest
scarcity of
cash, fuel
•Violence in Ibadan; protesters
block roads in Warri, Benin
Funmilayo Aremu, Wale Akinselure | Ibadan, Ebenezer
T
Adurokiya | Warri and Idahosa Moses | Benin City
HE scarcity of cash and fuel rocking the country took
a disturbing turn on Friday with protests turning
violent in Ibadan, Oyo State, and angry protesters
blocking major roads in Warri, Delta State, and in
Benin, Edo State.
In Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, many frustrated residents
who found it difficult to get cash from their bank accounts
took to the streets and major roads to express their anger.
From Mokola to Iwo Road to the Dugbe axis of the city,
residents protested, shouting “enough is enough.” Chants
of “there will be trouble”; “Give us our money”; “We are
tired of queuing”; “The government is wicked” rang out as
the protesters blocked roads and made bonfires to show
their displeasure at the scarcity of new naira notes and fuel.
As passers-by and onlookers went about their businesses,
some held leaves while others attached them to the wip-
ers of their cars, tricycles and to motorcycles to show their
solidarity with the cause. Some of them attempted to make
their way into the governor’s office at the Agodi Gate area
of the city.
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
Protesters on the streets of Ibadan on Friday. PHOTOS: GBENGA OLUGBODI.
Speaking to Saturday Tri-
bune, some of the protesters
lamented the hardship being
faced by Nigerians.
One of the protesters said:
“People are hungry. I have
not been able to eat well be-
cause I do not have cash. After
queuing for hours in the hot sun, I ended up withdrawing
N1000 and sometimes, I don’t get any because the ATMs are
loaded with inadequate sums.
“We see videos of people spraying these new notes at
parties and the ordinary man can’t have access to them.
Where did they get them from? Do they want to kill us? We
are tired of the hardship. We said we wanted a change, we
wanted good governance from the present administration
but from the look of things, they are bent on frustrating and
killing us before they vacate the seat of power,” she fumed.
A passer-by expressed anger at the government. He said:
“With the way things are going, I do not see this election
happening this month. People are suffering. The little money
we have in the banks, we can’t spend. After taking everything
from us, is the next thing on the agenda killing us?
tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
“The POS operators are behaving like gods, how can we
pay money to receive money? Does it make any sense? The
election cannot hold with the current situation of things.”
Another angry youth told Saturday Tribune that: “Nobody
should go to work; this country has to be shut down before
they hear us out. We are tired.
“This protest should have started long before now. My
children are at home, they cannot go to school because we
are trying to ration and there is no money to live on. I tried
to withdraw some money from a POS point yesterday and
I was charged N1,000 for N5,000. I had to spend the last
money I had on me to buy some food.”
The protesters also stormed the Oyo State Secretariat,
Ibadan, destroying properties in sight and visiting violence
on any human being attempting to obstruct their march.
CONTINUES ON PAGE 8

4 www.tribuneonlineng.com
News
Give me 7 days to resolve currency crunch, Buhari tells Nigerians
•Vows crackdown on policy saboteurs •We told him to extend CBN deadline —Ganduje
P
Leon Usigbe | Abuja
RESIDENT Muham-
madu Buhari on Fri-
day urged Nigerians
to give him seven
days to resolve the
cash crunch that has be-
come a problem across the
country from the policy of
the Central Bank of Nigeria
to change high value Naira
notes with new ones.
His plea came while speak-
ing to the Progressive Gov-
ernors Forum who came
to the Presidential Villa to
seek solutions to the cash
squeeze, which they said
was threatening the good
records of the administra-
tion in transforming the
economy.
According to a statement
issued by Garba Shehu, Se-
nior Special Assistant to the
President Media and Public-
Tinubu behind naira crunch, Atiku/Okowa Campaign Organization alleges
Leon Usigbe | Abuja
THE Atiku/Okowa Presiden-
tial Campaign Organisation
on Friday blamed the current
cash crunch in the country
on the Presidential Candi-
date of the All Progressives
Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed
Tinubu, describing him as
the real enemy of Nigerians.
This is contained in a state-
ment issued by spokesper-
son of the campaign, Kola
Ologbondiyan, in response
to the claim by the APC
flag bearers allegation that
his PDP counterpart, Atiku
Abubakar, is an enemy of
the people over his advice
to the federal government
not to extend the deadline
for currency swap.
The former vice president
had instead called on the
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
Taiwo Amodu | Abuja
THE All Progressives Congress
Presidential Campaign Council
has described Atiku Abubakar
as enemy of Nigerians.
Bayo Onanuga, Director,
Media and Publicity, APC
Presidential Campaign Coun-
cil made the declaration in a
statement on Friday.
While reacting to agitation
for extension of the dead-
line for naira swap, the PDP
presidential candidate had
said: “There should be no
further postponement of the
new naira regime after the
expiration of the February 10
deadline.”
He further argued that
“the CBN and the presidency
should be steadfast. The mer-
its of the new naira policy far
ity, President Buhari said the
currency re-design will give
a boost to the economy and
provide long-term benefits
while expressing doubts
about the commitment of
banks in particular to the
success of the policy.
?Some banks are inefficient
and only concerned about
themselves?, the statement
quoted him as saying, add-
ing: said ?even if a year is
added, problems associated
with selfishness and greed
won?t go away.”
He said he had seen tele-
vision reports about cash
shortages and hardship to lo-
cal businesses and ordinary
people and gave assurances
that the balance of seven
of the 10-day extension will
be used to crackdown on
whatever stood in the way of
successful implementation.
?I will revert to the CBN
•APC candidate backing the massess —APC PCC
to review its current circula-
tion strategy to make cash
more available to Nigerians.
In the Friday statement, the
Atiku/Okowa Campaign Or-
ganisation insisted that “Ti-
nubu is the mastermind of
the new naira notes crunch
who had made the people
to suffer untold hardship
ever known in our national
history.”
The campaign alerted Nige-
rians of “a high-level racket
through which Tinubu is
reported to have been sabo-
taging the system, intercept-
ing and diverting millions
of new naira notes meant
for distribution to Nigerians
for his selfish ‘Emilokan’
purposes.”
The statement added: “It
is indeed despicable that
Tinubu, knowing that he has
been exposed of being re-
Atiku is Nigeria’s public enemy —APC PCC
outweigh the little inconveni-
ence we are experiencing.’
Onanuga in the statement
claimed that the PDP pres-
idential candidate whom he
said dismissed the agony
being encountered by Nigeri-
ans at banks as “Little incon-
venience”, was not bothered
about the plight of the people
he is seeking to govern.
Onanuga further alleged
that the PDP presidential
candidate was in league
with those he described as
economic saboteurs “and
fifth columnists among the
operators of money deposit
banks and oil marketers who
created the current logjam
to force the outcome of the
February 25 presidential
election in favour of the
former Vice President.
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
and the Minting Company.
There will be a decision
one way or the other in the
remaining seven days of
the 10-day extension,? the
President assured.
The Governors told the
President that, while they
agreed that his decision on
the renewal of currency
was good and they are fully
in support, its execution
had been botched and their
constituents were becoming
increasingly upset.
They told the President
that, as leaders of the gov-
ernment and party in their
different states, they were
becoming anxious about a
slump in the economy and
the series of elections that
are coming.
They requested the Presi-
dent to use his powers to
direct the concurrent flour-
ish of the new and old notes
sponsible for the biting cash
crunch on Nigerians, is seek-
ing to divert public attention
from his heinous crime by
criticizing Atiku Abubakar’s
widely applauded patriotic
call for the extension of cur-
rency swap deadline
“Our campaign challenges
the APC presidential can-
didate to come clean on
allegations that he has been
using his various special
purpose vehicle (SPV) com-
panies as well as officials
in some APC-led states to
intercept and mop up cash
to the detriment of millions
of Nigerians.
“In the desperation to
cover his tracks, Tinubu,
in his elements, as the Ni-
gerian ‘Artful Dodger,’ has
mounted a campaign of
calumny against the Federal
Government on the scarcity
“Our candidate, Bola
Ahmed Tinubu courageously
pitched his tent with the
poor masses who have been
most negatively impacted
by the antics of these evil
doers.”
The statement reads in
part: “This poorly imple-
mented policy has turned
Nigerians to destitutes be-
cause they cannot access
their own money in their
bank accounts. People can-
not get money to give their
children to school or pay
for daily needs at corner
shops, fruit shops, including
buying newspapers. Transac-
tions in market places have
plummeted.
“The CBN governor gave
insight into the nature of the
problem when he revealed in
Nigerian Tribune
till the end of the year.
The President said when
he considered giving the
approval to the policy, he
demanded an undertaking
from the CBN that no new
notes will be printed in a for-
eign country and they in turn
gave him assurances that
there was enough capacity,
manpower and equipment
to print the currency for lo-
cal needs.
He said he needed to go
back to find out what was
actually happening.
President Buhari told the
Governors that, being closer
to the people, he had heard
their cries and will act in a way
that there will be a solution.
The All Progressives Con-
gress (APC) governors were
believed to have requested
for the meeting to try to
get the President to shift
grounds on the cashless pol-
of the naira while secretly
intercepting and diverting
the notes for his selfish use.
“It is despicable that the
Tinubu campaign will be
engaged in the activities
that are responsible for the
scarcity of the naira, for
which Nigerians are suffer-
ing untold distress, yet he
mounts the soap box to cre-
ate the impression that he is
the champion of the people.
“It is also worrisome that
the person claiming to be
concerned about the plight
of Nigerians is actually the
one responsible for their
woes and at the same time
urging them towards insur-
rection.
“In any case, we are not
surprised that the APC presi-
dential candidate can engage
in such activities against Ni-
gerians given his reputation
Daura last Sunday that out of
the N3.3 trillion in circulation,
only N500 billion is in the bank
vaults. So far, only N1.9trillion
had been received by the
banks for swap.
“But people are not getting
the new notes to spend, thus
triggering the huge anger in
the land against Emefiele.
“We, thus, find it ludicrous
that a man who joined the
call for an extension of the
deadline last week is champi-
oning a new campaign against
further extension because he
feels the suffering of Nigerians
will serve his own political
end to become president at
all costs.
“Atiku said callously: ‘There
should be no further post-
ponement of the new naira
regime after the expiration
tribuneonlineng
icy implementation, which
had engendered some hard-
ship among citizens.
Governor of Kaduna State,
Nasir el-Rufai, has recently
assumed the vanguard of
the ruling party governors
pressing for the review of
the cash swap policy, which
he argues, is targeted against
the presidential candidate of
the APC, Bola Tinubu’s elec-
tion bid by those he said are
elements within the Villa.
He was at the meeting also
attended by the Chief of
Staff to the President, Prof.
Ibrahim Gambari.
The Special Adviser to the
President on Media and
Publicity, Femi Adesina, told
waiting correspondents af-
ter the meeting that there
would be no briefing, saying
that a statement would be
issued on the outcome.
O th er APC govern o rs
as a “bullion van” politician.
“Our campaign urges Tinu-
bu to own up to the frustra-
tion that Nigerians are pres-
ently confronting and stop
shedding his usual crocodile
tears.
“Moreover, it is clear that
the Tinubu campaign has
taken to this despicable
route in its desperation to
incite Nigerians, trigger crisis
and position Tinubu as the
liberator.
“Nigerians are not unaware
that Tinubu has bluntly re-
fused to advise this admin-
istration on the negatives of
its policies just because he
(Tinubu) wanted it to fail to
enable him to appear as a
messiah.
“It is absurd that Tinu-
bu prioritised his ambition
above the wellbeing of over
200 million Nigerians on be-
of the February 10 deadline.’
“Anchoring his objection
on the wrong reason, he said
further: ‘The CBN and the
presidency should be stead-
fast. The merits of the new
naira policy far outweigh the
little inconvenience we are
experiencing.’
“In passing off the suffering
of our people as ‘little incon-
venience’, Atiku only comes
across as a political leader dis-
connected from the Nigerian
people that he is campaigning
to govern. Certainly, living
comfortably in Dubai for many
years has drained Atiku of all
empathy.
“This is a man who wants
to be president and does not
mind even if he presides over
the graves of Nigerians as long
as his inordinate ambition
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
sighted at the meeting are
those of Ebonyi, Ogun, Imo,
Zamfara, Kebbi, Yobe, La-
gos, Kano, Kwara, and Niger
states.
But speaking on his way
out of the villa, Governor
Umar Ganduje of Kano State,
told correspondents that
the governors requested
the President to extend the
deadline for the swapping of
old currency with the rede-
signed notes.
“Our request is for the dead-
line to be shifted. Not only
shifted but the old currency
should go along with the new
currency until the old cur-
rency dies a natural death.
Which is possible,” he said.
On whether President Bu-
hari gave any assurances
that there requested would
be honored, the Kano gover-
nor stated: “He said he will
look into that.”
half of whom Atiku Abubakar
appealed to the Federal Gov-
ernment to ameliorate the
situation and ensure that the
new naira notes are made
available to the people.
“Nigerians have only but
pity for the APC presidential
candidate as all his machina-
tions to malign Atiku Abuba-
kar has always failed in the
face of the truth.
“Our campaign counsels
Tinubu to immediately make
confessions, offer restitution
and ask for forgiveness from
Nigerians.
“It is instructive for Tinubu
to also accept the reality of
his defeat on February 25
as Nigerians have reached a
consensus to elect the presi-
dential candidate of the PDP,
Atiku Abubakar, who is set to
provide the solutions to our
national challenges.”
materialises in line with the
prophecy of his marabouts.
“It is crystal clear to every
Nigerian of conscience now
that Atiku Abubakar and PDP
do not mean well for our
country. PDP and Atiku have
become desperadoes who will
wish calamity on the country
as long as it makes them win
an election they are destined
to lose, spectacularly.
“Atiku is now public enemy
number one in Nigeria. He
must be rejected at the polls
on 25 February.
“If Atiku Abubakar has the
poor people of our country
at heart like Bola Tinubu, the
PDP candidate will not be
advocating for adherence to
a policy that has become a
burden too heavy to bear for
our people.”

5 www.tribuneonlineng.com
News
Group Managing Director/CEO, United Bank for Africa Plc, Mr. Oliver Alawuba and governor of Anambra State, Professor Charles Soludo, dur-
ing a business visit by UBA to the governor in Awka, Anambra State on Friday.
Tinubu in Ekiti, says ‘it is Yoruba’s turn,
this election is for liberation’
T
‘Yomi Ayeleso | Ado-Ekiti
HE presidential can-
didate of the All Pro-
gressives Congress
(APC), Senator Bola
Tinubu, has declared
that the February 25 election
is a liberation election that
should produce a Yoruba
man as president.
He also said that he was
ahead of those planning to
scuttle the election with the
hoarding of the new naira
notes and scarcity of fuel
across the country.
Tinubu, who spoke on Fri-
day in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti
State capital, during the
APC presidential campaign
rally, alleged that unnamed
individuals in the corridor
of power were planning to
create an atmosphere of in-
stability, postpone the presid-
ential election and impose an
interim national government.
He reiterated his earlier po-
sition that it is the turn of the
Yoruba to produce the pres-
ident of the country, saying
“this election is yours. It is the
election you will use to liber-
ate yourselves.”
He said: “Eyin omo Yor-
uba! Eyin omo Yoruba!! Eyin
omo Yoruba!!! (Children of
Yoruba). Whose turn is it?
Relax. If you hear rumblings;
if someone is not pursuing
something, then something
Galaxy S-23 offer excites Glo, Samsung customers
MOBILE Network operator,
Globacom has struck an ex-
clusive deal with world’s
leading manufacturers of
electronic devices, Samsung,
on the new Galaxy S-23 smart
phone.
Shedding light on the ex-
clusive offer, Globacom ex-
plained in a press statement
issued in Lagos that: “For
the first time in Nigeria, we
are bringing exclusive offer
for Glo customers & lovers
of classy and hi-tech phones
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Globacom is fully committed
to innovative and bring value
is pursuing someone. This
coming election is your elec-
tion. Is that not so? It is the
election you will use to liber-
ate yourselves… They want to
turn us to servants. They lie.
We are not servants.”
The APC standard-bearer,
who spoke in Yoruba at the
rally, declared that “those
who kept the new currencies
in their vaults would eventu-
ally release them,” urging suf-
fering Nigerians not to fall for
the ploy to provoke them to
take to violence and anarchy
over the scarcity of the re-
designed currencies.
Tinubu also slammed sus-
pected saboteurs who are al-
legedly hoarding Permanent
Voter Cards (PVCs) and pre-
venting eligible voters from
collecting them.
He urged those yet to col-
lect their cards to “continue
to be on the neck of those
holding on to your cards until
they release them to you.”
The former Lagos State gov-
ernor urged the electorate to
vote for all APC candidates in
the February 25 National As-
sembly elections and March
11 governorship and House
of Assembly elections “be-
cause the party offers a plat-
form for good governance
and responsible leadership.”
He said: “They locked up
money. Trek to your polling
units, vote and stay with your
adding services that provide
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subscribers”.
The company said further
that the offer include exten-
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Similarly, Glo Customers
can trade-in their old devices
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sung Galaxy S-23 Series with
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Only Glo subscribers will
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SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
vote.
“I use God to beg you, this
matter is not fight, don’t fight
them. Those who locked up
your money will eventually
unlock it. They are doing it
to get you angry so that you
can become violent and they
can postpone the election to
bring an interim government.
We are wiser than them and
equally ahead of them. The rat
that eats poison will kill itself.”
Earlier, the Ekiti State gov-
ernor, Biodun Oyebanji,
urged the people of the state
to vote massively for the APC
and Tinubu to reciprocate his
good deeds and love for Ekiti
over the years.
Oyebanji said: “All of us
have decided to vote for Asi-
waju and there is no cause for
alarm. Ekiti people, you have
all decided to give your votes
to Asiwaju and the ballot
boxes will be full with votes
for him because he has al-
ways stood by us and we are
going to appreciate him with
our votes on February 25.
“Let us go back to our
wards, homes, churches,
mosques, markets and other
places to spread the gospel of
Asiwaju to the electorate. Tell
your people to collect their
PVCs. Those who are still
without their PVCs don’t love
Asiwaju.
“Asiwaju’s votes are our
votes and we must all join
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Glo said “Pre-ordering
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Nigerian Tribune
hands to ensure his victory.
Let us elect all APC candid-
ates for Senate, House of
Representatives and House
of Assembly with our votes.”
The immediate past of the
state, Dr Kayode Fayemi, said
Tinubu stood by Ekiti when
the progressives were in the
trenches, urging the people
of the state to reciprocate the
good gestures of the APC pres-
idential candidate at the polls.
Also, the senator rep-
resenting Ekiti Central dis-
trict, Opeyemi Bamidele,
expressed confidence that
Ekiti electorate would vote
massively for Tinubu based
on his track record in gov-
ernance.
Bamidele, who is seeking
re-election on the platform of
the APC, described Tinubu as
a thinker with great intellect
and unflagging focus for good
governance and should suc-
ceed President Muhammadu
Buhari at the expiration of his
tenure in May.
The chairman of the Sen-
ate Committee on Judiciary,
Human Rights and Legal
Matters added that Tinubu
had developed a blueprint to
rewrite Nigeria’s history and
inject good governance in the
body polity.
He gave the assurance
that Tinubu was not seeking
power to gamble with the
country’s destiny.
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Glo enjoined its subscribers
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adding, “If you are planning to
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pre-order the Galaxy S-23
smart phone. All you need to
do is pay N200, 000 (non-re-
fundable) at your nearest
Gloworld shop. Those who
pre-order their smart phone
will be eligible for pre-order
gifts from Samsung”.
tribuneonlineng
Osun PDP Congratulates Former
Governor Oyinlola on 72nd
birthday anniversary
Adeolu Adeyemo | Osogbo
THE Osun State Chapter of
the People’s Democratic
Party (PDP) has rejoiced
with a former Governor of
the State, Prince Olagunsoye
Oyinlola as he celebrated his
72nd birthday on Friday.
In a statement signed by
the Caretaker Chairman, Dr
Adekunle Akindele, the PDP
lauded Prince Oyinlola as a
good ambassador of the party
who superintended the admin-
istration of the state between
2003-2010, a period still re-
garded as the golden era of
democratic governance and
development in Osun state.
FCTA to strengthen synergy with Soil
Science Institute to boost food security
Lawrence Bajah | Abuja
THE Federal Capital Territory
Administration (FCTA), has
pledged its commitment to
working closely with relevant
Agricultural institutions in Ni-
geria towards boosting food
and economic security.
This assertion was made
by the Permanent Secretary,
FCT, Mr. Olusade Adesola
when he received on behalf
of the FCT Minister, Mallam
Muhammad Musa Bello,
members of the Governing
Council of the Nigeria Insti-
tute of Soil Science led by its
President, Professor Ayoade
Ogunkule during a courtesy
visit.
Stressing the importance
of soil to human survival, Mr.
Olusade, expressed concern
on the rate of soil degrada-
tion in the country, emphasiz-
ing the need for government,
individuals and all concerned
to accord desired attention
to issues that will enhance ef-
fective soil management.
He assured that the FCT Ad-
2023: Ondo PDP warns against
returning APC to power
Hakeem Gbadamosi | Akure
THE Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) in Ondo state has
warned Nigerians against re-
turning the All Progressives
Congress (APC) to power say-
ing the party has taken the
nation into crisis.
The PDP urged Nigerian
voters to use their Permanent
Voter’s Cards (PVC) to vote out
the APC and their candidates
in the forthcoming general
election. It said the return of
the ruling APC to power will be
terrible as they have inflicted
untold hardship on Nigerians in
the last eight years.
The Chairman of PDP in the
state, Hon. Fatai Adams, as-
sured Nigerians that the party’s
presidential candidate will turn
around the country and revive
the country’s economy.
Adams who maintained
that Atiku would restore
peace and revamp the eco-
nomy if trusted with the man-
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
Dr Akindele described
Prince Oyinlola as a pragmatic
personality, whose deep
sense of culture and humor
cannot be overemphasized.
“Former Governor Oyinlola
is a father and leader of the
state, whose tenure as Gov-
ernor remains the reference
point in the administration of
the state. We celebrate him
and wish him many success-
ful years ahead?
“On behalf of leaders and
members of our great party,
the PDP, I wish our father,
a great benchmark of good
governance, Prince Olagun-
soye Oyinlola more fruitful
years on earth,” the PDP said.
ministration will through its
relevant Secretariats, Depart-
ments and Agencies (SDA?s)
take measures that will fur-
ther bolster existing collab-
oration with the institute to-
wards improving the quality
of soil and adding value to the
development of the FCT
Earlier in his remarks,
President of the Council
Prof. Ayoade Ogunkunle,
explained that the institute
was an agency under the Fed-
eral Ministry of Agriculture
and Rural Development with
its Act enacted and signed
by President Muhammadu
Buhari on February 3, 2017.
The institute he stated was
charged with the mandate of
not only regulating soil man-
agement, but also its profes-
sional practice in Nigeria. He
disclosed that the institute
currently has over 350 re-
gistered soil scientist with
offices in the six geo-political
zones of the Country offering
professional counsel to Ni-
gerians on effective ways of
soil utilization.
date in 2023, assured Nigeri-
ans that the PDP candidate
would rescue Nigeria from
hunger, poverty, and also re-
store unity in the country.
He lamented the present
situation in the country and
said the economy is in a dire
strait as the country heads
towards insolvency, and said
“you can see what Nigerians
are witnessing now.
“There’s scarcity of fuel and
money. This is unacceptable
and we urge Nigerians to
reject the APC at the polls.
Things are very worst in the
country under APC, we now
have ATM queues, petrol sta-
tion queues, PVC queues.
“I want to implore Nigerians
to get their PVCs ready and
show them the way out and
the only party that I believe
that can rescue us, that can
rebuild our economy, reset
our educational sector and
guarantee the security of lives
and property is PDP.

6 www.tribuneonlineng.com
News
From left, Managing Director, Rural Electrification Agency ( REA), Mr Ahmad Salihijo, Minister of State for Power, Mr Jedi Agba, and board
member, Rural Electrification Agency (REA), Muhammed Kabir, during REA management retreat in Abuja, on Friday. Photo: Sunday Osunrayi.
Buhari, Jonathan, Tinubu, Obi, others to attend
‘Day of Tribute’ for Mbazulike Amechi
P
Collins Nnabuife | Abuja
R E S I D E N T
Muhammadu
Buhari is expec-
ted to attend the
‘Day of Tribute’,
which is part of the pro-
gramme for the funeral
of a foremost statesman,
nationalist and one of the
last remaining fathers of
Nigerian Independence,
Chief Mbazulike Amechi.
Vice President, Professor
Yemi Osinbajo is also ex-
pected at the event, which
is slated to hold on Tues-
day, February 7, 2023, at
the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua
centre, Abuja.
This was confirmed in
the programme of the
event put in place by the
Northern Coalition demands immediate reversal of
cash swap, withdrawal limit policies
Collins Nnabuife | Abuja
The Coalition of North-
ern Groups (CNG) has re-
iterated its demand for
the immediate reversal
of the cash withdrawal
limit policy of the Central
Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and
the time set for the ex-
change of old naira notes
saying Nigerians should
no longer be expected
to continue to tolerate
the high handedness of
the CBN that is already
pushing the nation to the
brinks.
A statement by CNG
spokesperson, Abdul-Az-
eez Suleiman, described
the insistence of the
CBN Governor on a short
deadline for the naira
swap and limit for cash
withdrawal as insensitive,
unthoughtful and a clear
recipe for disaster.
“The CNG finds it curi-
National Planning Com-
mittee for Funeral of Chief
Amechi, which has Chief
Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu as
Chairman.
Former President of Ni-
geria, Dr Goodluck Ebele
Jonathan is expected to
Chair the occasion, while
the Senate President,
Senator Ahmed Lawan
and Speaker of the House
of Representatives, Hon.
Femi Gbajabiamila were
invited as the Special
Guests of Honour.
Presidential candidates
of the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) All Progress-
ives Congress (APC) and
Labour Party (LP) Alhaji
Atiku Abubakar, Senator
Bola Ahmed Tinubu and
Mr Peter Obi respectively
ous that an individual
appointee of government
would assume such arrog-
ant larger-than-life status
to push harsh difficult
conditions on an entire
nation just to achieve his
personal desires.
“It is important for God-
win Emefiele to begin to
accept the reality that
no one owns Nigeria and
Nigerians and that the na-
tion is angry and would
not be expected to toler-
ate, accommodate or con-
done destructive actions
by officials who choose to
play God,” Suleiman said.
CNG, however, warned
that there is already a
raging national anger
over the mass suffering
brought about by the eco-
nomic policy.
“It is the peak of official
impunity to insist on the
imposition of and imple-
menting a financial policy
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune
are among those invited
for the programme.
The chairman of the
planning committee of the
‘Day of Tribute’ in Abuja is
Senator Ben Obi.
The burial is slated for
16th February, 2023 at
Ukpor, Nnewi South Local
Government Area of
Anambra State.
Several State Governors,
Ministers, party chieftains
and members of the Dip-
lomat Community have
already indicated their in-
terest in attending the pro-
gramme.
Similar ‘Day of Tribute’
has been scheduled to
take place at the Interna-
tional Convention Cen-
ter (ICC), Awka, Anambra
State, for the late national-
in an unstable economic
environment, that lacks
the necessary infrastruc-
ture to operate it.
“Based on this, the CNG
hereby categorically re-
jects in its totality any
further attempt to throw
the nation into confusion
by a single individual’ ri-
gidity, whoever that indi-
vidual may be.
“We condemn with all
our might the suspicious
rigid desperation by
Emefiele to implement
these policies without en-
suring the intensification
of public enlightenment
about the cashless system
so that everybody will be
acquainted with the sys-
tem, since there is a high
rate of illiteracy.
“We reject these ig-
noble policies sought to
be imposed on Nigeri-
ans without government
providing uninterrupted
@nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
ist by 12 noon on Tuesday,
14th February 2023.
Various committees have
already been set up for
the success of the funeral.
One of such is the Finance
Committee, which has
former Senate President,
Senator Anyim Pius Anyim
as the Chairman.
Also, a 39-member State
Organizing Committee,
SOC, of eminent person-
alities has also been con-
stituted in Anambra State
to assist the National Plan-
ning Committee in organ-
izing a befitting funeral for
Chief Amechi
The 39-member SOC
has Chief Innocent
Chukuwuma, as Chairman
and Chief Maja Umeh as
Co-Chairman.
power supply and ad-
equate communication
link. ‘The imposition of
these policies without ad-
dressing the issue of net-
work failure is also suspi-
cious, smacks of a hinden
agenda and therefore
unacceptable,” the state-
ment said.
“Finally, the CNG holds
that it is unacceptable for
a single individual to be
allowed to hold the entire
nation to ransom in the
pursuit of his personal
political agenda having
lost the bid to contest the
presidency.
And for the avoidance
of doubt the CNG may be
left with no option than to
join the calls for a nation-
wide sustained protest if
the CBN fails to make the
new naira notes available
and readily accessible,”
the Group said.
tribuneonlineng
NDE begins vocational training
for youths in Ekiti
‘Yomi Ayeleso | Ado-Ekiti
THE National Directorate
of Employment (NDE) has
commenced another round
of vocational training for
youths in Itapa-Ekiti, Oye
Local Government Area of
Ekiti state.
The Director General of
NDE, Mallam Abubakar
Nuhu Fikpo who spoke dur-
ing the flag off of the training
in Itapa-Ekiti said the event
was on the agency’s School-
On-Wheels programme tar-
geted at the rural areas.
Represented by the state
coordinator, Olugbenga
Sanusi, the DG explained
that the agency is determ-
ined to end poverty in the
society with regular voca-
tional skills for unemployed
youths in the state.
He added that the train-
ing in the community was
aimed at giving the youths
in the rural areas equal op-
portunity with their counter-
parts in the urban area with
apprenticeship training for
them to be self-reliance and
be financially independent.
According to him, “the
School-On-Wheels is a spe-
cial Scheme of the NDE that
focuses on bringing voca-
tional skills training to the
S/Court affirms Kefas Agbu as PDP
governorship candidate in Taraba
•Victory, stepping stone in working for Taraba
development —Kefas Agbu
Sunday Ejike | Abuja
THE Supreme Court on Fri-
day, affirmed Colonel Kefas
Agbu (Rtd) as the governor-
ship candidate of the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) in
Taraba State for the March
11, 2023 governorship elec-
tion in the state.
The judgement of the apex
court, delivered by Justice
Emmanuel Agim, upheld the
decision of the Court of Ap-
peal sitting in Yola, Adamawa
state which dismissed two
different suits challenging
the eligibility of Kefas Agbu
to contest the governorship
primary election of the PDP
in Taraba state.
The twin appeals dismissed
by the Apex Court were
those by two contenders
for the governorship ticket,
Hilkiah Bubajoda Mafindi
and Jerome Nyameh.
The court, in the judgment,
held that the appellants ac-
ted in breach of Section 84
and 87(9) of the Electoral
Act by failing to make use of
the primary election dispute
mechanism as contained in
the party’s guidelines.
In the light of this, both ap-
peals were deemed prema-
ture and lacking in merit as
they were instituted without
exploring the internal party
options to seek redress be-
fore heading to the court.
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
doorsteps of youths in rural
areas, so as to avail them
equal apprenticeship op-
portunity that is available in
urban areas.
“It makes use of the Mo-
bile Training Workshop
(MTW) as the training out-
let. This opportunity brought
to you is to launch you into
self-employment and hence,
wealth creation. We need to
de-emphasizing white collar
jobs and placing premium
on self-reliance!
“He advised the twenty be-
neficiaries to be diligent and
remained committed to the
training for them to change
their status in the society and
improve the socio-economic
development of the state.
“I therefore advise you
to be diligent, respect your
trainers and be your own
master. This way, you will
increase your societal status
and contribute to the so-
cio-economic growth of your
community.
“Punctuality, they say, is the
soul of business. Therefore,
your trainers have been given
Registers to record this. Al-
ways carry your Identity Cards
and fill your Log Books with
your daily learning activities,
with diagrams and illustra-
tions where necessary.
The apex Court also stated
that failure of the appellants
to include other aspirants
who took part in the primary
election at the early stages
of the trial robbed them of
rights to fair hearing.
It would be recalled that
Kefas Agbu at the governor-
ship primary election of the
PDP won the contest with
443 votes out of the 517
votes cast.
In his reaction after the
judgement in Abuja, Kefas
Agbu said the judgement
of the Supreme Court was,
a stepping stone for us to
work for the development of
Taraba state.
“It is a victory for all. The
PDP, as a political party has
been working and will con-
tinue to work to put in the
right people for the develop-
ment of the state,” he added.
The Yola division of the Court
of Appeal had, in November,
last year, affirmed Kefas Agbu
as the governorship candidate
of the PDP in the State.
The three-member panel
of justices of the Appellate
court dismissed the appeal
brought by Professor Jerome
Nyameh challenging the rul-
ing of the Federal High Court,
Jalingo, which earlier upheld
the primary election that
produced Kefas Agbu as PDP
governorship candidate in
Taraba State.

7 www.tribuneonlineng.com
News
From left, Chairman, ANCOPSS, Mushin Zone and Principal, Birch Freeman Senior High, Mushin, Olabisi Mojisola Ogunmefun; Princi-
pal, Ilupeju Senior School, Masheyi Olushola Abayomi; Director of Science and Technology, Lagos State Ministry of Education, Grace
Akinfoyewa; Chief Executive Officer, X3M Ideas, Steve Babaeko and Principal, Ilupeju Junior Secondary School, Bosede Oyetade, at the
unveiling of X3M Ideas’ CSR Project - A Reading Hub for students of Ilupeju Senior Secondary School, Lagos, recently.
Flood destroyed N700 billion investment in
agriculture in 2022 —Report
A
Collins Nnabuife | Abuja
report by the Na-
tional Agricultural
Extension and Re-
search Liaison Ser-
vices (NAERLS) has
shown that the 2022 flood
in the country ravaged about
N700 billion worth of invest-
ments in the agricultural sec-
tor.
Presenting the executive
summary of the report to the
Minister of Agriculture and
Rural Development, the Ex-
ecutive Director of NAERLS,
NPC flags off training for facilitators, specialised workforce in Oyo
By Oluwatoyin Malik
THE National Population
Commission (NPC) in Oyo
State on Thursday flagged
off its state level training
for facilitators and special-
ised workforce for the 2023
census exercise in the state.
Speaking during the flag-
off, the Federal Commis-
sioner of the NPC in the
state, Dr Eyitayo Oyetunji,
said those undergoing the
training of the 2,000 facil-
itators and 686 specialised
workforce is being conduc-
ted across five centres in the
state.
Atiku tackles El-Rufai over currency crisis
PRESIDENTIAL candidate
of the Peoples Democratic
Party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar,
on Friday, condemned Gov-
ernor of Kaduna State, Mal-
lam Nasir el-Rufai, for his
recent comment on the cur-
rency scarcity crisis across the
country.
A statement by Atiku’s
spokesman, Phrank Shaibu,
accused the Kaduna State
governor of playing politics
with the pains of the people.
“At a point when the masses
of Nigeria are groaning under
the weight of the currency
crunch, it remains inglori-
ous that the Kaduna State
governor would, rather than
sympathise with the masses,
prefer to go on political en-
Professor Emmanuel Ikani
said the floods damaged
crops and destroyed agricul-
tural land, leading to reduced
yields and economic losses for
farmers.
He said it is estimated
that there are over 3000
gully erosion sites in the 10
most-affected States in the
South-East, South-South, and
Southwestern parts of Ni-
geria.
“Soil water also contam-
inated the soils and makes
them less fertile, leading to
longer-term impacts on crop
Dr Eyitato said with Ibadan,
the state capital, having two
centres, other centres are in
Oyo, Iseyin and Ogbomoso.
He said: “The centres were
deliberately spread into the
major zones of the state to
ease the accommodation
and transportation of parti-
cipants.
“The NPC is devoting pri-
ority attention and effort to
training primarily based on
the understanding that the
success of the census exer-
cise will very much depend
on the quality of personnel
that will be deployed to the
field to collect the census
tanglement over the issue.
“For the avoidance of
doubt, the currency crisis
(and indeed all other crises),
as it stands today, is a mess
created by the APC and it will
be imprudent of the Kaduna
State governor or anyone
else to associate the PDP or
its presidential candidate,
Atiku Abubakar, with the
crisis.
“It is curious why Governor
el-Rufai and other elements
of his ilk in the APC had to
wait this long before they
found it contingent to speak
in disapproval of policies ini-
tiated by their own political
party. Perhaps, it is because
for them, self-interest in an
election season is more im-
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
and animal production. The
economic value of the agricul-
tural-related losses due to the
2022 flood was estimated to
be about N700 billion.
“The 2022 flooding situation
damaged roads, bridges, and
other transport networks,
making it difficult for people
to travel and for agricultural
goods to be transported. The
flood also damaged agricul-
tural stores and warehouses.
“The flood had serious con-
sequences for human popula-
tions, including loss of life, in-
jury, and displacement. It led
data.”
Also speaking, the Com-
missioner for Local Gov-
ernment and Chieftaincy
Matters in the state, Mr
Olasunkanmi Olaleye, said
that the training of the fa-
cilitators, who are expected
to go ahead to train super-
visors and enumerators at
the local government level,
is critical to the success of
the census in the state.
The commissioner, there-
fore, charged the people of
the state to cooperate with
the field functionaries in
making a success of the ex-
ercise.
portant than public interest.
“We know those politicians
who keep stacks of money at
home and in bullion vans to
buy votes. They are the ones
who the once upright Mallam
el-Rufai comes to the open
to defend, and they are the
ones who are afraid of the
currency change policy.
“As a matter of fact, the
lingering fuel scarcity and,
indeed, the currency crisis
of which el-Rufai so bitterly
complained about did not
just start today. In major cities
across the country, Nigerians
have been contending with
the problem of fuel scarcity
for almost two years in some
places like the Federal Cap-
ital Territory, while el-Rufai
Nigerian Tribune
to the spread of waterborne
diseases and disrupted access
to clean water and other ne-
cessities.
“As of September 14, 2022,
many communities in Borno,
Adamawa, and Yobe States
regions had reported cholera
outbreaks, with 586,110 and
320 cases, respectively, and
nearly 300 have died”, he said.
Professor Ikani said com-
munities and governments
need to work together to im-
plement measures to reduce
the risk of flooding and its im-
pacts in Nigeria.
Speaking further, the com-
missioner said: “I want to
assure you that as a govern-
ment, we are aware of some
constraints and problems
encountered at the previous
exercise, but we believe as
we move on, all these will be
smoothened and we shall
imporve on that.”
On the issue of security for
the officials, Mr Olaleye said:
“I want to solicit the cooper-
ation and support of secur-
ity agencies in Oyo State in
providing adequate security
for the protection of lives
and properties of the func-
tionaries.”
and others crying foul in the
APC turned blind eyes to the
plight of Nigerians.
“On the contrary, Atiku
Abubakar and the PDP have
persistently brought the at-
tention of the country to the
sufferings of Nigerians by the
APC administration in the
past almost eight years.
“Nigerians surely know
better who loves them more
between Atiku, who has re-
mained on the side of the
masses, and the presidential
candidate of the APC, Bola
Tinubu, who has never come
out in defense of the people
against the hardship that the
APC has subjected the coun-
try to since it took power in
2015.”
tribuneonlineng
Majolagbe becomes Lagos NIEE
chairman, promises to promote
circular economy
Dayo Ayeyemi | Lagos
THE Nigerian Institution of
Environmental Engineers
(NIEE) Lagos State chapter, a
division of the Nigerian Soci-
ety of Engineers (NSE), has
sworn in Mr. Yusuf Majolagbe
as its 5th chairman.
Majolagbe by this investit-
ure, will be steering the affairs
of the association for the next
two years.
The event, which took place
at Ikeja GRA, Lagos, was at-
tended by CEOs of compan-
ies, Lagos State government
officials, traditional rulers,
permanent secretaries, policy
makers and engineers among
others.
One of the traditional rulers
in attedance was the On-
itetiku and Olu of Owode Otta
Kingdom, Oba Dr. Adeyanju
Akanni Wasiu Ogungbayi.
In his inaugural speech, the
newly sworn in Chairman of
Lagos NIEE promised to work
with members, public and
private sectors to promote
sustainable circular economy
for Lagos State and by exten-
sion, Nigeria.
Mojolagbe also promised
to work for the promotion
of the importance of envir-
onmental engineering and
support the growth of the
Vote competence, character,
resist financial inducement-interfaith
group tell voters
Collins Nnabuife | Abuja
THE Interfaith Dialogue
Forum for Peace (IDFP) has
asked Nigerian voters to
vote for candidates based
on character, competence
and capacity as they cast
their votes during this year’s
general election.
This is contained in a com-
munique signed and issued
by the Co-Chairmen of IDFP,
Dr. Yusuf Yakubu Arrigasiyu
and Reverend Amos Kiri at
the end of a Two-Day Peace
Conference and 5th Gen-
eral Assembly of Interfaith
Dialogue Forum for Peace
(IDFP) held in Abuja.
IDFP is a faith-based or-
ganization made of 120
Christian and Muslim lead-
ers across Nigeria.
Reading their recommend-
ations, Dr Arrigasiyu urged
Nigerians, especially politi-
cians to embrace love and
patriotism for the country.
He said “IDFP urges Ni-
gerians to vote for candid-
ates based on character,
competence and capacity
during elections for a pro-
gressive and peaceful Ni-
geria.
“IDFP urges the building
of strong and resilient eth-
no-religious structures that
emphasizes religious har-
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
profession through training
programmes, workshops,
seminars and as well as
providing resources and net-
working opportunities for
members.
Besides, he assured mem-
bers that his administration
would build on the successes
the association had achieved
over the years, describing
the investiture ceremony
as “a momentous occasion
not just for the chapter, but
for the entire environmental
engineering community in
Nigeria.”
He craved the support of
the newly-inaugurated ex-
ecutive members, whom he
described as “partners in pro-
gress” so that members could
witness “a circular economy
pathway system in Lagos
State.”
He promised to work to
serve the institution, pointing
out that NIEE by rights, ought
to be one of the strongest
and most relevant divisions
under the Nigerian Society
of Engineers, given that all
engineering disciplines affect
the environment.
According to him, the prac-
tice of engineering, by its
nature, impacts and influ-
ences the environment in one
way or the other.
mony, inclusive leadership
and social justice.
“IDFP calls for effective
collaboration among all
critical stakeholders before,
during and after the elec-
tions regarding planning,
deployments, voter edu-
cation, monitoring and in-
formation sharing to ensure
that votes count.
“IDFP calls on INEC to
conduct adequate training
on the use of the BVAS to
their personnel and provide
prompt alternatives to
faulty BVAS where neces-
sary.
“IDFP calls on religious
leaders to preach peace and
not divisions and hatred.
“IDFP calls on Nigerians
to reject every form of fin-
ancial and material induce-
ments for their votes and
encourages the National
Assembly to speedily pass
a law for the establishment
of “Electoral Offences Com-
mission” to work against
impunity in election manip-
ulations.”
IDFP also called on Ni-
gerians to work together to
ensure that all voters are
empowered with enough
information that will enable
them make wise choices and
know the implications of let-
ting their voices be heard.

8 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Feature
Makinde suspends campaigns as protests rock Ibadan
•Protesters block roads in Warri, Benin
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3
Wielding sticks, woods and other dangerous weapons, the
protesters forced open the two main gates of the secretariat
with security operatives taking cover.
It was a chaotic scene at the state secretariat with civil ser-
vants and people within the secretariat scrambling for safety.
The rampaging protesters subsequently made their way
to the governor’s office where they attempted to force the
gate open.
While the protest lasted, the demonstrators made bonfires
around the state secretariat.
Meeting stiff resistance from the security operatives on
duty who fired shots into the air, the protesters resorted to
throwing stones and other objects into the governor’s office.
A police officer attached to the governor’s office was in-
jured in an attack by protesters.
The officer had attempted to calm the protesters but he
was stoned and injured.
A reinforcement of an Operation Burst/police team saved
the situation that would have degenerated into a major
crisis.
The protesters were loud in stating that the protest was
against the hardship faced as a result of scarcity of cash
and fuel.
Speaking after the protest, the Executive Assistant on
Security to Governor Seyi Makinde, Mr Sunday Odukoya,
bemoaned the violent turn that the protest took and called
for calm.
Makinde suspends campaign
In the wake of Friday’s protests in Ibadan, Governor Seyi
Makinde announced the indefinite suspension of his re-
election campaign.
The governor, who made the announcement after flagging
off the 10-kilometer Omi Adio-Ido road in Ido Local Govern-
ment Area, said he could not be campaigning as the people
were faced with undue hardship.
The governor was due to campaign in Ido Local Government
Area on Friday while the campaign train was to move to Oluyole
Local Government Area today.
A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr
Taiwo Adisa, on behalf of the media committee of the gover-
nor’s re-election campaign council, quoted him as saying: “I
appreciate all the leaders and stakeholders who are ready for
the campaign activities for today and I thank you for coming
to meet us here today.
“But unfortunately, I will have no choice but to suspend our
campaign. So, after this flag-off, I will return home, because
there are protests in town and there is a lot of hardship with
this issue of the scarcity of the new naira notes.
“A lot of our people have money in banks but they are not
able to get their money. Some of us campaigning are not able
to access funds. Maybe they do not want us to campaign.
“But I promise the people of Oyo State that I will continue to
work for them till the last minute of the last day of my tenure.
I am working for them and what this means is that if there is
hardship and people are protesting, I should not be on the
campaign trail. I should go there and look after their interests.
“I have told the powers that be that if we don’t leave politics
aside and face governance squarely, with the scarcity of naira
notes and the growing frustration, EndSARS will be a child’s play.
I pray that the leadership in this country will come together.
“I am also part of the leadership and I will take part of the
blame on what is currently going on, because I am also occupy-
ing a very high position in the country today.”
The statement also quoted the Director-General of the Seyi
Makinde Campaign Organisation, Chief Bayo Lawal, as saying
that Governor Makinde’s decision to suspend the campaign was
not only commendable but in tune with the current realities.
“It is clear that we are all victims of the new naira policy of
the Federal Government. His Excellency has shown leadership
by suspending the campaign until we are sure sanity is prevail-
Makinde flags off Omi Adio-Ido road project
THE governor of Oyo State and candidate of the Peoples Demo-
cratic Party (PDP) in the March 11 governorship election, Mr Seyi
Makinde, on Friday flagged off the 10-kilometer Omi Adio-Ido
road project in Ido Local Government Area.
Makinde, according to a statement by his Chief Press Secretary,
Mr Taiwo Adisa, said: “After the flag-off, the contractors will continue
their work. We don’t have cash also. We do transfer to the contrac-
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
Protesters on the streets of Ibadan on Friday. PHOTO: GBENGA OLUGBODI.
ing,” Lawal said.
Angry women block major roads in Warri
Aggrieved market women in Warri, Delta State, stormed major
roads and banks on Friday to protest the lack of the new naira
notes to do their businesses.
Expressing frustration in accessing the new bills, having been
made to deposit their old notes, the women also lamented the
scarcity of petrol, the price of which now ranges between N500
and N700 at filling stations.
The women barricaded the popular Warri-Sapele Road and the
NPA Expressway with some laying siege to an old generation bank
near Ogbe-Ijoh Market in Warri South Local Government Area.
The women pulled down canopies of the said bank which
were meant for customers to queue under.
One of the protesters, a fresh fish seller, who identified herself
as Laiye from Odimodi, said she had suffered untold hardship
due to cash scarcity.
The fish seller, who wore a net mask on her face, lamented
that she had not made any sale since the acute scarcity of the
naira notes began.
Meanwhile, a commercial bank in the Warri Garage area re-
portedly allowed only its staff members access to its automated
teller machines (ATMs) to withdraw cash while allegedly denying
customers access to the machines.
The protesters barricaded the Warri-Sapele Road with
tyres, wooden tables and other items to ventilate their
displeasure.
Another set of placards-carrying women traders from Iron
Market and Main Market blocked the NPA Expressway to
press home their demands.
They threatened to boycott the coming general election if
their plight is not addressed quickly.
The protesters, who sang solidarity songs to condemn
their inability to access their money in banks, disrupted traffic.
The women from the various market groups lamented that
hike in transport fares, scarcity of cash and prohibitive Point of
Sales (POS) service charge were crippling their business.
Some of the traders, while speaking to newsmen, revealed
that they now battled fake alerts and pay up to N2,000 to get
N10,000 worth of banknotes.
They called on the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other
relevant authorities to address the situation.
tors executing our project so that they can continue to do our work.”
The governor told the people that the project was meant
to ease transportation to the Ido Train Station, adding that
residents of the area would experience increase in the value
of their properties when the project is completed.
He advised residents and land owners in the area not to sell
their lands anyhow as, according to him, the development ef-
tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
Protesters storm streets in Benin
In Benin City, Edo State, residents on Friday blocked the busy
King’s Square (Ring Road) in protest against lack of access to
their money in banks.
The protesters, who were mainly youths and bank customers,
chanted solidarity songs to vent their anger.
Vehicular movement was halted for several hours and motor-
ists were forced to use alternative routes to their destinations.
This was even as the protesters played football in the middle
of the road.
They resisted pleas from a detachment from the state police
command and men of the state traffic management agency
who were on hand to control the traffic.
One of the protesters who identified herself as Itohan Omo,
said: “I was at the bank on Thursday but they said there was
no money, and they were giving people N2,000, which did not
get to my turn.
“I came to collect money to stock my home with food but
they said no money. At the end of the day, I could not get
even N1,000.
“I was in the bank all through yesterday but I got nothing.
I didn’t even have money to buy water. I had to go to UBA
because I also have an account there. That was where I was
able to drink water.
“I came here today (Friday) but the situation persists. Ev-
erybody is angry and because no bank official is attending or
listening to us, we decided to block the road and play football in
order to attract the attention of the government to our plight.
“I am a woman. I need to go to the market but I can’t get my
money. My money is with this bank.”
On his part, Osagiede Osagie said he came to the bank and
was told that there was no money.
“I came to the bank and was told that there was no money.
No money, no light, no fuel. We don’t have light but we
were buying fuel. All of a sudden, they said that there was
no fuel again and they are selling it for N600 per liter. I am
a business person. I just came to get money to do my busi-
ness but I can’t do anything now.
“Government is not giving us any money. Why would
they cajole us to bring all our money to the bank and all
of a sudden, you can’t get one naira from your money
again? This is a terrible situation and God will judge
them,” he lamented.
forts being made by his administration will affect the standard
of living positively.
He declared that his administration was seeking approval
from the Federal Government to dualise the Omi Adio-Apata
Road, while also applying for a train station in the Ologuneru
axis to further ensure that the Lagos-Ibadan train service is fully
enjoyed by residents of Oyo State.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
9 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Ask the doctor With Dr. Wale Okediran

+234 8035 765 553 (sms only) | waleokediran@yahoo.co.uk

My chronic toothache Coping with epilepsy

My low sperm count
WHEN I noticed that my sperm
was watery, I went for a Sperm
Test only to discover that I have
a low sperm count. Unfortunate-
ly, all my efforts to correct this
anomaly with medications have
proved abortive. Your kind assis-
tance will be appreciated.
Dele (by SMS)
Low Sperm count can be
caused by many factors. Apart
from infection, a blockage or
affectations of the Spermatic
tubes or testicles can also lead
to low sperm count. It is for this
reason that you need to seek
proper medical investigations
since the condition is curable
I have been having problems with
my teeth for the past two months.
On a recent visit to the dentist, I
was told that I need to remove
one of my teeth. This will be the
4th time I will be doing this in the
last two years. Is there something
else that can be done apart from
tooth extraction? I don’t want to
lose another tooth.
Beatrice (by SMS)
with appropriate medical treat-
ment. Infection is the common-
est cause of low sperm count
while testicular failure is an-
other cause. The condition oc-
Due to recent advances in Den-
tistry, not all cases of decayed
teeth needs to be removed. This is
because a special part of Dentist-
ry known as Restorative Dentistry
has been developed to restore
teeth that otherwise would have
been extracted. In other to access
this kind of facility, it is advisable for
you to see a Specialist Dentist at the
nearest Dental Centre to you.
curs when the testes fail in their
duties to produce the male hor-
mone called testosterone which
makes men develop muscles and
appear masculine and produce
sperm which is used to fertilise
a woman’s eggs. For a man to
be considered to have normal
semen, the World Health Organ-
isation’s criteria state that such
a man must produce 15 million
spermatozoa per millimetre of
ejaculated volume or 39 million
in the entire sample. Although
having a low sperm count can
make it more difficult to con-
ceive naturally, successful preg-
nancies can still occur with a low
sperm count.
MY 6-year old son was recently di-
agnosed to be epileptic. Although
he has been placed on medica-
tions, I will appreciate it if I can
know how to cope with his case.
Bintu (by SMS)
Although the most important
management of Epilepsy is drug
medication, it is also important to
protect your son from any harm
My father’s urinary incontinence
MY father who is now 75 years of
age has been having problems re-
taining his urine as he constantly
dribbles. Kindly let me know what
to do to help him.
Ogboru (by SMS)
Urinary ncontinence is a com-
mon affliction among older peo-
ple and can have a deleterious
impact on their everyday lives,
with evidence also of consider-
able unmet needs. It is important
for your father to seek a medical
opinion in order to confirm the un-
derlying causes of his problem. This
will give his doctors the proper di-
rection on how to handle his prob-
lems. In addition to this, other ways
to handle his problem includes the
use of absorbent products, such as
by keeping him away from fire,
a pool of water or anything that
cause him injury in case he devel-
ops a seizure. It is also advisable for
him not to be involved in any ex-
tremely physical activity which may
trigger any seizure. He should be
oaky once he takes his medications
regularly. Depending on the type of
Epilepsy, he could even outgrow the
ailment as he matures in life.
pants or pad as well as the provision
of. handheld urinals. In addition, he
can be provided with a catheter (a
thin tube that is inserted into the
bladder to drain urine). If all these
fail, a device that is placed into the
u-rethra to prevent urine leakage
such as Artificial Urinary Sphincter
(AUS) can be prescribed by the at-
tending specialist doctor for your
father.

My premature ejaculation Is this COVID-19 infection?

I am a 20- year old undergraduate
in one of the Institution of Higher tions? I am a 60 year- old retired
Learning in the country. My prob- teacher and I hardly go out of the
house.
lem is that when I am in bed with
Serena (by SMS)
my girlfriends, I quickly ejaculate.
This has caused me a lot of strain Even though tt has been con-
with my girlfriends. Your kind ad- firmed that some people who
vice will be highly appreciated. have been vaccinated for Covid
Busayo (by SMS) still develop the ailment, such
cases are usually very mild. In
It is believed that a large per- addition, some new variants of
centage of those who suffer from Covid infections have been re-
Premature Ejaculation (PE) are eases. If however, these diseases and reassurance. This is easier cently incriminated with some
the anxious and nervous type with exist, they would be treated. How- done when you have an under- new infections. It is also impor-
ever, if it is discovered that there standing and steady partner. In A few days ago, I came down
usually feeling of low esteem. It with cold, catarrh, joint pains, tant to note that Malaria and
can also occur among high achiev- is, no medical basis for your ail- this kind of situation, marriage some Viral infections can also
ment then you would need some is advisable because it will af- and fever which did not improve
ers who are usually in a hurry and after taking some antimalarial mimic Covid Infection. It will
find it difficult to relax. A smaller counselling on the psychological ford the kind of genial and calm therefore advisable for you to be
drugs. I am wondering if I can
percentage of patents usually causes of premature ejaculation. atmosphere which the treat- treated for this while a test for
still have Covid infection after
have an underlying ailment such When an individual suffers from ment of the ailment desires. As taking three anti-Covid vaccina- Covid infection can confirm your
as haemorrhoids (pile) hyper- low esteem he usually finds it for those who are always in a correct diagnosis.
tension or diabetes. Therefore, difficult to control his sexual hurry, there is the urgent need to
the first line of treatment is for
you to see a doctor who will give
urge and thus the quick ejacu-
lation. Similar incidents may
reduce their work load and create
more time for relaxation. They
Our weight problems
follow due to the same anxious should not see sex as just another I am 55 years of age, married with
you a general medical examina-
state with the development of a item on their busy schedule which 4 children. My husband and I are
tion including some laboratory both on the fat side and we don’t
tests. Through this, we can rule vicious circle of event. The treat- must be done away with as quickly
ment is mainly that of support as possible. like our sizes. Despite going to the
out any of the above named dis- Gym on weekly basis, we have
not been able to cut down on our
Eating bread at 70 years weight. Kindly let me know what
we can do about this.
I have been eating bread since I was a child. I love Ngozi (by SMS)
bread especially fresh bread so much that I like to eat
it on a daily basis. I am now 70 years of age. Kindly let It has been confirmed that the
me know if I can still be eating bread. most effective way to lose weight
Mr Tee (by SMS) is to reduce the amount of calo-
ries and by extension, the food
Even though bread is good for everybody whatever consumed. Exercises only plays a
the age group, people in the 70- year age bracket are minor role in the weight losing ef-
usually advised to eat more of brown bread which is fort. Therefore, you and your hus- of calories. Instead, you should
believed to be more beneficial for their health. How- band will be able to lose weight consume a lot of cereals, fruits
ever, where brown bread is not available, white bread faster by reducing the amount of and vegetables which apart from
can be consumed in moderation. food consumed especially fast and healthier, contain a lower amount
fried foods which consists of a lot of calories.

10 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Feature
11-yr-old girl accuses dad of having sex with her
•Accused man, wife, daughter trade words
B
By Oluwatoyin Malik, Crime Editor
OLATITO (not real name), the mother of an
11-year-old girl (name withheld) allegedly
defiled by her father, one Kareem, has told of
how her daughter came to her on the night of
Sunday, January 15, to unburden her heart on
how her father had been committing incest with her in
her absence.
The 33-year-old suspected pedophile was arrested by
the Oyo State command of the Nigeria Security and Civil
Defence Corps (NSCDC) after a case of defilement was
reported on January 17.
The NSCDC Public Relations Officer, Oyindamola Okun-
eye, at a press briefing, told newsmen that Kareem, who
lives at the Papa area of Idi Osan, Ibadan, had carnal
knowledge of his 11-year-old daughter following which
the case was reported at the command.
However, the suspect, who spoke of his relationship with
the girl’s mother, their separation and care for the girl,
denied defiling his daughter.
How I got to know –Mother
However, the girl’s mother, in an interview witth Satur-
day Tribune, said: “I was not in the country when all these
things were happening. I was in Oman. We had parted
ways before I travelled and he remarried. I came back
to the country on January 2 but my daughter was earlier
brought by her father to my family house to celebrate
Christmas with my father and siblings. It is true that on
January 15, I followed Tunde (the suspect) to attend a
wedding ceremony in Osogbo, Osun State.
“However, on my return the same day, my daughter
came to me at night, saying she needed to speak to me
about something bothering her. She came with my sister.
I thought they had an argument; I didn’t know she had
already opened up to her over the issue she wanted to
discuss with me.
“My daughter told me that her father had sexual inter-
course with her when I was not around. I asked her why
she would say such a reprehensible thing about her father.
She said she was not lying. I told her to lie on the bed and
I checked her private part. I wanted to see if she was tight,
as expected of a girl of her age, but to my shock, she was
so open in that area.
“The next day, I took her to a private hospital for medical
examination. After checking her, the doctors told me that
her hymen was no longer intact; that about three fingers
could conveniently be inserted in her private part. They
asked my daughter questions and she told them that her
father had constantly had sex with her.”
But in an interview, Kareem denied defiling his daughter.
He said: “My family is from Ede, Osun State, but I was
born in Ibadan. I finished secondary school but did not go
further. I learnt the vocation of motorcycle and generator
repairs. I am the fifth of the eight children my mother had
for my father. My father has children from another wife.
“I met my former wife when I was about 20 years old and
just finished apprenticeship. She was in Senior School 2 at
that time. She got pregnant and her parents were angry
with me. They threatened me with arrest and so I went
into hiding. My parents went to plead on my behalf and
she moved in with them. She gave birth to our daughter.
“At that time, I was working for a politician, now de-
ceased (name withheld), running errands for him. I was
not staying at home. I went home once in a while. I started
dating another young lady. With my absence from home,
the mother of my child packed her belongings and left for
her parents’ house.
“I moved to Osogbo when I did not get help from the
politician. I was just being used. When I came back to
Ibadan, my wife said she would go with me to Osogbo.
My daughter was about two years old. From Osogbo, I
moved to Lagos and started working as a security man. I
told my wife to return to Ibadan and stay with my mother.
My father had just died.
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
“After some months, we returned to Osogbo where
we had our second child, a boy. At a point, there was no
I woke up and met him on top
of me. As I wanted to scream
in pain, he covered my mouth
with his hand and warned me
not to tell anyone.
Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
means of survival for me. I returned to Ibadan with my
wife, living in my father’s house. She was unhappy. She
went away one evening after I left home to hustle as a
commercial motorcyclist. I took my daughter to my sister’s
house while my son was with his mother. After about a
year, I married another woman.
“In my daughter’s school, we were told that she was not
interested in learning and was always sleeping. She later
said that my sister was beating her. I fetched her from my
sister’s and took her to my mother. I left for Aba in Abia
State to work. I was there when my mother became ill
and died. I took her back to my sister. As of that time, her
mother had travelled to the Middle East country, Oman.
“I was concerned about my daughter’s academic per-
formance and so on request, I took my daughter to the
woman who gave me a motorcycle on a hire purchase
arrangement. She was a retired teacher.
“However, my daughter ran back to my home after a
while, in late 2021 but my new wife didn’t like her stay-
ing with us. Sometimes I made her stay with my half
brother’s family whom I share my father’s house with,
but my daughter would say that she wanted to stay in
her father’s room. We had just a room where I lived with
my new wife and her two children. We were all staying
in the room with my daughter.
“On December 24, I called my daughter’s aunt to come
and pick her for Christmas celebration. Her mother was
also back from Oman and was with the family. She didn’t
let me know that she had heard something until I was
invited by a radio station over the matter. When I got
there, I was asked about my daughter’s accusation that I
constantly defiled her when she was with me.
After that, I was arrested by the civil defence. My daugh-
ter insisted that I started to defile her when she came to
live with me. I believe it is my enemies that are at work.”
However, in her statement at the NSCDC office, the
11-year-old girl said her father had sexual intercourse with
her usually when his current wife was cooking outside or
had gone to the market. She said her father’s first sexual
assault on her was in the night when she was awoken by
his penetration. She said he had continued to sleep with
her since then.
The girl told her story in an interview with Saturday Tri-
bune: “I went to stay with my father after the death of his
mother. One day, I was sleeping in the room. I didn’t know
when my father came in and removed my pants. I woke
up and met him on top of me. As I wanted to scream, he
covered my mouth with his hand and warned me not to
tell anyone. His wife was right outside and he had locked
the door. I bled and he used a rag to clean me up.
“The next day, I walked with difficulty and this was
noticed by his siblings. When he was told, he did not say
anything. I couldn’t tell anyone because he threatened
to kill me if I did.
“The second time he did it, my stepmother was cook-
ing outside. After that, he was doing it periodically.
Sometimes he would lure me in under the pretext of
wanting me to do something for him. He did it whenever
my stepmother went to the market, was cooking or was
sitting outside.
“He didn’t allow me to go to my maternal grandparents’
home until my maternal grandmother died last year.
When I started going there, I couldn’t tell anyone because
of his threat.
‘How I opened up’
“On Saturday, January 14, I was with my aunt. She is the
last born of my mother’s family. She is two years older
than me but we interact on a first-name basis. My mum
is the first born. I sat with her that day and told that I
my mind was burdened. I told her what my father had
been doing to me. She was shocked. We decided to tell
my mother the next morning but she had left home very
early. We told her when she came back.
“When my father was invited by the civil defence, he
denied initially but he later confessed to having sex with
me. He also confessed to his siblings.”

11 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Women, Wealth & Wills
With Omolara Garuba, LLB., BL. | 07056676746 | talktolaragaruba@gmail.com
The love of money is the root of all evil
A
FTER this, a lot of you will have to reassess
your financial stability. Check your financial
well-being.
I am a proud 65-year-old woman, sixty-five is
that age when you can speak to anyone, you
can say anything and get away with it, after all not many
people are older than me here…abi… Vicar se.. bi.. I am
free to speak my mind. Mrs. Oxbridge asked the Vicar.
Yes, you are free grandma. He answered smiling and
whispering a few words to his wife beside him.
Money is a subject that many of us shy away from, in
fact when we were kids not many parents talk to their
kids about it.
When I was growing up, we were taught not to discuss
money. My parents told us that money is the root of all
evil and discussing or talking about it makes one evil”.
They were always quick to quote that part of the bible
that says “The love of money is the root of all evil”.
When I grew older, i realized that money is a good thing,
and this made me resentful towards my parents because
of the mentality I grew up with” exclaimed Mrs. Oxbridge.
My question to you all right now is; What Is Your Mindset
about Money?
What thoughts and phrases pop into your head when
you think about money?
I will say money is neither bad nor good; it’s simply a
tool. Money serves a simple purpose: it facilitates the
Windows
Ademola Adeleke and the Osun mandate thieves
WERE Nigeria a nation of truth, the Osun State governor,
Senator Ademola Adeleke, would by now be in his second
term of office. Having clearly won the 2018 governorship
election in the state, Adeleke was defeated by INEC, which
conducted a rerun election in the state while it had previously
declared the APC candidate winner in a Kogi State by-election
with the same facts as the Osun election; political thugs who
harassed voters during the rerun election, and the Supreme
Court which relied on mere technicality to deny Osun people
their right to choose their own governor. The so-called re-
run that made Gboyega Oyetola governor was universally
panned by observers, including the Nigerian Bar Association
(NBA), and in newspaper editorials. It was a sham.
Now, before our very eyes and in luciferically brazen fash-
ion, the same people who used their influence in the judi-
ciary to remove Governors Olagunsoye Oyinlola and Segun
Oni from office in the most blatantly criminal fashion are at
their familiar game in Osun, trying to truncate the people’s
will. In the Oyinlola case, the Appeal Court judges annulled
polls in areas that were never disputed by Rauf Aregbesola
in order to make him (Aregbesola) governor. They engaged
in the kind of voodoo mathematics just replicated by Justice
Tertsea Kume and his colleague. The Segun Oni verdict was
even more horrendous: after INEC claimed that ACN thugs
had burnt its Ido Osi office, the area where Oni comes from,
the judges annulled the entire polls in the area instead of
ordering a rerun there, they calculated the rest of the votes
and awarded victory to Kayode Fayemi! It was robbery at a
most blatant, demonic level, and was one of the reasons the
PDP government amended the law to allow governorship
cases to get to the Supreme Court.
Now, I come to the Osun 2023 judgment where Justice
Kume made a so-called BVAS-led decision that totally ignored
the accreditation data on the BVAS machines used for the
election. In other words, Mr. Kume ignored the primary
source of evidence to determine the true number of accred-
ited voters and relied on a secondary, incomplete source.
Folks, there is something called writing a judgment. Judges
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
exchange of value. In other words, money, like a hammer,
is not inherently good or bad. It’s simply a tool.
The power is in your hand to decide whether you will
use the right tool for the right job or otherwise.
So when people boast that they have money, all they
are saying is they have a tool that facilitates the exchange
of value.
So the real issue is to
put money in the right
perspective and make use
of the value it brings. I must
say here that money is not
evil like my parents made
me believe. It is the value you
and i put to it that may make
it whatever it becomes in our
hands.
With Abiodun Awolaja
08053030234
e-mail: awolajaa@yahoo.com
on a panel are expected to write their individual opinions.
Although, to save time and space, judges have been known
to simply adopt the position of their colleagues delivering a
lead judgment, I was advised during my viva at OAU, Ile-Ife,
that even this isn’t ideal. In Osun, however, the judges not
only exercised mental laziness, they breached legal conven-
tion with brazen recklessness.
I do not suppose that the framers of the law envisaged
a panel of judges pronouncing themselves as “we” and
using voodoo tactics to upturn the freely expressed will of
a populace. When did two supposedly independent judges
become an unbreakable “we”, each losing the individual-
ity that is so central to judicial decisions? Assuming but
not conceding that the judgment was jointly written, who
wrote what, and how shall the judges be referred to in
future? “Kume and his appendage...as they then were?”
If you couldn’t even write your own opinion, even if it is
two sentences expressing agreement with the lead judg-
ment, how then do you justify your pay as a judge? If a
judge did not even have the decency to write his own
judgment, sheepishly appending his signature to a joint
judgment, how is he fit to be called a judge? When did
a panel ever become a cult? The minority judgment, the
judgment I believe the Supreme Court will affirm, had an
author. It is not as voluminous as the Buga judgment, but
it is astoundingly well-argued, succinct and sober.
Strangely, the Buga judges did not only pronounce Adeleke’s
certificates forged in defiance of the Court of Appeal, a su-
perior court, they went after Adeleke’s persona, informing
us that he dances Buga! To cap off their buffoonery, they
wrote: “See Kizz Daniel’s Buga for details.”! The key question
to ask is this: just who is Kizz Daniel and why is his “Buga” of
interest in determining the validly elected governor of Osun
State? As a language student who obtained a PhD looking at
Supreme Court judgments, I have never seen such level of
depravity in a court judgment. Of course, by citing an intel-
lectually drab, vacuous and vapid, though populist, song,
the judges gave ample indication of their own astoundingly
tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
Many years ago, Trade by Barter was known as the
direct exchange of goods or services—without an inter-
vening medium of exchange or money—either according
to established rates of exchange or by bargaining. It is
considered the oldest form of commerce. For example, if
someone has garri and is in need of beans, he must locate
someone who has beans and is in need of garri. A rice
farmer, for instance, who only produces rice, has only rice
to exchange for, say table and chairs. To make the trade,
he will have to go around the neighborhood looking for
a carpenter who makes tables and chairs and who needs
rice and will take it in exchange for his tables and chairs.
In this digital world, who knows what else will be the
tool that will facilitate the exchange of value?
So the real issue is to put money in the right perspective
and make use of the value it brings. I must say here that
money is not evil like my parents made me believe. It is
the value you and i put to it that may make it whatever it
becomes in our hands.
Let us understand the value that money adds to us and
why we need lots of it to create the comfortable life we
all desire.
Thank you, everyone, for the opportunity given to me
to share my little knowledge with you all.
Thank you, my dear Vicar. God bless you.
I am available for any clarification or questions. Mrs.
Oxbridge ended her talk with a smile.
low mental constitution. They turned the temple of justice
into farce. Sadly, because of their intent to install a cocaine
dealer as president, even so-called senior advocates are
desperately trying to justify this gross desecration of the
Court of law. Sad!
Out of fear, and remembering that Governor Adeleke
had similarly won at the lower level four years ago, the
mandate thieves have filled town with partisan lawyers
proclaiming that it would be impossible for the higher
courts to upturn the Buga judgment in Osun! They are
daily publishing paid advertorials disguised as opinion
essays. The tactic is a familiar one: to derail the judges
of the higher courts. The intent is to subvert the will of
the people and set Osun State on fire even while the fire
kindled by the Supreme Court through its blatantly unjust
judgment awarding the governorship of Imo State to Sena-
tor Hope Uzodinma is yet to subside!
Ironically, those who say Adeleke is unfit for office because
he is a dancer also shout to the high heavens that a drug
baron is the best candidate for president. Of course they
know that that the man is mentally malnourished and morally
crippled, irredeemably corrupt and criminally self-seeking
but their god is money and their mentality is mired in the
mud of today. I formed my opinion of their god years ago
and I have found no reason to change my opinion. Ademola
Adeleke is the duly elected governor of Osun State.
By the way, is Section 51(3) of the Electoral Act 2022
still part of our laws? It says: “Where the result of an
election is cancelled in accordance with subsection (2),
there shall be no return for the election until another poll
has taken place in the affected polling unit.” So why the
voodoo mathematics? I have read the minority judgment
delivered by Justice P.A Ogbuli and I am in full agreement
with it that this is a case of a loser trying to railroad the
court into declaring him winner.
A prayer for 2023: may we not be judged by Buga judges
or ruled by drug dealers and terror sympathizers acting in
cahoots with leperous legislators.

12 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
My husband gave our 3-yr-old child N3,000 only,
bought her a dress since birth —Wife
•She collected money from me for our child’s birthday but refused to throw a party —Husband
T
By Toluwani Olamitoke
HE court president, Grade A Customary Court, Mapo,
Ibadan, Oyo State, Mrs S.M Akintayo, has given judg-
ment on the divorce case brought before it by a wo-
man, Amudalat Hamzat, who dragged her husband,
Sodiq Basiru to court on the accounts of neglect of
her and their only child and disrespect of her parents.
Amudalat besought the court to end their union and grant
her custody of their only child.
The plaintiff, in addition, pleaded that the defendant be
made fully responsible for their child’s feeding, education and
medical attention.
She also sought for an order restraining her husband from
threatening or fighting her at her place of abode or work.
Sodiq pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against him.
He also refused that his wife had custody of their child.
Amudalat told the court: “I started living with my husband
after he impregnated me.
“He did not pay my bride price because our parents did not
hold the normal wedding ceremony on our behalf.
“I regret having anything to do with my husband because he
is irresponsible and has refused to change.
“Sodiq neglected me and our only child and failed to give us
money for food.
“He gave our child who is going to be three years old in a
few months time only a dress since birth and N1,500 at two
different times.
“I informed him we needed to enroll our child in school when
she clocked two, but he waved off my request.
“Her elder sister, one day, out of the blue, announced that she
was taking our child away from me. I fought tooth and nail to
retain the baby in my custody and have been fully responsible
for her needs.
“Sodiq and her sister have refused that I have rest of mind
because they often threaten to take our child away from me
by force.
“My husband is always rude to my parents and relates with
them with disrespect.
“The more I complained about his impoliteness to my parents,
the worse he became.
“My lord, my husband is obviously not the man I want to live
the remaining of my life with. He has frustrated me enough.
“I, therefore, pray the court to stop our marriage and grant
me custody of our baby.
“I further beg that my husband be made responsible for our
child’s welfare.
“My lord, my last prayer is that Sodiq be restrained from
threatening or fighting me in my place of abode or work and
also interfering with my private life.”
Sodiq responding stated that: “Amudalat is a liar and is trying
to paint me black.
“My lord, my marriage to Amudalat stated experiencing crisis
after her parents insisted that she moved to their house when
she put to bed our child.
“I rushed out of the hospital to get a taxi that would convey
my wife and our child home after she was delivered of our
baby, but to my chagrin both had left with her parents by the
time I returned.
“My wife’s parents told me that henceforth, both would be
staying with them.
“They held to their decision and turned a deaf ear to my pleas.
“I resigned to faith and took it upon myself to pay my wife
and child regular visits at my in laws’ place.
“There was never a time I went there with an empty hand. I
always take along with me provisions for our baby.
“I made plans to throw a party for our daughter in celebra-
tion of her second birthday, but my wife refused that I went
on with it.
“She promised to make arrangement for the party and re-
quested that I transferred money into her account.
“I did, but to my surprise no celebration held.
“My lord, Amudalat has since refused me access to our child.”
The magistrate, Mrs Akintayo in her judgment stated that
My mother forced me to marry my husband, I want divorce —Wife
She should return my money, phone and silver rings —Husband
A Sharia Court in Magajin  Gari, Kaduna, Kaduna State has dissolved
the union between Muhammad Abdulganiyu and Ma’arufat
Ibrahim.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the judge,
Malam Rilwan Kyaudai, delivering judgment said their marriage
was dissolved after all efforts to reconcile them by the court and
their guardians failed.
He ordered Ma’arufat to return N20,000 paid as dowry.
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
Court and Crime
there was no marriage to be dissolved since no ceremony was
held on the behalf of both, and no bride price was paid by the
defendant.
She granted the plaintiff custody of their child and mandated
“She will also return the marriage suitcases she received and their
contents with the exception of the ones she has already sewn.
“She will not return the cell phone as requested by the com-
plainant, but she will return the silver rings she received from
him,” he held.
Earlier, Muhammad Abdulganiyu in his petition alleged that
his wife left their matrimonial home without any altercation.
“I tried my best to provide for her, but she and her mother do not
Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng
the defendant to pay N10,000 monthly through the court for
her upkeep.
Both were ordered to be responsible for their child’s education
and health care.
appreciate my efforts and we’ve been married barely three months.
“If she’s no longer interested in our marriage, she should pay
me all I spent during the wedding and return the phone and silver
rings I gave her,” he said.
On her part, the defendant said she left because her husband
does not provide food for her.
She said that he had told her that his mother pushed him into
marrying her.
‘My husband beat my father to pulp, ruined my
business, woman tells court’
By Toluwani Olamitoke
GRADE A Customary Court, Mapo, Ibadan, Oyo State has
adjourned till March 30, further hearing on a divorce suit
brought before it by a woman, Tawakalitu Hassan against
her husband, Ganiyu Hassan.
Tawakalitu, in her suit, implored the court to stop the re-
lationship between her and Ganiyu on the grounds that he
was a brute and always seeking every opportunity to beat
and leave wounds on her.
She stated that her husband extended his brutish behaviour
towards her father whom he beat to a pulp.
Tawakalitu further said that Ganiyu was irresponsible and
abandoned his role as the breadwinner in the home.
According to her, her husband wrecked her business and
left her to live from hand to mouth.
The plaintiff prayed the court to put two of their four
children in his custody and mandate him to be responsible
for the welfare of their four children.
She further pleaded for an order of perpetual injunction
restraining her husband from threatening or interfering in
her private life.
Ganiyu agreed that their union be dissolved.
The defendant pleaded not guilty when the claims were
read to him.
Tawakalitu, giving her evidence said: “My lord, my husband
has humiliated me enough which is one of the reasons I am
pleading that you dissolve our marriage.
“He pretended to be a gentleman when we met and I got
caught in his trap because he impregnated me.
“I had no other choice but to start living with him.
“No marital rites were carried out on my behalf and he
didn’t pay my bride price.
“I realised I made a big mistake getting myself impregnated
by my husband and I knew I had to face the music alone.
“My husband is a brute and derived pleasure in beating
me. He beat me at every given opportunity and made my life
miserable. The scars all over my body bear witness to this.
“I spent my hard earned money treating myself at the
hospital every time he descended on me with heavy blows
and this ate dip into my savings.
My wife deserted our 12-yr-old marriage, man tells court
FCT High Court has dissolved a 12- year -old marriage between
Emeka Emea and his wife, Helen Chukwuemeka on grounds of
desertion.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Emeka in his
petition prayed the court for a decree of dissolution of his marriage.
Delivering judgment, Justice Peter Kekemeke, described deser-
tion as the withdrawal from cohabitation without the consent of
the other spouse and with the intention of remaining separated
for ever.
“It is a voluntary withdrawal by a married person from the ob-
ligations of marital life.
“The only evidence available in court is that she moved out of
their matrimonial home since 2018.
“The petitioner, her husband was unaware of her intention not
to come back to the matrimonial home,” he held.
The judge held that the petitioner reached out to her parents,
He’s jealous, monitors my movements —Wife
A man of Lusaka, Zambia has narrated to a Matero Local
Court, Zambia how his wife denied him conjugal rights but
would sit in cold water after work in order to tighten her
private parts.
According Zambia Court, Lucy Chota of Ngombe Compound sued
her husband, Shadrick Chota for divorce after he deserted their
matrimonial home.
Lucy told the court that her husband was a jealous man who
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
21
“I moved out of his house after we had our second child
and lived separately from him for months because he refused
that I had rest of mind.
“He came with his parents and pleaded that I returned
home saying that he was repentant.
“I initially refused, but later gave in to his plea after much
pressure from his parents.
“My lord, I regret acceding to my husband’s request be-
cause he became more reckless after I went back to him.
“We had two other children after we were reconciled and
he began to humiliate me in their presence.
“My husband would beat me blue black and then tear off
my dress thus leaving me stark naked in the stare of our
children and neighbours.
“We wake our neighbours up with our fight almost all the
time and they naturally got fed up with us.
My husband failed in playing his role as the breadwinner.
He never gave me and our children money for food and left
us to starve.
“I fed and clothed him and our children and likewise met all
other needs, but he wrecked my business at the end of the
day as a result of his unreasonable demands of me.
“I moved out of his house again after he beat and almost
killed our child.
“Ganiyu descended on me with punches for rescuing our
child from his hands.
“My lord, my husband became ruthless after our first ap-
pearance in court.
“He stormed my father’s house, beat and almost killed him
for daring to come to court with me in my pursuit of divorce.
“I don’t want to have anything to do with my husband
again. He has wrecked my life.
“I, therefore, pray this court to end our wedlock and rule
that he has custody of two of our children.
“I also entreat the court to mandate my husband to be
responsible for all our children’s upkeep, giving priority to
their education and healthcare.
“My lord, I further appeal that my husband be refrained
from threatening and interfering with my private life.”
The court president, Mrs S.M Akintayo adjourned the case
for further hearing.
but he did not receive any positive response.
“She was served with court processes but failed to file an answer.
“She also failed and refused to give her own side of the story,”
the judge held.
“From evidence, the petitioner did not consent to the respond-
ent’s act of desertion.
“There was no evidence of quarrel, cruelty or other reasons which
could justify the respondent’s action.
“In the circumstance of this case, it is my view that the petitioner
has proved that the respondent deserted the matrimonial home.
“Consequently, the marriage between the petitioner and the
respondent has broken down irretrievably and I so hold.
“The marriage between Emeka  and Helen Amarachi Chukwuma 
celebrated on May 1, 2010 is hereby dissolved,” he held.
The petitioner had earlier told the court that there was no child
from their marriage.
would follow her to her place of work just to ensure no other man
interacted with her.
However, in defense, Shadrick said his wife denied him conjugal
rights but was surprised each time she returned home from work,
she would sit in cold water.
The magistrate, Mulenga said the woman was too pompous and
the man had no say in their marriage hence her audacity to flirt
with other men in his presence

13 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Interview
‘Japa’ syndrome, widows’ neglect indicate government’s failure
to meet basic needs —Foluke Ademokun, women’s advocate
Foluke Ademokun is the Executive Coordinator of the Ajoke Ayisat Afolabi Foundation (AAAF). Her work revolves around
advocacy for women and girls, widows’ empowerment, policy making, and research. In this interview by KINGSLEY
ALUMONA, she speaks about her work, women/widows challenges, migration issues, among others.
O
VER the years, you have built your
work and career in nonprofit, pub-
lic policy, gender advocacy, women
empowerment and research.
When and how did all these begin?
I was introduced to the civil society sector as a
volunteer. I was in Benin City when I volunteered
to serve as the secretary of the African Women
Empowerment Guild (AWEG). I discovered my
passion for promoting women and girls’ issues
and found it convenient to support any group of
persons who are committed to making life easier
for others. I guess my struggles through life
and the recognition that when you put in your
best you can achieve great results influence my
engagement with people generally, particularly,
women and girls who found themselves at the
short-end of benefits.
Since 1995, I have been deploying my exper-
tise, experience and education to remind people
how much it is possible for them to look beyond
a failing society, especially one that is not so kind
to women and girls.
You are the Executive Coordinator of the
Ajoke Ayisat Afolabi Foundation (AAAF). Tell
us about the foundation and its latest project.
Ajoke Ayisat Afolabi Foundation was founded
in 2008 by Dr Taiwo Olayinka Afolabi MON,
the Group Executive Vice Chairman of Sifax
Group, and his siblings as a tribute to their
mother. The overall goal of the foundation is to
improve quality of life for vulnerable persons.
The foundation promotes the empowerment of
women, particularly, widows and the education
of orphans and vulnerable children through a
variety of programmes in the thematic areas of
economic empowerment, education and health.
As a result of the effect of harmful practices on
widow-headed household, the AAAF takes the
issues of sexual and gender-based violence seri-
ously. Our programmes are deployed through
capacity development and advocacy.
Presently, the AAAF covers Nigeria, operating
from Lagos, Abia, and Kaduna states. Annually,
we pay tuition fees for about 600 students from
the Lagos and Kaduna locations. In addition to
tuition payment — which is an ongoing project
— in December 2022, we included the provi-
sion of potable water to rural communities in
Lagos, Ogun and Kwara states. Similarly, we are
also working with teenage mothers and women
farmers in Abia and Imo states.
Your work and investment in widows are
well documented. What inspired this aspect
of your work?
Research and documentation are critical to
evidence-based monitoring and evaluation.
Gender discrimination is a factor that negates
women empowerment, and we have seen
that it further exacerbates subsets of women
due to their vulnerability. Therefore, to create
awareness about issues affecting the subset of
women — that is, widows — that we cater for, it
is important to deploy intersectionality approach
that recognises clearly the heterogeneous char-
acteristics of the group called ‘women’.
To do this, there is need for evidence and
hence documentation. Documentation helps
make a case for women like widows who are
mostly ignored in government social protec-
tion strategy and treated as pariah by society.
For instance, through documentation, we have
outlined clearly that the demographics of wid-
ows are changing and it is important that service
providers shift from welfare to skills/economic
empowerment.
These days, there are widows as young as
25 years old. Some have university education
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
and we cannot respond to them with stomach
infrastructure as the practice was for older
widows. Our documentation also outlines non-
communicable diseases and accidents as the two
highest causes of death. For this, we are promot-
ing good nutrition, food safety and regulation
through our health outreaches.
Following series of advocacy, in conjunction
with other women-focused NGOs, we are glad
that the legal environment is getting more inclu-
sive due to landmark judgments on inheritance
rights and the domestication of the Violence
Against Persons Prohibition Act (VAPP Act) across
34 states of the federation. Similarly, we are
grateful to contribute our quota on the body of
work on widowhood in Nigeria through the book
‘Broken but not Forgotten: Highlights of Ajoke
Ayisat Afolabi Foundation’s Work In Support of
Widows in Nigeria’.
If you were to recommend two national poli-
cies for the federal government on widows’ wel-
fare and empowerment, what would they be?
Based on the vulnerability index developed by
the AAAF, my recommendations will focus on
national housing and social protection policies
for widows. These two, I believe, will reduce
the trauma widow-headed household face and
provide for them a safe space to operate.
Last year, Project Enable Africa nominated
you for the Disability Inclusion and Leadership
(DIAL) Award as one of the individuals leading
inclusion in civil society organisations (CSOs).
Tell us about your inclusion works that landed
you the nomination.
The AAAF takes the issue of inclusion seriously
Since 1995, I have been deploying my expertise,
experience and education to remind people
how much it is possible for them to look beyond
a failing society, especially one that is not so kind
to women and girls.
Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng
because we deploy an intersectionality approach
to our work. We ensure that 10 per cent of our
work is focused on persons with disability. For
instance, our tuition payment (scholarship)
programme covers children with disabilities or
children born to parents with disabilities. It is
our way of ensuring we leave no one behind.
You have engagements with the National
Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and In-
ternally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), and the
International Organisation for Migration (IOM).
Migration, especially international migration, is
a complex matter. Why did you decide to pick
an interest in it?
We encourage migration, but when it is irregu-
lar and affects women and children negatively,
we are compelled to collaborate with well-mean-
ing partners to develop a solution. In the course
of our work, we recognise that widow-headed
households, due to their vulnerability, are
susceptible to exploitation. Persons within this
household are likely to fall victims to traffickers as
sex-tool or child-labourer, as a result of poverty.
I believe you are familiar with the ‘japa’ syn-
drome in Nigeria, especially among the youths.
What do you think this signifies for Nigeria and
Nigerians?
For me, this signifies, on one hand, innovation,
as our young Nigerians are able to leverage the
most modern information, skills and technology.
On the other hand, it is a loss of culture as some
may never return. I believe the government can
leverage the syndrome for the benefits of our
nation — if there are processes in place to ease
the movement of these young ones in and out-
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
of-the-country. Ultimately, the best option is to
provide the enabling environment for all Nigerian
to optimize their potentials within the country.
I am an optimist. I believe there will be surplus
bread in Bethlehem, and soon the country will
be attractive to those outside to come and ply
their trades.
How would you advice the Federal Govern-
ment on addressing this almost mass exodus
of Nigerians out of the country?
People, particularly the young ones, will always
travel. Also, the constitutions, regional and global
protocols encourage the movement of goods
and people across borders. The issue here is
the nuisance value of the movement. The mass
exodus indicates government’s failure to meet
basic needs and optimise the human assets
within its borders.
To stem the trend, government needs to in-
vest in soft and hard infrastructure. This means
developing policies that support innovation and
youth empowerment. It also means investing in
infrastructure like stable supply of power, trans-
portation, technology, and security. Similarly,
incubation and innovation programmes will
help promote youth startups. I will suggest the
government map the economic activities of our
youth and find a way to give tax break and incen-
tives that will engender youth entrepreneurship.
Nigerians are recognised globally for industry.
I remember the American media queried why
Nigerians should be on the list of visa bans. The
consensus then was they are top on the list of
highly educated population in the diaspora.
Similarly, I remember Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO
of Meta, paid a visit to Yaba in recognition of our
youth’s contribution to technology.
The issue is, we have a government that has
been unable to harness the huge potential of
its youths, and now is the time to do something
different and correct the deprivation.
Part of your work involves research and docu-
mentation on widows and women empower-
ment. Could you share with us one of your ma-
jor findings on how women, especially widows,
could be properly integrated into the society for
their social and economic development?
To integrate widows into the society, the key
areas to focus on are: education, employment,
housing, and family support. The lower they rank
on any of these indices, the higher their need to
be properly integrated.
Apart from your CSO and nonprofit work,
what other things do you do? And how do
you manage the stress associated with these
engagements?
I write and speak. I watch funny skits and find
time to travel out of work area to manage stress.
You once said former United States first lady,
Michelle Obama, is your role model. In what
ways does she inspire you?
I am inspired by her dignity and focus. She
recognises the importance of her role in history
and carries herself with such dignity. She demon-
strates clearly the importance of having women
exercise agency.
What advice do you have for women who are
aspiring to be like you?
I guess I can inspire women to be the very
best of who they are created to be. We are all
created uniquely and experienced differently.
Where possible, other women can use me as a
guide to be the very best version of themselves.
I would be overstretching myself if I recommend
any woman to aspire to be like me.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
14 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

entertainment
‘People don’t know I’m a jovial person’
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2
 
What value do you think Nollywood movies offer to the
people?
Nollywood movies have been applauded for promoting cul-
tural and social values which results in Nigeria’s progress. Nol-
lywood offers so many cultural values and morals o the people.  knowledge. I attend industry events such as conferences and
 
When casting a project, what factors do you consider?
When casting a project, I always consider the actors who
would interpret the role perfectly and deliver. Also, I’ll nor-
mally consider the market angle to it. Apart from giving people
opportunities to learn from the story we must make a good
movie that people will watch so we can make a lot of money
to produce the other project. I also believe that casting is one
of the most important parts of producing a film. It’s essential
to find the right people for each part so that the story comes
alive on screen. I always strive to create an ensemble cast that
works together to tell the best version of the story possible.
 
What are some of the most important skills for a movie
producer?
The most important skill of a movie producer is to understand
the industry and know more about the movie business before
going into it. His responsibilities are to plan filming schedules,
hire staff, cast and crew, manage cash flow, schedule and bud-
get. He needs to work with marketing companies and distribu-
tors. Also, communication is very important, communication
is key when it comes to working with actors, directors, crew
members and other stakeholders involved in the production
process. It’s essential that producers can effectively commu-
nicate their vision and expectations, while also being able to
listen to others’ ideas and feedback.
 
What do you think is the most important aspect of produc-
ing video content?
I believe the most important aspect of producing video
content is having a clear vision for the project. It’s essential to
have an understanding of what you want to achieve with the
video and how it will be used in order to create something that
meets the needs of the client or audience. This means taking
into consideration the target audience, budget constraints and
other factors that may affect the production process. Once
this has been established, I then focus on creating a plan that
outlines the steps needed to bring the vision into life.
 
What has been your favourite role so far in your career?
My favourite role was the role of a doctor and an intelligent
officer. 
How often do you think a film producer should update his
skills and knowledge?
As a film producer, I believe it is important to stay up-to-date
with the latest trends in filmmaking and technology. This means
that I am constantly looking for ways to improve my skills and
seminars, read relevant publications and take online courses to
ensure I have the most current information available.
If you could change something about Nollywood what
would it be?
Nigerian filmmakers should showcase more originality and
mirror the positive image of women, cultural values and norms
in Nigeria, rather than concentrating attention on old fetish
cultural practices that are capable of portraying the people,
especially women in a bad light among viewers.
Tell us something about yourself that is not of general
knowledge?
People tend not to know that I’m a jovial person. I’m extremely
playful. They mistake me for an ‘over-serious’ person, which is
laughable. 
Moving forward what are your plans for the rest of the year? 
For me, this year in the industry has been an amazing one
so far. I only pray to have better years ahead. I only look up to
more profitable productions and endorsements in the forth-
coming years. 
What advice do you have for young people who are just
starting their careers, specifically in relation to Nollywood?
My advice for young people is to make sure they discover their
hidden talent. God gave everyone a talent. It’s left for you to
discover your latent and make good use of it. And also if you
have a dream, go for it. In as much as you can dream it, you can
achieve it. Be prayerful and don’t give up! Giving up should be
deleted from your dictionary.
 
Do you have any upcoming projects you are working on?
It is a movie entitled, Oba Meji (Two Kings).

Fiyhona officially signs deal with MTV Shuga Naija unveils new cast
Godfada Empire for fifth season
MTV Shuga Naija, an MTV Staying
Alive Foundation initiative, is back

W
By Segun Adebayo
for a fifth season and boasts a strong
cast to extend the impact of its taboo-
ITH Nigerian artistes taking the centre
defying edutainment TV series.
stage on the global entertainment, it
Set to premiere in April this year, the
is obvious that the world has come
fifth season will focus on storylines
to acknowledge that Nigerians are
about gender-based violence and CO-
uniquely talented.
VID-19, while continuing to address
Soon to join the list of Afrobeat artistes that will be
HIV prevention.
celebrated globally is talented Fiyhona, who just got
Behind the camera, the focus is on
signed by Godfada Empire Entertainment.
empowering female creatives, with
Born Bamidele Fiyinfoluwa, the talented and fashion-
an 80 per cent female crew while
able young lady, professionally started music in 2020
in front of the camera, an exciting
and because of natural talent, one would think she has
lineup of new faces will be headlined
been in the industry for ages.
by sensational actresses and co-stars
She oozes confidence, intelligence and royalty and
on Netflix’s series ‘Far from Home’,
seemed ready to take the world by storm.
Genoveva Umeh and Gbubemi Ejeye.
It is safe to say it is another exciting moment for music Edak – have been chosen to play
Susan Pwajok, best known on-
lovers and another win for the music industry; because lead roles on the show, while others
screen from her role in the popular
the talent will leave one wowed. selected will play supporting roles.
Nigerian family drama series, The
When asked how she feels being signed by Godfada Returning MTV Shuga actors include
Johnsons, has also been announced
Empire Entertainment, she said: “I feel so motivated for Adesua Etomi-Wellington (Far From
as a cast member as has well-loved
the recognition and support from the management. I Home, Falling, Sugar Rush), Tomiwa
Pan-African MTV Base Culture Squad
feel really proud and ready to begin working with them.” Tegbe (My Siblings and I) and Sharon
member, Ilooise Omohinmi. Other
A Godfada representative said: “They should stay Jatto (The Griot).
new cast members announced in-
tuned and expect music, art and entertainment from “New cast always means deeper,
clude high profile talents Maggie
this black lady in ways the world has never experienced. richer stories and, of course, more
Osuome, Lexan Peters, Ben Touitou,
“It is obvious the music industry seemed saturated drama,” said Adesua Etomi-Welling-
Kem Ajieh Ikechukwu, Okey Uzoeshi,
with a lot of talents coming out everyday but there is ton.
John Njamah, Kiki Omeili, Chioma
something unique about Fiyhona that we believe the “Given the importance of the con-
Edak, Francis Onwochei and Bolaji
world needs to see and we are so blessed to be the versation we are making mainstream,
Ogunmola.
company showing Fiyhona to the world. I am so excited to be part of the new
Last year, MTV Shuga Naija initiated
“I believe Fiyhona will give any artiste a run for his season, and excited to be sharing
a search for exceptional young talent
money in ways that will bring entertainment to the floor the screen with this group of uber-
via online auditions that received over
of the Nigerian music industry. talented individuals and proud new
a thousand applications.
“I am more than excited myself and I can’t wait for her members of the MTV Shuga Naija
The two winners of these auditions
to get started.” family,” she added.
– Kanaga Emmanuel Eme and Chioma
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
15 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBUARY, 2023

Sienne Allwell-Brown
Society Gist with Tunde Ayanda 08034649018 | ayandaayotunde@yahoo.com

One year after: Family, friends

cruises Lagos
waters at 70
FORMER TV personality and a pi-
oneer face in broadcasting, Sienne
Allwell-Brown, clocked 70 years re-
cently and the ageless beauty cel-
ebrated the milestone with a boat
cruise.
Her friends and former col-
leagues from the Nigerian Tele-
vision Authority loaded the boat
with food, drinks, music and sailed
for hours on Lagos waters catching
on old times and having fun.
The birthday girl was filled with
joy as the cruise was an endless
moment of memories, where they
all shared moment of grief, joy and
remember Angela Folarin
‘...it’s hard to forget someone who family she left behind were re-
gave me so much to remember’ membered in prayers.
This piece depicted the mood of All The remembrance floated to the
progressives Congress (APC) chief- social media space with friends and
tain, Teslim Folarin, as he penned admirers posting her pictures and
his thoughts exactly a year after the writing touching farewell messages.
death of his wife, Angela.
The deceased, a lawyer loved by
many, passed on in the United King-
dom on January 28, 2022 in a situation
that shocked many and still leaves her
OGD, Mo Abudu, others grace loved ones in severe pains.
A special memorial service held at
Shades Of Beauty opening the Sacred Heart Catholic Church,
Ibadan, where her soul and the
in Lagos Music meets culture as Nike

I
triumphs.
T was fun and glamour as
beauty entrepreneur, Omowumi
Owokoniran, launched the
second outlet of her aesthetic
medical centre and day spa,
Shades of Beauty in Lekki, Lagos,
some days ago.
The Shades of Beauty is tailored
to cater to a broad spectrum of aes-
thetic and advanced medical skin
care needs and features other sec-
tions like laser clinic, skincare clinic,
nail salon, massage stations and
many other clinical features.
Shades of Beauty was declared
opened by former Ogun State Gov-
ernor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel and
witnessed by his wife, Yeye Olu-
funke Daniel, Tara Fela-Durotoye,
Mo Abudu, Debola Williams, Pastor
Ituah Ighodalo, Chude Jideonwo,
Lanre da Silva, Osayi Alile, Stephanie
Busari, Owen Omogaifo and many
others.
The Shades of Beauty opening
also coincided with the launch
of Oye, an opulent fashion outfit
owned by Otunba Gbenga Daniel’s
daughter, Kehinde Williams. The
new outfit specialises in exquisite
boubou and other designs for high-
heeled and stylish women.
Davies-Okundaye hosts US Naval Forces Band
CULTURE, fashion and arts celebrity, Europe and Africa Band at a collab-
Chief Nike Davies-Okundaye, re- orative musical experience at her
cently hosted the US Naval Forces Art Foundation in Lekki, Lagos.
The band thrilled the people with
performance of an assortment of
classical and traditional songs from
the Maritime Winds Quintet and
Topside Brass Band.
The band, dressed in traditional
garments that represented the ma-
jor ethnic groups in Nigeria were
excited as their performance hon-
oured the history and legacy of
African culture.

Kayode Fayemi
John Olukayode Fayemi, 58
years old, (born 9 February,
1965), is a Nigerian politician,
who served as Governor of
Ekiti State from 2018 to 2022.
He previously served in office
between 2010 and 2014
before losing re-election to
Ayodele Fayose. He was also
the Minister of Solid Miner-
als Development in Presid-
ent Muhammadu Buhari’s
cabinet from 11 November
2015 to 30 May 2018, when
he resigned to contest for a
second term as Governor of
Ekiti State. He is the pioneer
president of the Forum of Re-
gions of Africa (FORAF) since
9 September 2022.
John Olukayode Folorunso
Fayemi was born in Ibadan
to an Ekiti parentage from Is-
an-Ekiti in Oye Local Govern-
ment of Ekiti State.
Fayemi had his primary
education at ICC Primary
School, Agodi, Ibadan, Oyo
State between 1970-1975
and attended Christ’s School
Ado Ekiti from 1975 to 1980.
He later went on to receive
degrees in History, Politics
and International Relations
from the University of Lagos
and University of Ife (now
Obafemi Awolowo Univer-
sity). From 1989 to 1992,
he earned a Doctorate in
War Studies from King’s Col-
lege London, specialising in
civil-military relations.
AbdulRahman Ab-
dulRazaq
AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq,
Kayode Fayemi AbdulRahman AbdulRasaq
63 years old, (born 5 February
1960), is a Nigerian politician,
who has served as governor
of Kwara State since 2019.
He was previously the CEO
of First Fuels Limited. He con-
tested unsuccessfully for the
governor of Kwara State in
2003, 2007 and 2011 respect-
ively under the Congress for
Progressive Change political
party and was successively
defeated by Abubakar Bukola
Saraki in 2003 and 2007,
and by Abdulfatah Ahmed in
2011.
However in 2019, he con-
tested again under the ruling
political party in Nigeria, the
All Progressive Congress, and
emerged as the governor of
Kwara State, after he won
the 2019 governorship elec-
tion in the state. In 2021 he
introduces KwaraLEARN in
basic education to empower
teachers.
He was born in Ilorin West
Local Government.
He attended Capital School,
Kaduna between 1966 and
1968; Bishop Smith Memorial
School Ilorin between 1970
BIRTHDAYS
Sarah Sosan
and 1971; and Government
College Kaduna, where he is
said to have earned his West
African Senior School Certi-
ficate Examination in 1976
(WASSCE).
Sarah Adebisi Sosan
Sarah Adebisi Sosan, 67
years old, (born 11 February,
1956), is a Nigerian politi-
cian and former teacher, she
served as deputy governor
of Lagos State from 2007 to
2011.
Sarah Adebisi was born in
Lagos to the family of Chief
and Princess Durosinmi of
Irewe town in Ojo Local
Government Area, Badagry.
Her mother hails from the
Fafunwa Onikoyi Royal Fam-
ily of Ita-Onikoyi in Idumota,
Lagos Island and her father
was a member of the defunct
Action Group (AG) and Unity
Party of Nigeria (UPN), thus
making him a long-time dis-
ciple of Obafemi Awolowo.
Due to her maternal ancestry,
the former Deputy Governor
bears the Yoruba traditional
title, Omoba.
Tiwa Savage
She began her early educa-
tion at the Christ Assembly
Primary School, Apapa and
Secondary Education at the
Awori-Ajeromi Secondary
School. She commenced
her sojourn in the teaching
profession at the then Lagos
State College of Education,
Ijanikin (now Adeniran Ogun-
sanya College of Education)
in 1980, where she obtained
the National Certificate of
Education (NCE) and later
proceeded to the University
of Lagos, Akoka, where she
obtained her Bachelor of Arts
in English Education (B.A) Ed
in 1988 and a m
Master’s Degree in Adult
Education ( M.Ed ) 1989.
Tiwa Savage
Tiwa Savage, 43 years old,
(born 5 February, 1980), is a
Nigerian singer-songwriter
and performing artist. Born
in Isale Eko, she relocated to
London at the age of 11 for
her secondary education.
Five years later, she began her
music career doing backup
vocals for artists such as
Omotola Jalade Ekeinde
George Michael and Mary
J. Blige. After participating
in the UK edition of The X
Factor and graduating from
Berklee College of Music, Sav-
age signed a publishing deal
with Sony/ATV Music Publish-
ing in 2009. Inspired by the
growth of the Nigerian music
industry, Savage moved back
to Nigeria and signed with
Mavin Records in 2012. She
made an appearance on the
label’s 2012 compilation al-
bum Solar Plexus.
Her debut studio album,
Once Upon a Time, was re-
leased on the 3rd of July 2013.
It was supported by seven
singles: “Kele Kele Love”,
“Love Me (3x)”, “Without
My Heart”, “Ife Wa Gbona”,
“Folarin”, “Olorun Mi” and
“Eminado”. The album was
nominated for Best Album of
the Year at the 2014 Nigeria
Entertainment Awards and
for Best R&B/Pop Album at
The Headies 2014. Savage’s
second studio album R.E.D
was released on 19 Decem-
ber 2015.
Omotola Jalade Ekeinde
Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, 45
years old, (born 7 February,
1978), is a Nigerian actress,
singer, philanthropist and
former model.
Since her Nollywood film
debut in 1995, Ekeinde has
appeared in over 300 films,
selling millions of copies.
Omotola is the second Ni-
gerian and first Nigerian
celebrity to receive over 1
million likes on her Facebook
page. She currently has a total
of 3 million followers on Face-
book.
In 2013, she was included
in Time magazine’s list of the
100 most influential people in
the world.
In 2013, Ekeinde made a
brief appearance on VH1’s
scripted series, Hit the Floor.
On 2 November 2013, she
spoke at the 2013 edition of
the WISE- Summit, held in
Doha, Qatar.
In 2014, she was honoured
by the Nigerian government,
when she became a Member
of the Order of the Federal
Republic (MFR) for her con-
tributions to Nigerian cinema.
Omotola Jalade, who is
of Ondo descent, was born
in Lagos State. She grew up
with her parents and two
younger brothers, Tayo and
Bolaji Jalade. Her mother,
Oluwatoyin Jalade née
Amori Oguntade, worked at
J.T Chanrai Nigeria, and her
father, Oluwashola Jalade,
worked at the YMCA and the
Lagos Country Club.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
16 4 FEBRUARY, 2023 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023 17

Weekend Lagos Editor: Lanre Adewole | 0811 695 4637 | olanreade@yahoo.com

Naira scarcity: Cloned bank alerts spread fear in Lagos

•New app can tally, update balance unlike others •Always confirm payments through other means —Police •Banking sector stakeholders react

A
By Lanre Adewole, Olalekan Olabulo and Chima Nwokoji

viral video warning of the existence of an application

that generates credit alerts to swindle the unsuspect-
ing is creating widespread fear among residents of
Lagos, Nigeria’s most-populated state.
The video, which has been widely shared, also
demonstrates how a certain cloned bank can send fake credit
alerts to genuine bank accounts of people transacting busi-
nesses with fraudsters using the computer application, without
giving anything away.
In the video, the cloned bank platform is used to send credit
alert to a bank account domiciled with Access Bank and the
account owner is credited immediately.
His account balance is also updated by the app to show an
addition to the existing balance.
The state Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin,
while speaking on the fake alert application, warned residents
to be cautious when engaging in business transactions through
the cashless means.
Hundeyin urged the people not to conclude business transac-
tions without confirming the genuineness of payment through
means other than credit alerts.
He said: “People must be very careful and cautious when
doing business transactions. Safety starts from you before it
gets to the police.
“People should confirm payments through their banks mobile
applications or other means before consummating business
PHOTOS: Internet.
transactions.”
The police image maker said some suspects had been arrested
in the past over fake alerts and therefore advised residents with
fake-alert experiences to report to the police.
Scarcity of naira notes and the move by the Federal Gov- to you, does the mathematics and you will see the total. straight to where I purchased it. It is a fraudulent app. It will enter your account, because it won’t work with the banking
ernment to encourage a cashless economy have forced many “That means that with this particular application, a scammer even update balance.” system but people are falling for it, because it will update
residents of the state to further embrace electronic banking, can walk into your business place, get goods and services from Demonstrating how it works, he said, “you click on transfer, the balance and show you available and total software is
which easily exposes them to the menace of fake alerts. you, send you cash, you get an alert from your bank and they then add a name (added his own name and his bank account dangerous.”
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had raised the alarm over walk away. With this application, PoS operators are in trouble. number, before adding Nigeria’s Sort Code 234). You must not Putting residents of the state on notice, Christian said: “The
recurring incidents of fake alert scams, promising to sanction Somebody can come to you, transfer cash to you, you get an make mistake with the bank you are sending the fake alert to. way to know it is to look for Pro Bank in the alert. They built
complicit commercial banks. alert and you give them raw cash and they walk away. You never That is how to use the app. Please use it only for pranks. Don’t this app for pranks. But it is still new and not everybody knows
The latest introduction in the scam industry is creating anxiety get to discover until you try to make a withdrawal from your use it for any illegal thing.” about Pro Bank. If you are a PoS operator, anybody that wants alerts will not contain your available balance so you can easily “At the moment, the best that individual banks could do is to
among residents of the state due to its seamless operation, bank account, because that is when you will know they didn’t The content creator then went on to send a fake N100,000 to do transfer to you, just ask the person you want to see the detect the fake alert, if your account balance does not reflect help educate the banking public,” he said.
though experts have explained how to decode it. send you anything.” alert to his own account which was instantly credited to the app or you wait and once you receive alert if the alert carries along with transfer payment done by your customers/buyers.” According to him, when someone receives an alert, the per-
Experts also projected that operators of Point of Sale devices Isibor volunteered security measures to take as a safeguard bank account. something like Pro Bank, then just know that it is fake.” The Pro Bank app has changed all that. son should not rely wholly on that alert but try to check their
(popularly known as PoS), car marts and large shopping malls against the scam. “The app is wicked, seriously,” Christian gushed after the The greater danger with the new app for PoS operators in account balance, using the bank’s payment app.
are more likely to fall victim to the new scam, especially those He said: “To keep yourself safe from this scam, one, if you successful demonstration. A new menace particular is that even before its advent, they have been losing The Nigeria Electronic Fraud Forum (NeFF) has been warning
who are not in the habit of checking their credit balance online are doing business in this time and age, you have no business What came up after he pushed the sent button was “payment Practically all operators of PoS contacted by Saturday Tribune money to other less-sophisticated fake alert apps. against downloading apps that may carry phishing capabilities
after receiving transfer alerts from customers. using mobile phones that are not Internet-enabled. You need successful. N100,000 has been paid to Nnamdi Christian,” com- had not heard of the new app and its capacity to do what Tomiwa Atobatele, who told a story of her loss, said she lost to unsuspecting mobile banking users as mobile fraud rise in
A public analyst and business expert, Mr Victor Isibor, who to download the mobile application of your bank, so that when plete with a reference number. others before it couldn’t. N140,000 to three young men who used fake alert to dupe her Nigeria.
analysed the disturbing video, said: “This video is not electrical money is sent, you will be able to check online if the money Christian then said, “Let’s wait for the alert” while quoting In a publication by Tribune Online on September 12, 2022 on where she was working for a PoS owner. Director of Payments System Management Department,
but it will shock you. has truly landed in your account. the figure in his account before the fake alert. “It will update fake credit alerts and how to detect them, it was noted that She said: “My boss warned me not to give anyone money CBN, Mr Musa Jimoh, who corroborated this recently in Lagos,
“Please, pray for me because fraudsters, 419ers and Yahoo “SMS credit alert is no longer enough for you to confirm they the balance. This app is not good o.” the existing apps like Flash Fund, Lofty SMS, Money Prank, before receiving a credit alert. What she didn’t tell me however said plans were being made by the CBN and NeFF to ensure
boys are not going to like that I am doing this. I am about to have paid you. Though the creator of the video is acting as if Christian confirmed that “Nigerian guys are now using it to do Millionaire Fake Bank Account, among others, which could was that I could get a credit alert and still not get money in the that no e-fraud activities take place in Nigerian banks in the
expose to you, the biggest, the newest scam format in town. warning everybody against using that application but at the end fraud. They are using it to send fake returns. So, just be careful. generate fake alerts but can’t credit balance, unlike the newest account. Fake bank alerts are real. nearest future.
“If you are watching this, I am saving you hundreds of thou- of it, he puts his WhatsApp number on the video and when you Don’t fall victim.” app, which Christian demonstrated and said could update and “I was in the shop when three friends walked in and told me He gave the assurance at NeFF Annual General Meeting in
sands and millions in cash. chat him, he is going to ask you to bring N12,000, to buy the While still on his admonition, the confirmation came up add fake amount to the balance of the receiver. they wanted cash. When I heard the amount they needed, I Lagos, where he stated that hackers were targeting to access
“I am going to be revealing so much on this mind-blowing application from him, because this particular application isn’t on his phone that N100,000 had been added to his balance, The report said that in knowing fake alert, “your account bal- was excited because of the charges on it for my boss. I brought unsuspecting customers through mobile apps.
scam format in town right now. A few years ago, in my city, a available on PlayStore or AppStore. updating the balance, with him saying, “but if you check now, ance will not be credited. The real bank alert will show you how out the PoS, I gave them the account to credit and they made a Stakeholders at the event warned that rogue mobile apps are
car dealer had three young men walk into his car mart. They “The name of the application is ProBank. It is a deadly appli- the money isn’t even on your mobile bank. The money won’t much you had before the alert and after the alert. Fake bank transfer. I waited a bit and they got debited while our account believed to be one of the fastest-growing phenomena among
said they wanted to buy a car and that they were rushing for cation. The creator says you can use the application to credit was credited. I gave them the amount they credited, they paid cybercriminals. Fraudsters, they said, create malicious apps
an event. They bought this car from him. He gave his account one bank in a day. You can imagine the amount of money this the charges on it and left. that appear genuine, taking advantage of the trust of customers
details to them and they paid. He got credit alert and he allowed scammers are making on a daily basis. Ignorance is not an ex- “It was when I screamed that the people in the neighbour- to access their personal information. This can be viewed as a
them go. It was not until later in the day that he found out there cuse. Another key thing to know about this application is that hood came and told me that I probably had fallen victim to a form of phishing on the mobile platform.
was no cash (money) in his bank account. even if you don’t have an Internet-enabled phone, you can still fake alert. When I told my boss, she felt sorry but told me that In terms of the future outlook, they said NeFF intends to
“Recently, I got a video like a security alert. It turns out to be
an application that has the ability to credit any bank account
know by the credit alert that you get . There is a feature, a sign
that you look out for and the moment you see it, in the SMS
Operators of Point of Sale devices (popularly known as PoS), car I would refund her. She has been deducting N15,000 from my
money monthly.”
introduce some payment valves in the ecosystem which
include embarking on a multi-industry coordinated fraud
and you will get an SMS credit alert from your bank, yet the that you got from a payment that a customer made to you, hold marts and large shopping malls are more likely to fall victim Banking sector stakeholders react
awareness campaign to extend the concept of an anti-fraud
forum to cover the West African sub region, constitute a
money will not be in your account .
“I couldn’t believe it until I saw how this thing works. This
them, they are thieves.”
In the original video introducing the application, the creator of
to the new scam, especially those who are not in the habit of The Group Head, Operations, Hope Payment consumer protection plan and operationalise the Payment
thing doesn’t even make mistakes. It takes into cognizance
the amount of money you have in your account, your existing
the video who gave his name as Nnamdi Christian, said: “This checking their credit balance online after receiving transfer Service Bank, Mr Sunday Abah, on Friday urged con-
cerned regulatory authorities and law enforcement
System Security Risk Management Center (PSSRMC) which
will include a dedicated police desk that will focus on pay-
app is not even on PlayStore. It was a friend of mine from the
balance, then it adds the amount of money the fraudster sends United Arab Emirates that introduced me to the app and I went alerts from customers. agencies to watch out for such fraudulent activities. ment and card crimes.

18 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Academics are as important as relationships, friendships
—Oluwakorede Adedeji, Unilorin Pharmacy best graduating student
With 14 awards and a CGPA of 4.96, Oluwakorede Adedeji emerged as the best graduating student of the Faculty of Phar-
maceutical sciences, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Kwara State for the 2020/2021 academic session. In this interview by YUSUF
ABDULKADIR, he speaks about his academic journey and how he achieved this feat.
W
ITH a 4.96 CGPA, you
graduated as the best
student of the Faculty
of Pharmaceutical Sci-
ences, University of Ilo-
rin. How does this achievement make you
feel and what does it mean to you?
It means a lot to me. It feels great to have
received the award and to inspire others
to do the same.
Tell us how you felt when you discov-
ered you were the best in your set?
I feel excited. I have wonderful class-
mates with very high CGPAs. It wasn’t easy
trying to maintain my CGPA. Realising that
I was the best made me very happy.
How would you feel if you had gradu-
ated with any grade other than this?
I would still be grateful, as long as I gradu-
ated a pharmacist.
Has been a pharmacist being part of
your dream?
Yes, it has. Pharmacy has always been
my first choice of study since secondary
school, and I am really happy to finally
achieve it.
Which area of the course did you find
most interesting?
There were a lot of areas I did find
interesting. I mostly enjoyed courses like
Pharmaceutical Chemistry, where you get
to study atomic and molecular interactions
in drug compounds; Pharmaceutics, where
you get to calculate; and Pharmaceutical
Microbiology, where you work on micro-
organisms. However, pharmacy school is
known for a lot of lab practicals. I think I
enjoyed most of them.
When you were a child, were there
times your parents forced you to read?
I can’t remember any time like that. I
have always been competitive in academ-
ics for as early as I can remember, and
that always motivated me to read without
being told to do so.
What was your study schedule like?
And what reading style worked for you?
My reading style varies. It depends on
the course. Most times I try to read for at
least a few hours every day, but sometimes
that changes due to many assignments
and lab reports I had to write. On average,
at least 1 - 3 hours daily, and more hours
during tests and exams.
Were you involved in school activities?
Yes. I served as the Editor-in-Chief of
the Pharmaceutical Association of Nige-
rian Students, Unilorin chapter, where I
helped publish the biweekly newsletter,
the annual magazine, and the book of
scientific abstracts for the faculty. I was
also the Campus Director for the Millen-
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
Achiever
Edited by Yusuf Abdulkadir | 08091290859 | email: abdulkadiryusufabiola@gmail.com
nium Campus Fellowship which focuses on social life was a 5. Academics are just as
social impact projects in the school and the important as relationships and friendships.
community at large. I think I tried to set a balance that would
not adversely affect my performance.
What was your social life like and how
would you say it influenced your perfor- How many awards did you receive? List
mance? them.
On a scale of 1 - 10, I would say my I received a total of 14 awards. Prof.
I aspire to continuously improve myself in
my field and to gather as much skills and ex-
perience needed to do that. Having a very
good academic record goes a long way in
providing credibility to my capabilities and
helping me gain useful connections.
tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
Agunu Memorial Award for the Overall
Best Graduating Pharmacy Student; Phar-
macy Council of Nigeria (PCN) award for
the overall Best Graduating Pharmacy
Student; PSN Kwara Award for the Over-
all Best Graduating Pharmacy Student;
Christopher Okpaleke Memorial Award
for the Overall Best Graduating Pharmacy
Student; Bioraj award for the overall Best
Graduating Pharmacy Student; WACPC
Award for the Overall Best Graduating
Pharmacy Student; NAPA Unilorin Award
for the Overall Best Graduating Pharmacy
Student; Mega Life Sciences Award for the
Best Graduating Pharmacy Student; Best
Graduating Student in the Department of
Pharmaceutical and Medicinal Chemistry;
Best Graduating Student in the Depart-
ment of Pharmaceutical Microbiology and
Biotechnology; Best Graduating Student
in the Department of Pharmaceutics and
Industrial Pharmacy; Best Graduating Stu-
dent in the Department of Pharmacology
and Toxicology; Prof. P. F Olurinola Award
for the Best Graduating Student in Pharma-
ceutical Microbiology and Biotechnology;
and AIPN Award for the Best Graduating
Student in Pharmaceutics and Industrial
Pharmacy.
Apart from good grades, what skills did
you acquire while studying?
Well, I developed myself in design and
innovation thinking, and went on to win
some competitions in my school and
nationally. I also learnt how to sew, and
sometimes made clothes including scrubs
and lab coats for others. I also developed
myself in research writing.
If you had not studied Pharmacy, what
would you have studied?
That would have been mathematics,
because I love calculations a lot.
What were your most memorable mo-
ments in school?
Too many to count. I think the most mem-
orable for me was my first day setting foot
in pharmacy school and my induction day.
What are your career goals? How will
your academic achievements help you
accomplish these goals?
I aspire to continuously improve myself
in my field and to gather as much skills and
experience needed to do that. Having a
very good academic record goes a long way
in providing credibility to my capabilities
and helping me gain useful connections.
Who are your role models?
So many. I look up to my parents and my
lecturers.
What is the one thing you would advise
students to do or run away from?
Never set limits for yourselves, only set
goals and remember to pray.

19 www.tribuneonlineng.com
‘Entrepreneurs must first prepare for
inflation’
Leslie Okoye is a Skincare Expert and Educator. The founder of CookieSkin in Lagos, who has over fifteen years
of hands-on experience with melanin skin issues, discusses with BIOLUWATIFE AKINYEMI the skincare industry
W
HAT made you venture
into skincare business
and education?
I entered the skincare
industry because I realised
that I knew it like the back of my hand. To
put it another way, I have been playing with
and observing my skin since I was 12 years
old. I was shocked to see how much filth
was on the white washcloth I used while my
mother was showing me how to properly
wash my face. She taught me how to take
care of my skin.
From there, my interest in skincare ex-
panded, leading me to research and explore
anything and everything skin. However, my
biggest shift came when as a teenager, I
interned as a Customer Care Rep. in the
United States for a skincare company. Work-
ing there, I felt the dismay and depression
of women that came feeling helpless about
their skin. It was that feeling of depression
that I sensed each time from women con-
fused about their skin that lead me to create
a brand for them.
The disregard for education on melanin
skin on an international level and the lack of
understanding, is why I began an academy
and decided to teach. In the same way that
Africans and African Americans are better
at understanding how to take care of black
hair, I want to ensure that Nigerians, Afri-
cans, and African Americans with melanin
skin are aware of how to take care of their
skin and achieve the desired results.
How did you come about the name
Cookieskin and what are the services it
renders?
My husband came up with the term
CookieSkin. When I asked him to help me
brainstorm on a name for my company, he
became distracted by my skin. I got upset
and asked him why he wasn’t helping or
taking me seriously and he said, “how could
he focus when my skin is so fresh that it is
distracting him?” He then suggested that
I name it “COOKIESKIN” and added that
everyone should strive to have skin that
is so fresh that it’s edible and makes their
husbands want to nibble on it.
As an entrepreneur in this present econ-
omy, how have you been able to sustain
your brand over the years?
I feel like I’m lucky. I thank God for
keeping the business especially living in a
country like Nigeria. It’s tough, but I remind
myself that I haven’t even captured 3% of
the market, so there must be hope. Plus,
great brands don’t happen overnight, so I
keep on.
Entrepreneurs must first prepare for
inflation. Beyond pricing, I try to give my
consumers services and products that are
unique in comparison to what is currently
on the market. For instance, when a cus-
tomer comes to us unsatisfied after trying
everything, we create a custom formula
after a free consultation. Due to this, we
have been able to remain competitive and
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
Xquisite Edited by Kangmwa Gofwen
08057002359 | gofwenjoy@gmail.com
in Nigeria among other related issues.
meet the needs of all of our clients.
How lucrative will you describe the sk-
incare production, looking at the influx of
people who venture into the business in
recent years?
There are practically no impediments
to doing business, thus the biggest
difficulty is the noise.
Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng
The production of skincare is a respect-
able industry. Note that there is no real
money in it if you are doing it on a small
scale. It will only make business sense if
you have finance, such as a bank loan or
venture capital, and you can construct a
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
factory and engage in large-scale produc-
tion of your products. Other than that, I
wouldn’t say that skincare production is
a lucrative business.
Who are your target audience?
My target audience includes all people
of colour with skin that is light, brown,
caramel, or black in hue. My audience can
come from anywhere—Africa, America,
India, etc.—as long as they have dark skin
or skin of colour and skin that can tan.
What are the challenges surrounding this
line of business and your brand?
There are practically no impediments to
doing business, thus the biggest difficulty is
the noise. Social media creates an excessive
amount of noise and distraction, especially
for people with darker skin.
Our skin is different, and we are told that
the wrong things should be done by follow-
ing the crowd. The beauty care regimens
we see on social media, such as exfoliation,
scrubs, and chemical peels, don’t work as
well on skin of color as they do on white
people.
What is CookieSkin offering in 2023?
In 2023, CookieSkin is providing more
information on melanin skin, encouraging
people to take care of themselves, and aim-
ing to see less damaged skin when people
visit our office.
To prevent them from spending addi-
tional money on skincare products that
will harm them, we want to provide them
with the correct information so they can
do it themselves.
What other things do you do as an in-
dividual?
In addition to consulting and specialising
in skincare, I also manage a private weight-
loss programme for individuals who choose
to do so. It is a monthly programmes that
is tailored to meet each person’s demands.
What advice will you give young entre-
preneurs and people who intend to go into
skincare business?
Young business people should continue
learning about skin, not just through per-
sonal experience but also by taking a skin-
care course. Making sure your intelligence
corresponds with global-level body intel-
ligence, systems, and solutions—not just
for one skin type but for all skin types and
all skin colors, rather than organic skincare
formulation.
Tell me briefly about Leslie Okoye
I studied Broadcast Journalism and have a
Master’s in Management. I am a wife and the
mother of two, originally from Abia State. Just
know that I’m smiling on the inside despite my
serious face.
Before I started CookieSkin, I worked for the
African Development Bank in Tunisia, a federal
contracting firm in Washington D.C and also
conducted strategy brand marketing in Nigeria.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE

20 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Xquisite Food
With: Yejide Gbenga-Ogundare | 08116706853 | yejide2812@gmail.com

A N G E YO U R
CH W I T H
TAST E
BA N A N A
BR E A D
I
N Nigeria today, many people seem tired
of eating the same staple while normal
white bread is becoming stale to the taste.
For such people, you can eat bread in a
variety of flavours to reduce monotony.
If you are one of those looking for a change
in taste, you can try the banana homemade
bread; a popular weekend flavour which can
be enjoyed throughout the weekend and
into the week, adding toppings like jam,
honey and many other flavours and extras.

INGREDIENTS
2 to 3 pieces of ripe bananas
1 cup of flour – 1 cup
4 pieces of eggs
Evaporated milk
1 to 2 cups of butter
0.75 cup of sugar
0.25 cup of yeast
0.5 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
0.25 cup cashew or ground nuts

PROCEDURE
If the eggs are in the refrigerator, take them
out on time so that they will be at room
temperature by the time you want to add
them to the recipe.
Pre-heat the milk for half a minute in the
microwave or on a stove.
Carefully add yeast to your milk and mix the
mixture.
Take another bowl and put flour in it.
Add baking soda, sugar and salt, then mix
all these ingredients.
Break all the nuts into tiny pieces with a
spoon or rolling pin.
Melt the butter and peel the banana into
another bowl.
Use a spoon or masher to mash it inside
the bowl.
In another bowl, break the eggs and gently
whisk them.
Slowly pour the melted butter and bananas
into the mixture of milk, yeast and flour
Mix everything together.
Add all other ingredients and keep mixing.
Add the nuts and continue to mix all the
products.
Your dough will look nice and smooth when
ready.
Put the dough on a bread pan and decorate
the top with the leftover nuts.
Preheat your oven and bake the bread for
about 60 minutes.
Your banana bread is ready for the table.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
22 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Intimacy Strictly for adults With Bosede Ola-Samuel

08112658560 | bosedeola_samuel@yahoo.com

Stressful marriage is a killer

O
NE thing that kills fast in life is
a stressful marriage. I have en-
gaged many couples in counselling
sessions, and I have really been
amazed at the level of stressed life
couples live. One keeps wondering how people
who professed great love for themselves,
could become a replica of cat and dog in their
relationship.
But, the truth of the matter is that marriage
doesn’t have to be that stressful. Marriage
should not be something to endured, but to
be enjoyed. When it is endured, it becomes a
silent killer of one of the couple, in most cases,
or both in few scenarios. So, couples should
learn how to stop or avoid having a stressful
marriage.
What are marital stressors?
Insensitivity to each other: This plays out
in the areas of complaints, changes in mood,
personal career or health challenges. When a
spouse ignores issues like these, and carries
on with life, as if nothing is at stake, the other
spouse becomes endangered species. Such
attitude is nothing but selfishness, and leaves
the other spouse devastated.
I must always have my way attitude: When a
spouse wants to lord decisions over the other,
in all things, and at all times, the center will
not hold. If there is no immediate explosion,
it’s a time bomb that must explode, unless it’s
detonated.
Nagging by the spouses: Nothing can be so
frustrating in a relationship than nagging. It
kills morale.
Disregard for the elements of love and
respect: The two major factors of stability in
marriage are love and respect (submission),
on the part of husband and wife, respectfully.
When a couple trivialize, misunderstand, or
disregard these two factors, the marriage
becomes endangered. No marriage, in which
love for the wife, and respect (submission) for
the husband, are lacking can be successful.
Making assumptions about each other:
When spouses read meanings to actions of
each other, it plays out as a stressor. If the
wife mistakenly forgets to leave the key of the
house when going out, it must be a revenge for
a wrong done to her. Or if the husband comes
home late, he must have gone to woman-
ize. Why give in to silly thoughts about your
spouse? Even the mentally derailed also have
few moments of sanity.
Physical or emotional abuse: Some spouses
are just abusers in relationships. They are
usually referred to as difficult persons. They
get physical at every opportunity, and could
be emotional in such situations. Thus, assault
and battering become their trade mark. They
deploy both mouth and fist in settling differ-
ences in the marriage.
Poor financial status: Poor financial status
boiling down to poor standard of living can be
a breaking point in the marriage. I have seen
spouses calling it quit due to this. Many others
use it as a legitimate reason for infidelity. When
a marriage stays at this poor financial level for
long, the relationship is usually adversely af-
fected. Only few spouses, especially wives, can
cope in such a situation.
Poor sexual status: Like I always say out of
experience, when sexual satisfaction is lacking
in marriage, every other area of the marriage
suffers. Nothing stresses a marriage like sexual
dissatisfaction.
Infertility: One major general expectation and
reason of marriage is child bearing. When there
is a delay of months and years, the couple come
under societal pressure and as such, stress sets
in. The spouses become touchy and blame each
other for the situation. Wives are the regular
victims of blame and ridicule in such a situation.
Unrealised expectations in the marriage: The
truth of the matter is that many people go into
marriage with great expectations. The high
point of which is a better life. Unfortunately, this
doesn’t come handy in many instances. It takes
time, and in some instances, it’s like its taking
eternity to realize such a better life. When this
happens, despair sets in, and it becomes a major
stressor in the marriage.
Effects of marital stressors
* Poor mental health
* Deteriorating health status
* Sudden death
* Societal violence
Solutions
A resolve to have a stress- free marriage at all
costs. To attain this, do everything necessary to
eliminate every stressor in your marriage.

Adam & Eve

Adeeko Olusegun | 08116954638 | adeeko.olusegun@yahoo.com

JUST A LAFFING MATA

Don’t joke with a woman’s wish
A woman was very sick. While on her bed, she asked her husband, “Honey, how long will
it take you to marry another woman in case I die?”
The husband replied, “Honestly, my love, I can only bring another woman after your grave
is completely dry.”
Few days later, the lady died, and her husband kept on visiting her grave on a daily basis.
This took 15 years, and the grave looked wet each day the man visited.
One evening, as he visited the grave, he met his brother in-law with an empty bucket, and
asked, “James, what are you doing here with a bucket?”
His brother in-law replied, “I am here to fulfill my only sister’s wish. She said I should come
FAMILY PALAVA...

here every day to wet her grave.”

The man fainted

Additional wives without grudges

A female professor was invited to a lecture and the topic she chose to speak about was on
polygamy. She spoke on the essence of polygamy, why women should embrace polygamy
and support their husbands towards achieving it. Her emphasis was that women should
allow their husbands to take additional wives without grudges, adding that the benefit is
enormous. As she spoke, a lady from the audience raised her hand, stood up and introduced
herself before speaking.
Lady: Professor, I really appreciate this topic because I am relieved of my fear. I never knew
you were this simple and understanding. Your message has given me the opportunity to
open up to you. Ma, I have been married to your husband in the past four years and we
have a set of twins.
To the greatest surprise of all in the hall, the professor slumped and was rushed to the
hospital. After she was revived, she opened her eyes to see the same lady standing by
her bedside.
Lady: Professor, I have never set my eyes on your husband. I don’t even know him. I just
said this to test you and you failed. Ma, next time, please, lecture on subjects that you
can do or handle!
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
23 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Kids & Teens

With Aunty Yemi | 08056834515 | ojeleyeoyeyemi@yahoo.com

Do you think politics is dirty?

Nigeria is in the political season where various activities are geared towards electing new leaders into various political positions. No day would pass without
news about the forthcoming general election slated for February and March. So many questions are running in the minds of both young and old Nigerians.
Here, some students of MEDMINA COLLEGE, IBADAN, Iyana Ajia, Egbeda, Oyo State speak.

I
Yazeed Ibrahim
N my perspective, politics is
dirty as being portrayed by my
country. In my country Nigeria,
politics is the number one bad
thing to get involved in because
basically, all politicians are corrupt.
Most of them are not good in
politics at all. However, if given the
opportunity to run for a position,
I would love to go for the position
of a Finance Minister unlike other
positions because I have special
skills in finance which will qualify
me as a perfect candidate. In
addition to this, I have high hope
for this country.
Arafat Tijani
Actually, politics is not dirty but
the people involved in it. As we
know, it involves getting and using
power in public life and being able
to influence decisions that affect
the society. So its make up and aim
is not dirty but the players involved
are the ones making it so because
of embezzlement of public funds,
bribery and the like. Should I have
opportunity to become a politician,
I would go for the position of the
Minister of Education because the
Ahmad Abdullai Tijani Arafat
past ministers did not do their jobs
as they should.
Ahmad Abdallah
Originating from a locality of
low infrastructure development,
I have noticed a lot of lack in
environmental qualities. If
finding solution to the problem
mentioned would push me to run
for a political position, I would
run for the position of a senate.
I would go to the senate so as to
have a say in the parliament which
can positively affect the nation. It
is one of the positions that is close
to the people being governed. The
most important job of a senator
is to represent the people. A
senator speaks with citizens about
problems, concerns or suggestions
they have for their district. I would
Fatima Abubakar
like to fight for legislation that is
in the best interest of the average
citizen.
Fatima Abubakar Umar
Politics to me is a dirty game
that really needs cleansing in
Nigeria and to do that, we need
right people on our political seats.
Most people in Nigeria believe
everything needs to start from
the president but for me it is
completely different. I feel the
president is just a representative
of the country who is not in total
control of the law.
To me, the law is power that is
why if I want to vie for a political
seat, I would like to run for the
House of Representatives where
government is formed, matters of
national interest are decided and
Yazeed Ibrahim Lasisi-Akeem Sofiyyah
represent the interests of people.
Sofiyyah Lasisi-Akeem, SSS3
Using my country, Nigeria as a
case study, it is very evident that
politics is very dirty. The rate at
which people are kidnapped and
used for rituals at this season
when elections are approaching
is alarming and this is as a result
of power tussle. Politicians go
through a lot of immoral and
ungodly processes just to get
to their desired positions; they
waste lives and properties without
the thought that the position is
an earthly thing. I would never
wish to have anything to do with
politics but if there an opportunity
comes my way, I would like to be
the President, who is the overall
head in a federal system of
Muhammad Buba
government.
Buba Aliyu Muhammad, SSS 3
The vile nature of the activities
of politicians in Nigeria reeks of
evil and corruption. The selfish
intent of wealth acquisition using
the government as a platform for
their corrupt two-faced ideologies
to shine is bad. This dirty game of
who gets what and at any expense
remains constant while the masses
are at the receiving end. When will
the change come? When will that
so-called change come to reality?
When will Nigeria truly experiace
change? It from our poisoned
country. This barren wasteland of
pain and suffering will remain the or
even get worse for true change can
ensure that this country’s politics
will no longer be a dirty game.

Mum & Child Edited by Kangmwa Gofwen

08057002359 | gofwenjoy@gmail.com

Postnatal care: High blood pressure can occur months after childbirth, experts warn
By Sade Oguntola
THE weeks following child birth are a critical
period for a woman and her infant, setting
the stage for long-term health and well-
being. So, it’s standard practice to monitor
a woman’s health during pregnancy and
immediately after childbirth.
Now, experts in a study say monitoring a
woman’s health even far beyond childbirth
is important since she could develop high
blood pressure months after childbirth. They
suggested that high blood pressure could
be missed in some new mothers with no
history of high blood pressure if the medical
checkup a woman gets after having a baby
ends immediately after childbirth.
In an analysis of more than 2,400 women,
about one in 10 without a history of blood
pressure issues were diagnosed with high
blood pressure in the year following delivery
among a group of racially diverse women
that received prenatal care and delivered
their babies at Boston Medical Centre.
Nearly a quarter of the women were
diagnosed more than six weeks after delivery
a time when many women have stopped
receiving follow-up care.
“Follow-up care is as important as
antenatal care because there are things
that can happen to a woman who has
just been delivered of a child,” said
DrFisayoOluwatosin, a family physician. “For
the woman who has just been delivered of a
child and is no more under the scrutiny of an
antenatal care, there is a tendency to miss
out some health conditions like high blood
pressure when she does not go for postnatal
care.”
Even at Primary Health facilities across
Oyo State, MrsFolasadeOladele, a public
health nurse, it is expected that during
follow-up visits after the delivery of the baby,
the mother is assessed for such things as
excessive weight gain, swollen feet (oedema)
headache, fainting attacks and sleeping well
to understand her state of health.
According to MrsOladele, “from these
assessment and vital signs, the health
care practitioners are able to identify any
abnormalities that need to be corrected
like high blood pressure or blood sugar or
even conditions that they need to refer for
specialist care.”
For the study, overall, 12% of women in the
study with no history of high blood pressure
had the condition within a year of childbirth.
While most cases were diagnosed shortly
after delivery, 22% were not diagnosed until
more than six weeks after the baby was
born.
The risk was exceptionally high for Black
women and for those who were 35 or
older, delivered by cesarean section or were
current or former smokers.
Blood pressure was measured at
least 48 hours after delivery. Additional
measurements were taken from medical
records through the first year following
delivery.
High blood pressure after childbirth,
called postpartum hypertension, is typically
discovered within six weeks of delivery
either immediately after birth or during a
woman’s last postpartum clinic visit at four
to 6 weeks after delivery.
In severe cases, postpartum hypertension
is associated with life-threatening
complications, including stroke, heart
failure, kidney failure and more. It is well
established that women with high blood
pressure before or during pregnancy are at
risk for cardiovascular disease later in life.
According to Professor Christopher
Aimakhu, a consultant obstetrician and
gynaecologist at the University College
Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, high blood pressure
tends to occur more in the last four weeks of
pregnancy, around the time of delivery and
in the first 10 days after child delivery.
He stated that the likelihood of missing a
new case of hypertension in a woman that
had cesarean delivery is far less because
such stay longer at the hospital after
childbirth unlike women with normal vagina
deliver that are often discharged 48 hours
after delivery from the hospital.
Professor Aimakhu who linked raised
blood pressure in women after childbirth
sometimes to stress, said after childbirth
women with any complaints are usually
told to come back to the hospital and are
also expected to have comprehensive
postpartum care at 6 weeks follow-up visits.
Postpartum care includes assessment of
physical, social, and psychological well-being,
including the following domains: mood
and emotional well-being; infant care and
feeding; sexuality, contraception, and birth
spacing; sleep and fatigue; physical recovery
from birth; chronic disease management;
and health maintenance.
This medical checkup a woman gets after
having a baby is important because new
mothers are at risk of serious and sometimes
life-threatening health complications in the
days and weeks after giving birth. Too many
new moms have or even die from health
problems that may be prevented by getting
postpartum care.
Notably, studies on the use of postpartum
care across the regions of Nigeria say the use
of postpartum care was highest among urban
women with higher education, working
mothers, and women who made decisions
alone and jointly with their husbands and
had access to some form of mass media,
particularly radio and television.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
24 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

SoS
With Sam Nwaoko
09153880648
e-mail: samnwaoko@gmail.com

Sam on Saturday

Garba Shehu, see real banana republic?

I
N 2012, Mallam Garba Shehu wrote an article entitled:
‘Mango people in banana republic’.Mallam Shehu wrote
the Today column in the legendary Nigerian Tribune
newspaper. His ‘Mango people in banana republic’ was
published by the Nigerian Tribune on Monday, November
12, 2012. It was both a lamentation and a celebration. Yes, it
is the same Mallam Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant,
Media and Publicity to the President of the Federal Republic
of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari. He also once wrote weekly
articles to celebrate the country and to also appraise the
performance of governments. He was not in government and
he mostly did not write good things about the government of
the day at that time. He was one of those described as ‘pinch-
penny watchdogs’ that lampooned the Federal Government
that was run by Dr Goodluck Jonathan and his PDP.
In the article, Garba Shehu opened with vivid imagery of a
relatable Don Quixote: “Have you seen a man haggling over
the price of a hose pipe while his house is on fire? That’s
the Federal Republic of Nigeria for you!” In the article, he
described a situation in which a man would waste all the
attention his burning house requires and be running after
rats. The Yoruba will mildly describe such buffoonery by
saying that such a man has allowed the leprosy to fester while
he has exerted efforts to kill the ring worm. Well, that was
what Mallam Shehu was saying in ‘Mango people in Banana
Republic’ when he contended that while there were reports
of “mind-blowing corruption going on in the country’s oil
sector, our officials seem not to care but are, instead, focused
on inter-personal and ego wars and academic debates about
whether oil should be projected at this or that price.”
While you maintain that imagery in your head, let’s look
at another picture painted by the same Garba Shehu on
Wednesday, 21 November, 2012. Mallam Shehu gave us
the second image through his Today column in the Nigerian
Tribune, published on the back page of the legendary
newspaper. The title of that work leaves us with everything
that we need to know and ruminate over: ‘A president’s
detachment from reality’. But for a better understanding, he
brought us to a vantage position to take a closer look at his
thoughts about the Federal Government of that era.
Except for those wet behind the ears, Nigerians know that
the calling out of Jonathan back then for not dealing with the
crooks in the oil sector and for his lethargy in the fight against
corruption are all academic shows. Nigerians should decide
who among the two presidents have made any significant
difference in the areas pointed at in our national life by our
dear Mallam Shehu. He is also at a better position to educate
us now that he has managed and spoken for the Buhari
administration for a total of eight years. He also once asked
“whether the forces of corruption are not stronger than the
state” and today’s Nigeria presents the spokespersons of the
Federal Government an opportunity to educate us on what
really is going on at the seat of power.
What does banana republic means? Or, what does Garba
Shehu mean by ‘banana republic’? One online dictionary
said ‘banana republic’ is “a small nation, especially in Central
America, dependent on one crop only or influx of foreign
capital.” The online dictionary however pointed out that its
definition is derogatory. Another dictionary, the Webster’s
New Encyclopedic Dictionary, defines ‘banana republic’ as “a
small dependent country usually of the tropics; especially one
run despotically.” These imageries were brought to us by the
presidential spokesman when he was not yet in government.
It is reality time and Mallam Garba Shehu is now on the other
side of the divide. He can no longer mention a president’s
detachment from reality nor can he now see the mango
people in a banana republic.
Before we descended into this current vale of tears, we
had some pointers to this gritty patch rather early in the life
of the Buhari administration. That time, Nigerians expected
a government that would hit the ground running. But when
the government hit the ground and got stuck, they were
disappointed. A government they had expected to act fast
in dismantling the many castles of corruption and ineptitude
they said Goodluck Jonathan built was rather ultra-lethargic
and was barely moving a limb. There were these muffled cries
and queer whimpers against what presented as a slothful,
slow and arrogant administration as it rolled into 100 days.
But Mallam Garba Shehu reminded us that Buhari did not
make specific promises and denied the promises contained
in booklets entitled “One Hundred Things Buhari will do in
100 Days” and “My Covenant with Nigerians.” He also said
Buhari himself dismissed the idea of 100 days because he
could do anything about the very high expectations in 100
days. Shehu also said the APC ran a campaign that had so
many centres of public communication some of which were
on the loose. We were warned.
One of the people who also showed Nigerians the short
end of the stick – and actually gave it to the population – was
Mr. Okoi Obono-Obla. You might have forgotten him. He was
a member of the APC Presidential Campaign Council and a
vociferous campaigner of the good the APC was. Indeed,
Obono-Obla was a hyper-active trumpeter of the pre-2015
APC and that time immediately after the Buhari government
was formed. When he reacted to Nigerians’ unease that
the administration was not showing the early signs of a
performing government, he chided Nigerians as expecting too
much too early, and blamed the desire of Nigerians on “the
forces of corruption.” Obono-Obla was reinforcing Buhari’s
denial of some of the promises that had propelled him to the
Aso Rock Villa. This is how Obono-Obla put it: “We don’t know
about the document. I was in the APC Presidential Campaign
Council and there was no document that emanated from the
Presidential Campaign Council saying that the President will
transform Nigeria into a land of milk and honey.”
Like Garba Shehu, Mr Obono-Obla propounded similar
verbal theories to prove that Buhari did not make those
promises to Nigerians. In the same vein, Shehu has been in
the vanguard of the legion that holds the view that Nigerians
are not yet frustrated with the administration. He knows that
at worst, by the time the anger comes apart at the seams,
it would be May 29 and they would have packed their ‘bins
bags and vats’ and zoomed out of the presidential villa. By
the way, where is Okoi Obono-Obla now?
Gabrba Shehu’s ‘Mango People in Banana Republic’ is now
a child’s play compared to the chaos the Buhari government
has thrown the country into in nearly eight years. The ordinary
Nigerian cannot now listen without doubt to the sermons of
the Buhari government. Nigerians now hold the government’s
postulations with a pinch of salt. They know the difference
between cash in hand and cash in the bank. Nigerians now
know the difference between petrol station and petrol in
filling station. Nigerians to whom Garba Shehu is explaining
the reports of the stoning of the president’s convoy in Kano
know how they feel. He did not say anything about the earlier
reports of stoning in Katsina.
It is fate that has made the stoning incident to happen
in Northern Nigeria. If this had happened anywhere in the
South, it would have been easier to spin the story to read that
it was either an angry, desperate Bola Ahmed Tinubu or an
IPOB-supporting Peter Obi that engineered innocent Buhari
lovers to revolt against their god. That that kind of thing did
not happen in the South could be because Buhari has not
come to the South since the current shadow of confusion
enveloped the country.

News
New naira notes: Zulum threatens to
revoke banks’ land allocations
Atiku Galadima | Maiduguri
GOVERNOR Babagana
Zulum of Borno State has
threatened to revoke land
allocation of any commercial
bank that deliberately refuses
to make the new naira notes
available to its customers in
Borno State.
Zulum stated this on
Friday when he visited some
commercial banks and ATM
booths in Maiduguri after
he received complaints that
most of the ATM machines
were not dispensing cash.
He noted that most of those
queuing up at ATM booths
were poor and vulnerable
people who spend more than
12 hours just to withdraw five
to 10 thousands to just to buy
food for their family.
According to Zulum, I
deliberately went round
the banks to see for myself.
This man is here since 6am
but he cannot withdraw
N10,000, that means CBN
can not make the cash
available”.
“Any bank that deliberately
refuses to make the new
naira notes available to its
customers, should know
that we will revoke its land
allocation”.
“ The extension of the
dateline is not our problem
but to make the new naira
notes available to our people,
right here in Borno State I
visited morethan 10 banks
but there is no money”.
“Look at this people, some
of them are here waiting
for cash since yesterday,
commercial activities has
completely paralysed and we
can not continue like this”.
“What CBN is doing is bad
and it has negative impact on
our masses”
“We are pleading with the
Federal Government to look
at this situation in order to
bring a lasting solution to our
people”.
“The new naira notes is
unavailable over the counter
in most of the banks and ATM
machines.”
EFCC investigates actress for spraying,
stepping on redesigned naira notes
Saliu Gbadamosi | Abuja
AS Nigerians continue to
grapple with the availability
of the new naira notes,
the Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC)
o n F r i d ay a n n o u n c e d
that it has commence
investigation of an actress
and cosmetologist,
Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin,
for allegedly tampering with
the new naira notes, an
offence contrary to Section
21 (5) of the Central Bank
of Nigeria, CBN Act, 2007.
EFCC spokesman, Wilson
Uwujaren, informed
that Omoseyin, who was
arrested by operatives of
the Independent Corrupt
Practices and Other
Fraud Related Offences
Commission (ICPC) on
Wednesday, February 1 on
Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos,
following intelligence report,
was being investigated by
EFCC, Lagos Command.
The 31-year-old actress
was arrested after a video of
her spraying and stepping on
the newly redesigned naira
notes at a party surfaced
online.
In the viral video, she was
also seen flaunting wads of
the new Naira notes.
Uwujaren said the
suspect was subsequently
handed over to the EFCC
on Thursday, February 2 for
further investigations.
He added that items
recovered from her at the
point of arrest included a
Range Rover and iPhone
mobile devices.
According to the EFCC
spokesman, the suspect
would be charged to court
once investigations were
concluded.

Emefiele insincere about availability of new naira notes —Folarin

By Wale Akinselure
IN the wake of scarcity of cash,
governorship candidate of
the All Progressives Congress
(APC), Senator Teslim Folarin,
has accused governor of
the Central Bank of Nigeria
(CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele,
of insincerity about availability
of the new naira notes.
He chided Emefiele
for implementing a half-
baked policy, noting that it
was baffling that the CBN
declared that N3.2trillion
old currencies were still in
circulation whereas about
N300billion new naira notes
had been discovered to have
been printed.
Folarin noted that the
unpreparedness of the CBN
in implementing the new
policy could also be seen in its
continued distribution of the
old naira notes till the end of
January.
Folarin, in a statement by his
media aide, Mr Yekeen Olaniyi,
said it was unacceptable that
Nigerians were being subjected
to hardship as a result of the
poorly implemented CBN
policy.
He noted that the manner
with the which the naira
redesign policy was being
implemented continued to
lend credence to notions
that Emefiele was being used
by saboteurs to harm the
nation’s economy.
In addition, Folarin
maintained that the
pronouncement that the
old naira would cease to be
legal tender after February
10 contravenes the CBN Act,
maintaining that the call for
extension of the deadline to
June 30 was a constitutional
matter.
The statement read in parts:
“Scarcity of naira notes and
petroleum products have
paralysed economic activities
and other social lives in Oyo
State and other states of the
federation.”

25
News
POS operators buy naira notes from petrol stations
By Kangmwa Gofwen
BEFORE now, Point of Sales
(POS) operators charged
N100-N200 for a withdrawal
of N5,000. But with the new
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
policy, they now charge N100
on every N1,000. A few of the
operators who spoke to Sat-
urday Tribune revealed that
they go as far as buying bulk
cash since most banks’ auto-
mated teller machines (ATMs)
are not dispensing cash and
the daily queues at the ATMs
remain overwhelming.
According to them, they
have no choice but to jack up
their charges since they have
take out what they spent on
getting cash before calculating
their profit.
“We all know how hard it is
Nigerians react to scarcity of naira notes, growing queues at ATM stands
B y Yu s u f A b d u l k a d i r,
Kangmwa Gofwen and Ad-
eronke Adesanya
A cross section of Nigerians,
in the course of the week,
expressed their views to
Saturday Tribune on the
current scarcity of the new
naira notes and the atten-
dant hardship. Their views
are as follow.
CRUS A.O
The only solution is for the
government to make mon-
ey available to the people.
How can somebody save
#500,000 in his account
and you cannot have access
to N5,000. Many children
are not going to school be-
cause their parents cannot
even give them food, many
families don’t have any-
thing to eat because you
buy foodstuff with money.
Also, the apparent target of
the government, the cash-
less society cannot work in
Nigeria because we are not
yet civilized to that level.
The only solution is for them
to make money available.
To withdraw old notes in
circulation requires a long
process, it may take up to
six months to one year but
as people are coming to
deposit the old notes you
collect and give them the
new notes not just giving a
specific deadline, it is not
possible. Nigeria is highly
populated and if the gov-
‘Yomi Ayeleso | Ado-Ekiti
THE National Directorate
of Employment (NDE) has
commenced another round
of vocational training for
youths in Itapa-Ekiti, Oye
Local Government Area of
Ekiti State.
www.tribuneonlineng.com
to get cash at the moment. It
is hard for us, too. I have to
leave the house very early. I
leave my baby at home most
times to, with about three
debit cards, visit two-three
banks and join the queues
at the ATMs. At the end of
the day, I return at about 3
o’clock in the afternoon with
just N60,000,” an agent from
Zaria, Kaduna State, who
craved anonymity told Satur-
day Tribune.
“You, on the other hand,
will just sit at home and then
come to offer me N100 to
withdraw N5,000. Does that
make sense? You have to pity
POS agents. I don’t know how
much other people charge
but I charge N100 for N1,000.
At least I have saved you the
stress of going out and queu-
ernment doesn’t control all
these things, it may lead to
another problem and there
may be chaos in Nigeria, no
two ways about it.
FOLAKE (NURSING MOTH-
ER)
The suffering the gov-
ernment is inflicting on we
Nigerians is very terrible.
It’s sunny here and it is not
easy carrying a baby on your
back and at the same time
queuing for so long. The
heat and all is nothing to
write home about. We can’t
withdraw our hard-earned
money we kept at the bank,
the government is just suf-
fering the people and it is
too much. The government
should please help us out.
As for me, what I think is the
way out is for the govern-
ment to withdraw the old
notes in circulation if they
really want to and make the
new ones circulate as much
as possible. We are tired
of this situation. Imagine
withdrawing #5,000 per day,
which doesn’t sort anything
imagine to eat, feed your
family, buy petrol and all.
The new notes should be
released from wherever it
is kept.
WASIU ADEYANJU
We have problem already
in this country. Imagine
having money and going
through this stress to with-
draw the money. They have
created a problem for all and
NDE begins vocational training for youths in Ekiti
The Director General of
NDE, Malam Abubakar
Nuhu Fikpo, during the flag-
off of the training in Itapa-
Ekiti, said the event was
part of the agency’s School-
On-Wheels programme tar-
geted at the rural areas.
Represented by the state
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune
ing up at the ATM and every
other thing.
“My husband got money
with money, so you can imag-
ine. After the business of the
day, I have to remove the
money he used to buy the
bulk cash. He booked for the
cash at a filling station here
in Zaria. After making sales,
they would call and ask him
to come for the cash,” the POS
agent added.
She accused bankers of be-
ing part of the problem, alleg-
ing that they charge for cash
over the counter. She said: “A
friend said she got N100,000
over the counter with N5,000
taken as the charge. The bank-
ers are part of our problem.
My husband said he would
rather deal with the filling
stations than go to the bank.”
sundry. For example, where
I went to work the person
transferred money to my
account and when I got to
where to withdraw my ATM
card has expired. I had to
go into the banking hall to
make withdrawal. Now I am
stranded as I speak to you
I trekked down here from
where I came from. I believe
it is only God that can help us
out in this country, because
if it continues like this till the
election day, I doubt if we
won’t be having a problem
the government has just
inflicted suffering on every-
one. Only God can rescue us.
EFE RONALD CHESTER-
FIELD
My experience with the
new notes is a funny one. I
had no cash on me, as I have
used my last cash to Board a
vehicle to the market, hop-
ing to use a POS to get some
money for my purchases.
At the Point of Sales, I was
audaciously informed that
I had to pay N2000 if I was
to cash N10000. It is quite
ridiculous that we now have
to purchase a local currency
with our own local currency.
It’s absurd. POS operators
who have the new notes
even charge higher. Almost
50% of whatever you’re
withdrawing. So I decided I
would use the ATM at banks.
Sadly, they are all crowded
with stranded market wom-
en and commuters who have
coordinator, Olugbenga
Sanusi, Fikpo explained that
the agency was determined
to end poverty in the society
with regular vocational skills
for unemployed youths in
the state.
He added that the training
in the community was aimed
Nigerian Tribune
She stated that worse still, in
spite of the prohibitive charge,
some POS agents were still paid
with the old notes.
“I collected N100,000 for
N6,000 from a filling station
because most ATMs in Zaria
are not paying. Even if they
are, the queues are not what
you want to endure. So, now,
my profit from this money is
N10,000 and when I remove
the N6,000 I used to get this
cash, my profit decreases to
just N4,000.”
In Ugheli, Delta State, Pre-
cious Afure, a drinks whole-
saler, said POS agents were
prepared to pay any amount
she charged to buy cash from
her. She said before now, she
gave the agents cash after the
close of business in exchange
for a transfer to her account.
given up. Most of us had
found a way to return our
monies to the banks based
on the prior information
that the old notes would
be rejected from the 31st of
January only for us to hear
the date extension.
The issue of the naira is a
laughable one. On one hand
it makes sense to me that it
is to mitigate the possibil-
ity of hoarding notes to be
distributed to hoodlums
and ignoramuses who may
want to tamper with the
forthcoming election. On the
other hand, there may be
some truth in the fact that
there’s a malfunction cur-
rently hindering the circula-
tion of cash. I lean towards
the latter. This is because
the reaction by the APC
presidential candidate in
his rallies have proven that
he seems to believe that
the present government is
against his political ambi-
tion. This is another irony,
since the ruling government
and the one insinuating
ploys against his ambition
belong to the same party. It
becomes hard for Nigerians
to be sure what is going on.
The situation in Nigeria has
left Nigerians no choice than
being conspiracy theorists,
where ironically, the bulk
of such ridiculous presump-
tions are often found to be
true. Nigeria is like a theatre,
and folks who sometimes
need a distraction need only
at giving the youths in the
rural areas equal opportun-
ity with their counterparts in
the urban area with appren-
ticeship training for them to
be self-reliant and financially
independent.
He said: “School-On-
Wheels is a special
tribuneonlineng
“Before now, I gave POS
agents bulk cash without any
charge because I needed the
money in my account but with
the scarcity of naira notes,
POS agents are now begging
me to sell them whatever cash
I have,” Afure said.
In Ibadan, Oyo State, Imodola
Azeez said the new withdrawal
limit had forced POS agents to
look for alternative means of
getting cash in bulk. He told
Saturday Tribune that those al-
ternative sources charge them
outrageously for cash.
Azeez said: “As POS agents,
the current situation is af-
fecting us very badly. Some
people blame us for inflating
the transaction charges at this
period. But the truth is that
most of us go the extra mile
to get the money that we use
muse about Nigeria and her
doings
MAUREEN AGBU EDOM
I spent three hours on the
queue to withdraw N5,000
that is because the bank will
not allow me withdraw more
than N5,000 because I am
not a customer of the bank.
When it got to my turn, ATM
didn’t pay me because my
bank had no network. I came
back disappointed.
HASHIM YUSUF
The last N4,000 cash I
withdrew was paid in N100
notes. I was given 40 notes
as against the normal four
notes. Well, I received it with
joy as the POS agent was the
only one disbursing in the
whole of our area. Yesterday,
it was another hellish experi-
ence as no POS attendant
opened for business. It took
me extra pay and a bike
charge to withdraw. This
morning, I’ve been to about
10 POS shops, none opened.
We have never had it this
bad, and I sincerely think
these banks who allegedly
sell new notes to rich and
influential individuals should
be blamed for this, while
bank like JAIZ deserves com-
mendation for not jumping
on the unfair bandwagon.
We hope that CBN will also
disburse more and sufficient
new notes to these banks,
while taking serious sanc-
tions against banks who do
scheme of the NDE that
focuses on bringing vo-
cational skills training to
the doorsteps of youths in
rural areas, so as to avail
them equal apprentice-
ship opportunity that is
available in urban areas.
“It makes use of the Mobile
4 FEBRUARY, 2023
for business.
“For example, we now buy
money from some individuals
who charge very high rates
and that is the reason behind
us increasing our charges. It is
not our fault. This morning, I
went early to an ATM point in
Oke-Ado, at 6.00 a.m., precisely,
to make withdrawal and I was
given a small paper which indi-
cated that I was number 201 on
the line. Imagine that.
“The new programming
of the ATMs allows N20,000
maximum withdrawal and
well all know that we, POS
operators, need more than
that. This is a tough time. At
the moment, most of us are
finding ways to get around the
current situation. We need
to be more prayerful and ask
God to ease our burden.”
not comply with fair distri-
bution of the new currency.
ODUMOSU JOY
I was at the ATM queue for
hours, people were fighting
and shouting at one another
and when it got to my turn
the ATM stopped dispensing
and I was so angry and sad
after waiting for hours. So I
decided to opt for the POS
despite the fact that I was
going to pay five hundred
Naira just to collect five
thousand Naira and when
it got to my turn, the POS
attendant said cash had
been exhausted . The painful
part of it was that the POS
attendants were now act-
ing like small gods charging
100 Naira on one thousand
naira and it’s not even the
new note.
SUNDAY MOSES
People were on the queue
fighting one another all in
the name of who to use the
ATM first so they can get the
new notes ,but on getting
to the machines, to their
disappointment the ATMs
dispensed old notes. Banks
deliberately closed their
gates so customers can’t
withdraw the new naira
notes, while others refused
to load their ATMS. They are
doing this knowing full well
that there’s a panic, but the
CBN is not sanctioning them,
instead emefiele is adamant
on extending the deadline.
Training Workshop (MTW)
as the training outlet. This
opportunity brought to you
is to launch you into self-em-
ployment and hence, wealth
creation. We need to de-em-
phasizing white collar jobs
and placing premium on
self-reliance.”

26 www.tribuneonlineng.com
Interview
APC has no opposition in Ogun, PDP’s Adebutu
can’t beat Abiodun —Assembly Chief Whip, Bello
Honourable Atinuke Bello, the current Chief Whip of the Ogun State House of Assembly, is the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in
Odogbolu Constituency for this year’s general election. She speaks, in this interview, on the forthcoming polls, APC’s chances in the state,
challenges as a female politician, among other things. BOLA BADMUS brings excerpts:
A
few weeks to the presidential elec-
tion, what is your take on the likely
outcome of the poll in Ogun State?
The APC candidate, Senator Bola
Tinubu, will win in Ogun State with
a very wide margin. Even the people in the main
opposition are not campaigning for their presi-
dential candidate; they are only campaigning for
the governorship candidate. Here in Ogun State,
we have a governor that is capable and campaign-
ing for his presidential candidate.
Also, our senatorial candidate, Chief Gbenga
Daniel, is from my constituency. The former gov-
ernor is campaigning for Tinubu. We are winning
the election hands down.
Don’t you think the failure of the APC to fulfill
campaign promises will affect Tinubu’s chances?
Politics is local. When Tinubu was governor of
Lagos State, even without the revenue of the
state not being given to the state, he did so well.
In fact, he raised the revenue of Lagos State; he
raised it to a point that till now, the standard has
not been met by any state.
Tinubu is tested and trusted. He is a man with
ideas, a man that knows what to do at the right
time to make things work. Why would Nigerians
leave such a man and vote for a man that failed at
the federal level? Tinubu was tested at the state
level and he did so well there. We expect him to
do more at the federal level with the resources
that would be at his disposal.
He created the LCDAs in Lagos and they are
still there. Lagos State has local government
autonomy and that is something that differenti-
ates that state from others. I know that in these
coming elections, people are going to vote for
personality and what you have achieved rather
than the parties.
What are the chances of the state governor,
Dapo Abiodun, against the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) governorship candidate, Ladi Ade-
butu?
There is no opposition in Ogun State. Talking about com-
petence, we need a person who did well as a professional.
If you say Ladi is popular in Ogun, I will say no. If you say his
father is popular, I will say yes. We don’t want a man that
wants to ride on the achievements of his father to be our
governor; we want a man who has been tested, a man who
has recorded achievements in his private life, someone who
has competence and has shown capacity. To be governor of
Ogun State is not a family entitlement; it is not a family inheri-
tance. It is the collective decision of the people of this state.
So, someone cannot say because of my father, I want to
be this. We want capacity and character, which Abiodun has
shown as a manager in his private life, which he has shown as
a father and a husband. Dapo Abiodun is a good father and
a good husband. Let’s see what he (Ladi) has done when he
was elected to a lesser position earlier. Is it about carrying
the family name up and down? No. It is about competency
and capacity.
What has been your experience as a female politician in
Nigeria?
It has been challenging. There are men who think intimi-
dating a woman makes them feel great. We face constant
checking by men in our decision making. It has been very
challenging and interesting as well. The challenges have been
keeping us going in the discharge of our duties.
According to statistics, there is a reduction in the number
of women contesting the 2023 polls, compared to the 2019
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Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
Also, as a female, you have the task of being
in public office and taking care of your family.
Taking care of yourself, as a woman, is a job on
its own; you have to dress properly. Men don’t
care. When they wear shirts and trousers, they
are good to go. But women take more time. We
have several things that are limiting our partici-
pation in politics. If the political environment
is not too conducive for females to participate,
they may end up giving up and going back to
their shells. It takes a tough woman to say I
want to carry on.
That is why when some of us get tickets, a
man would just come and take it away. I had a
similar experience in my local government area
but we thank God for where we are today. To
succeed as a female politician, you must have a
husband that is very understanding. Matching
the home front work and the political work is
not easy. But you must have a husband that
would understand you and know when you
are tired. Taking care of the children is not
your responsibility alone, you need help. The
challenges are what make a woman want to go
crazy and give up.
How far have you gone in your re-election
campaign to ensure victory?
We have been doing stakeholders consulta-
tions. Thank God it has been great. We’re talk-
ing to wards, and everybody around. We have
done the first flag-off of the governor; we are
carrying out the local government campaign
flag-off. Very soon, we will be doing the door-
to-door campaign.
People have been responsive to the cause
and we thank God for that. We have done a lot
of things. We have done souvenir, awareness
programmes. We have our posters. The things
we are telling them are things they can see; our
people have been responsive to a very large
extent. The reception has been great. So, we
figure. What do you think is responsible for this? are positive of winning the election.
The reduced number of women contesting the 2023 polls
is due to all the things that women see on the field. You just What have been your achievements as the representative
want to get out of it and say I am doing this no more. of your consistency in the House of Assembly?
You know, Nigerian traditions and culture support domina- Let me start from the little things we have done before
tion by males. Most females don’t want to stay in a place talking about what we have influenced into the local gov-
where their voice doesn’t count. Most females don’t want ernments.
to stay in a place where they are always challenged. If you When we came into office, we were able to erect boreholes
are not strong-willed and careful, you may end up breaking into several places in my constituency. We have been able to
down emotionally and losing it. build toilets for garages and major markets in the wards in
my constituency. We have been able to reroof health centres
which were in bad shape.
For the back-to-school programme, we have 13 students
whose school fees we pay per term. These are people who
are not financially buoyant. We have a programme under
It has been challenging. which we distribute free books and uniforms to students.
There was a time we distributed chairs to schools. We have
There are men who think done electricity installation in communities; we have sunk
intimidating a woman makes boreholes in several communities. We have facilitated two
blocks of classrooms in Odogbolu. We also facilitated trans-
them feel great. We face formers in Odogbolu.
constant checking by men In my local government area, we gave a whole building
of classrooms in the Catholic School. We have done solar
in our decision making. It installation in most parts of my constituency. At the Compre-
has been very challenging hensive High School, we also facilitated blocks of classrooms.
We facilitated transformers in communities among several
and interesting as well. other projects that space cannot allow us to mention here.
The challenges have been Is there any particular project that you are passionate
keeping us going in the about if you win re-election?
Yes, that is major empowerment of women in my constitu-
discharge of our duties. ency and maintaining existing projects.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
27 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Voxpop
What is your take on CBN’s Hot comment
Those who did not have

extension of the deadline for old

access to the new notes,
especially the elderly,
before the original deadline

naira notes to February 10? could still spend the old

notes completely and
not worry about their
Last week, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), after much criticism and backlash due to shortage of the rejection. The scarcity of
new naira notes, extended the deadline for the exchange of old notes to new ones to February 10. the new notes has helped
KINGSLEY ALUMONA, YUSUF ABDULKADIR and ADERONKE ADESANYA sought the opinions of some in preparing the minds of
the citizens for the new
Nigerians on the matter. Their views: deadline.

Esther Adeniyi

In all sincerity, I see no need for the extension Olakunle Akinwole

of the deadline for old naira notes. It makes
it more evident that the current government
has no backbone and does not stand by its
word. If the government announces a change
of notes for over a month and the citizens
cannot comply, then that is on them, not on
the government. The government remaining
true to its word would make the citizens have
more respect for it and its rules. I think it also
plays a big role in the scarcity of money pres-
ently.
The extension means nothing if the new
notes are not in circulation. The CBN is more
concerned about recovering old notes and
not bothered about putting new notes into
circulation. If the essence of reducing the
notes in circulation is about cashless policy,
market people and other traders should be
considered. The essence is defeated if people
in rural areas continue to suffer because of
the policy.
Precious Anifowose
The CBN’s extension of the old notes’ dead-
line is good. This is the best the Federal Gov-
ernment could do for us. Those who did not
have access to the new notes, especially the
elderly, before the original deadline could
still spend the old notes completely and not
worry about their rejection. The scarcity of
the new notes has helped in preparing the
minds of the citizens for the new deadline.
Oshibanjo Morgan
The deadline for the old naira note is still not
a date to comprehend. Old notes are being
deposited in banks every day, and same old
notes are being disbursed from the banks.
This implies that the new notes are not much
in circulation. We all know that the CBN has
a good motive behind this, but they should
find another means to regulate cash flow and
achieve their goals.

Adedayo Sojipeters
As expected, Nigerians are last-minute peo-
ple. Any deadline not extended in Nigeria
might result in irreparable losses. It is quite
unfortunate. Some rich people even take
pride in this shameful behaviour. I am still
trying to see the sense in plunging millions of
people into losses because the government
does not want politicians to bribe voters and
also because it wants to impose a cashless
policy.
Chioma Agaba
Some people would still not comply with the
new deadline. It is better the CBN governor
made sure that the new notes are in circula-
tion, even in remote areas.
Azeez Alamu
The extension is not necessary. It was done to
heed the cries of some Nigerians. However,
the extension has caused more pain than gain
because old notes being deposited in banks
are not resupplied while we have little supply
of the new notes in circulation owing to the
fact that some people are hoarding it, aside
politicians and the bourgeoisie. I am in sup-
port of the cashless policy, as it would reduce
crimes such as robbery, kidnapping and ritu-
alism. But the government should be more
responsible towards enlightening Nigerians
on its pros and cons.
Marvelous Adedayo
The extension is a means to pacify the masses
and pretend as if the policymakers care. I do
not understand how the CBN expects millions
of Nigerians to go to their various banks to
complete the exchange process. In fact, the
bankers are the ones facing much of the heat.
It looks like this naira redesign is political. We
do not need a soothsayer tell us that millions
of Nigerians in rural villages and communities,
without banks, would suffer more as a result
of this policy and may lose their long-term
savings, even within the ten-day extension.

29
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View.com
Viewing tertiary education through the eyes of students
L
By Olanshile Ogunrinu
AST year was no doubt a challenging year for Nigerian
students. It was hellish for many of them because
academic activities in the Nigerian universities were
paralysed for over eight months due to an industrial
action by the Academic Staff Union of Universities
(ASUU). The university lecturers went on strike over demands
for improved welfare and government indebtedness to them
for their earned allowances, amongst other issues. The strike
which started on the 14th of February, 2022 went on until
mid-October of the same year when the union was forced
to abort the strike by a judgment of the National Industrial
Court.
Nigerian students often suffer greatly during these strikes
which are often lengthy and disruptive. These strikes cause
delays in the completion of students’ degree programmes
and significantly impact their progress in many ways. As
Nigerian students look forward to a better 2023, many of
them have identified several areas that should be the priority
of the government in a bid to arrest industrial disputes in
2023 in the nation’s tertiary education sector to make life
better for the students.
Reiterating the fact that the government is saddled with
the responsibility of funding education, Aduwo Ayodele, a
student of History at the University of Ibadan expressed the
hope that the government at all levels will not wait to see
institutions of higher learning shut before doing the needful.
He advised that “Government should make (a) determined
effort to resuscitate public education in 2023. With many
institutions increasing tuition fees arbitrarily against the
economic reality in the country, there is a need for the gov-
ernment to temper their decisions and address all issues of
concern affecting the education sector,” Ayodele said.
Also sharing his opinion on the matter, Adeegbe Oluseyi,
a student of Chemical Engineering at the Federal University
of Technology, Minna, called for a complete overhaul of the
Celebrating Ebenezer Babatope at 80
By Adewuyi Adegbite
CHIEF Ebenezer Babatope a k a Ebino Topsy clocked 80 years
of age on January 26, 2023. In actual fact, I have been looking
up to that day to celebrate the man whom I saw twice but
whose life has impacted mine and those of other Nigerians
positively.  No one including Chief Babatope believes that
he can live to see that day. This is because in many of his
articles before he rested his memorable column, Political
Panorama, he used to write as if death was lurking in the
corner. In actual fact, he used to instruct his children on how
to perform his funeral. Alas, Ebino is here, hale and hearty.
The thought of man is not that of God. Consequently, I joined
his admirers to congratulate him on the attainment and pray
that he would witness many happy returns in good health
and prosperity. Who is Ebenezer Babatope, Ebino Topsy?
Ebino Topsy distinguished himself as a socialist when the
ideology was in vogue. He is an activist, a writer cum jour-
nalist, politician and lawyer.
All the endeavors he pursued show that he lives for humanity.
He attended the University of Lagos where he studied Philos-
ophy and History. The two courses are contributory factors to
his erudition as a journalist and writer. He worked for sometime
in the Students Affairs office as at the University of Lagos.  His
activism which he might have inculcated into the students of
the University got him into trouble during the Ali must go riot of
1978 against the increment in School fees by Obasanjo military
regime. Ebino including the erudite historian and the then Vice
Chancellor of the University, Professor J F Ade Ajayi, among oth-
ers were implicated by the military government for their actions
or inactions during the riot. Babatope was dismissed from the
university but the sentence was changed to suspension. How-
ever, he never returned to the university and his entitlements
were not paid. He thereafter joined the services of the Nigerian
Tribune through the influence of Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande.
His erudition as a journalist among other factors brought him in
contact with the man he called Avatar, Chief Obafemi Awolowo
and his life was never the same again. Awolowo introduced him
into the politics of the Second Republic. He later became the
Director of Publicity of the Unity Party of Nigeria (UPN).
He served Chief Awolowo and the party with dedication
and sincerity. He is always grateful to chief Awolowo for
bringing him from oblivion to stand shoulder to shoulder with
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education sector in 2023. According to him, the government
is expected to identify, understand and resolve the myriad
of problems affecting the tertiary institutions in the country
with a view to solving them. On the need for incentives in
the education sector, he charged the government to ensure
the payment of the arrears salaries and emoluments of the
academic staff because, according to him, it is inconceivable
to treat our learned gowns in a pathetic way.
student of Agriculture at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria,
Shehu Sahad Abubakar, in his view, called for a revolution in
the Nigerian education sector and added that the govern-
ment should prioritize education as a very important sector
because it is.
Mr. Taofeek Waliu Opeyemi, a Law student at the Uni-
versity of Ilorin, Kwara State suggested that there should
be an embargo on the establishment of new universities.
Opeyemi argued that it does not make sense to create
more universities when existing ones are not sufficiently
funded. Another Law student, Damilare Adenola of
Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, Ogun State, in
his opinion urged the government to adhere to the UN-
ESCO’s recommended standard of 15-20% of budgetary
allocation to education, which he stressed, is the major
way to resuscitate our education system. He said: “The
government must also introduce an incentive system to
our educational system to increase the academic develop-
ment of students. Creation of job opportunities to reduce
unemployment is the chief incentive because it will drive
more youths to be interested in education.”
Ololade Edun, a student of Medicine and Surgery at Us-
manu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto joined voices in calling
for increased funding of tertiary education, particularly
in the field of STEM and medicine. “Sciences in Nigeria
are barely something to speak about. I mean, of what
use are laboratories with no reagents; sparse practicals
and voluminous theoretical education…? I wish that our
teaching hospitals get more equipment, more state-of-art
men of timber and caliber. He became an avowed Awoist
and used every weapon in his arsenal to defend the name,
family, politics and philosophy. One could not forget easily
his altercation with the former head of state and later pres-
ident of Nigeria, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo over the content
of his book “Not My Will” where he was said to have cast
aspersions on Awolowo. Babatope within the twinkle of an
eye wrote a rejoinder in form of a book “Not His Will” where
he replied Obasanjo and defended Awolowo. As a result of
his book, Obasanjo was said to have reported Ebino to one
of his friends. Ebino reported the issue in one of his articles
where he replied the former president that he did not fear
any human being, being on the right path. He concluded by
saying that “those who fight decent wear the armor of God,
no evil can befall them and those who will fight the ghost of
Moses must be ready to meet him at the valley of Moab.”
The case was rested.
That is Ebino Topsy.  Through his weekly column, he fought
for the emancipation of Nigerians from the clutches of local
imperialists or “those who saw Nigeria as an extension of
their family compound.” He was a torn in the flesh of the
northern oligarchy. He is a repository of Nigeria’s political
history post colonial era and as a matter of fact, Africa as a
whole.  He recalled events and personalities with accuracy
and relish. He knew the history of the post colonial Africa
revolutionary leaders, their contributions to the decoloniza-
tion process and the role of the imperialists in their fall plus
the role of local collaborators who included but not limited
to Tshombe and Mobutu Sese Seko in the then Zaire now
Republic of Congo. He always remembered his escapades
with fellow socialists like comrade Ola Oni, Tunji Otegbeye,
Kanmi Isola Osobu, Sam Ikoku, Wunmi Adegbonmire, Jubril
Martins Kuye and several others. Ebino Topsy has dark
periods in his 80 years journey and his years of activism
especially. In 1983, he was among the politicians arrested
at the wake of a military coup led by General Muhammadu
Buhari. Despite the fact that he did not hold any political
office he was detained for months in various maximum
prisons including the dreaded Kirikiri maximum prisons
by those he termed ‘Beret Generals’ without trial.  As a
matter of fact, the military government denied him the op-
portunity to give his father a decent burial. His father died
during his detention. For this, he has not forgiven General
tribuneonlineng
tribuneonlineng 422 AUGUST, 2020
FEBRUARY, 2023
facilities and that the government employed more young
lecturers,” he posited.
A budding civil engineer, Babatimehin Peace, who is study-
ing the course at the University of Ibadan, opposed the
introduction of tuition fees in Nigerian public institutions
of higher learning, especially the universities. Babatimehin
contends that “education is not a privilege. It is a right. And
everyone should have uninhibited access to it.” He argued
that a proposal to introduce tuition fees into Nigerian public
universities is flawed due to what he described as “the low
purchasing power of the average Nigerian.”
Joseph Aliu, a Law student at the Olabisi Onabanjo Univer-
sity, Ago Iwoye, Ogun State hopes that the new government
elected after the 2023 elections would make education a
priority and treat issues related to education with urgency.
Olufemi Fatukasi of the University of Lagos, who is a student
of European languages, said the Federal Government must
safeguard the rights of Nigerian students to associate and
not allow the management of public tertiary institutions to
arbitrarily dissolve their unions. Fatukasi also emphasised the
need for urgent action in many areas in the Nigerian public
education sector, especially funding. “Our mental health is
in shambles and there is no provision to cater to it. There is
(an) increase in campus shuttles and cab fares, there is (a)
hike in the price of foodstuffs on campus, security of the
students is not guaranteed and the looming introduction of
tuition fee is threatening.”
From the aggregation of the opinions and views of the
students, it is clear that they are apprehensive about what
might happen in 2023. However, they want more funding of
public tertiary institutions; an end to incessant strikes and
stand against introduction of tuition fees in Nigerian public
universities. These items are the students’ agenda for the
government.
Ogunrinu, a student in the Faculty of Arts, University of
Ibadan, sent this piece through olanshileolalekan776@
gmail.com
Muhammadu Buhari. He used every opportunity he has to
condemn military rule. In fact, he employed his column to
condemn General Muhammadu Buhari’s ambition to return
as a democratically-elected president. He actually warned
Nigerians about the danger of electing someone he called
“religious fundamentalist and ethnic jingoist” as a president
in a multi-tribal and multi religion country like ours. The rest
as they say is history.
Ebenezer Babatope drew the ire of many Nigerians when,
despite his anti-military tendencies, joined the military re-
gime in 1993. Besides, he was not in the good books of his
fellow Awoists for reasons best known to him and them.
This is why he found it difficult to belong to the so-called
progressive parties of  the Third and Fourth republics. In-
stead he pitched his tents with the rightist political parties
namely United Nigeria Congress Party of the Abacha years,
where, but for the death of Abacha, he would have become
a senator. He equally joined the Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) where he was made a member of the board of trust-
ees and leader of Ijesha Caucus of the party in Osun State.
After many years’ sojourn in Lagos he decided to relocate
to his native Ijesha land and in an article titled “Ule Ya, time
to go home”, he informed fellow Nigerians about this. Old
age-related ailments and glaucoma especially slowed down
his activities including his writing in the dailies. This was
after he had written many books on political evolution of
Nigeria and in defense of his leader and progressive cause.
He was equally on the roads giving lectures at different fora
on burning national issues. He was always a common face
at Ikenne Remo residence of the Awolowos for the meetings
of the Yoruba Council of Elders chaired by the duo of Oba
Okunade Sijuwade and Chief Awolowo’s widow, Mama H I
D Awolowo.
With his life of activism ably dedicated to humanity, it is
therefore a thing of joy that he has lived this long. Many in
his shoes have answered the supreme call. He is not a mil-
lionaire. As a matter of fact, he could have become one if he
chose the company of “oppressors” but he chose a different
path, a noble path indeed! His life mirrors a biblical warning
in the Gospel according to St Mark: “For what will profit a
man if he gains the world and loses his own soul?” 
Many happy returns to the man of the masses.
Adewuyi Adegbite wrote through ayekooto05@gmail.com

29
41 killed by terrorists in Katsina
THE Police in Katsina State
have confirmed the death
of 41 members of local vi-
gilance groups, popularly
known as “Yansakai”, in an
ambush by terrorists in Yar-
goje forest.
This is contained in a state-
ment by the command’s
Public Relations Officer, SP
Gambo Isah, on Friday, in
Katsina.
“On Wednesday, Feb. 1,
2023 at about 22:00 hours,
terrorists in their numbers,
shooting sporadically with
AK47 rifles, attacked the
house of one Alhaji Mun-
www.tribuneonlineng.com
tari at Unguwar Audu Gare,
Kandarawa, Bakori Local
Government, and rustled 50
cows and 30 sheep.
“Subsequently, on February
2, at about 10:00 hours, Yan-
sakai groups from 11 villages
in Bakori Local Government
regrouped and went after
the terrorists with a view to
recover the rustled animals.”
, ELDA
I, formerly Elda Chisa
Agbapuruonwu now ELDA
CHISA NNOROM. All former
documents remain valid. General
public take note.
SATURDAY TRIBUNE
,
Nigerian Tribune
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@nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
, OLOLADE , LUKMAN , MAYIN
I, formerly Ogunbowale Segun I, formerly Ololade Oluwabukola I, formerly Mr Lukman CORRECTION OF DATE OF
Adebayo now OGUNBOWALE Olawale now OLOLADE Temitope Salam now MR BIRTH: My name is MAYIN
FASEGUN JUWON ADEBAYO. OLUWABUKOLA OLAWALE- GONI. My correct date of birth
TEMITOPE ANIMASHAUN.
All former documents remain valid. ADENIYI. All former documents is 1/1/1993 and not 2/8/1960.
All former documents remain
EcoBank Plc, BVN management and remain valid. General public take All former documents remain
valid. General public take
general public take note. note. valid. General public take note.
note.
, TAMARI , GIWA , ADEPOJU , AGBONO
I, formerly Tamari Umaru I, formerly Miss Giwa I, Adepoju Ebenezer Segun am the same I, formerly Miss Agbono Abolanle
person bearing Adepoju Segun Ebenezer
Sajiga now USMAN Bolanle Adeyinka now Abeje. Henceforth, I want to be known Atinuke now MRS OGUNYEMI
and addressed as ADEPOJU EBENEZER ABOLANLE ATINUKE (NEE
UMAR. All former MRS OKE BOLANLE SEGUN. My correct date of birth is 10th
ADEYINKA. All former day of May, 1968 as against 10th day of AGBONO). All former documents
documents remain valid. May, 1965. All documents bearing these remain valid. General public take
documents remain valid. names remain valid. General public take
General public take note. General public take note. note. note.
, MALLAH , ADEREMI , SIMON , ANIMASHAUN
I, formerly Miss Mallah
I, Aderemi Adewunmi Oluwapelumi am the I, Simon Mary Iyangbe,Simon Mary
Abosede and Mary Siemon refer to
I, Animashaun Feyisayo Aduragbemi and
Animashaun Basirat Feyisayo refer to the
same person as Aderemi Adewunmi Abisola
Habibat now MRS BALOGUN on my ( WASSCE) and Aderemi Adewumi the same person. In my BVN, NIN same person.Henceforth, I wish to be known
HABIBAT. All former Oluwapelumi on my (JAMB). Henceforth, and in my Bank details as Simon Mary
Iyangbe while in my Birth certificate as
and addressed as ANIMASHAUN FEYISAYO
I wish to be known and addressed as ADURAGBEMI. My correct date of birth 29th
documents remain valid. ADEREMI ADEWUNMI OLUWAPELUMI.
Mary Siemon. Now, I wish to be known January, 2002 and not 19th January,2000. All
and addressed as SIMON MARY
All documents bearing these names remain IYANGBE. All former documents former documents remain valid. Banks and
General public take note. valid. General public take note. remain valid. General public take note. general public take note.

, SULIYAT , BELLO , OTOKUEFOR , HAMMED , OLATUNJI , LAWAL-OBELAWO

I, formerly Suliyat Moruff
now ZAINAB ADEOLA
MAROUF. All former
documents remain valid.
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I, formerly Evborein Vivian
Deborah now OHIMAH
VIVIAN DEBORAH. All
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I, formerly Bello Mutiat
Oluwatosin now ADEPOJU
MUTIAT OLUWATOSIN.
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valid. General public take
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I, formerly Akinsunmi
Blessing Olufunke now
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I, formerly Miss. Olorunyomi
Queen Deborah now MRS.
ARIYO QUEEN DEBORAH.
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now JESUMBO AYANFE
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Esther now AKINTOBI
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Modupeola Adekunle now
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Ifeoluwa Rebecca now
MRS OJO IFEOLUWA
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ASHIAT FUNMILAYO. All
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, DADA
I, formerly known as Miss Dada
Bolanle Iyabo now wish to be
known and addressed as MRS.
KOLADE BOLANLE AISHAH.
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valid. Banks and general public
take note.
, AJANI
I, formerly Ajani Morufat
Olaide now SALAWUDEEN
MORUFAT OLAIDE. All
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, JOHNSON
I, formerly Miss Johnson
Motunrayo Olubukola now
MRS DADA MOTUNRAYO
OLUBUKOLA. All former
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, OLAYEMI
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as OGUNBIYI OMOLOLA
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, SALAWU
I, formerly Miss Salawu
Ayobami Aminat now
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CORRECTION OF NAME: In some I, formerly known as I, formerly known and addressed
of my documents, my name was Olatunji Abdullahi Olawale as Lawal Oyewole Timothy now
written as Hammed Ridwan Alabi.
now SHARAFADEEN wish to be known and addressed
My correct name is HAMMED
ABDULAHI OLAWALE. All as LAWAL-OBELAWO
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, ADEBOYE , FADAHUNSI , ABOLAJI
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Adeboye Rhoda Toluwalase now Elizabeth Bosede now MRS.
wish to be known and addressed Taiwo now ABOLAJI TAIWO
OWOLABI ELIZABETH
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, AMOO , RAHEEM , ADESHINA
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Oluwaseyi Elizabeth now MRS Mariam now ADELEKE
Kuti now KUTI JEREMIAH
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, ALEEMAH , FAKUNLE , FAKUNLE
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, SANI , OYELUDE , LATEEF
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now SAHEED MUJIDAT
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, FAMILY CHANGE OF NAME , ADETONA

I, formerly Adetona Iremide
Enitan now wish to be known
My wife was formerly called Miss Olaniyi Iyanu and addressed as LAWAL
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Also, my children were formerly : Awotunde Blessing former documents remain
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and addressed as: PETER BLESSING TOLULOPE, I, formerly Miss Agboola
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ADEBANKE. All former
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, ISEDOWO
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Folakemi Bukola now MRS
OL AJIDE-OWOYOMI
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, AGUNSOYE
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Blessing Damilola now MRS.
OLUWASANJO BLESSING
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, YUSUFF
I, formerly Yusuff Aishat
Oyeronke now BADMUS
, OGUNSINA
I, Mrs Ogunsina Fasilat Adeola
formerly known as Miss Oladiran
Fasilat Adeola and Mrs Adeogun Fasilat
AISHAT OYERONKE. All Adeola, but now which to be known
former documents remain and called MRS OGUNSINA FASILAT
ADEOLA. All former documents
valid. General public take remain valid, First Bank Nigeria Plc
note. and general public take note.
, MUFUTAU , ADEWOLE
I, formerly Miss Mufutau I, formerly Miss Adewole Adeola
Julianah now MRS AJAYI
Sadia Iyabo now MRS. ADEOLA JULIANAH. My correct
YAKUB SADIA IYABO. All date of birth is 6th day of August,
former documents remain 1975 as against 2nd day of April,
valid. General public take
1958. All former document
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note. public take note.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
30 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023

Sports
Mmobuosi set to buy
Sheffield Utd
A Nigerian billionaire, Dozy
Mmobuosi, is reportedly
closing in on a £90million
takeover of Sheffield United.
The Blades are pushing
for promotion back to the
Premier League this season
but were hit by a transfer
embargo last month amid
financial difficulties.
However their problems
are reportedly about to be
eased by the takeover by
Mmobuosi, a Nigerian tech
entrepreneur whose com-
pany Tingo has been valued
at around £7billion.
The Times report that
Mmobuosi is the subject of
the EFL’s owners’ and direc-
tors’ test at present but no
problems have been flagged
so far.
They say that the embargo,
which prevents them buy-
ing a player for the next 18
months unless they win
promotion, was imposed
because the Blades failed
to keep up payment instal-
Liverpool for forward Rhian
Brewster, who was signed
in October 2020 for £23.5m
but has failed to live up to
expectations or his price tag.
The 22-year-old, part of
the England team to win the
FIFA U17 World Cup back in
2017, failed to break into
Jurgen Klopp’s first-team
plans and left for Bramall
Lane in search of regular
first-team football.
But he’s only managed 63
appearances for the Blades
due to various hamstring
problems and has registered
a meagre five goals and one
assist.
United are also report-
edly trying to renegotiate
the structure of payments
to Swedish club Malmo
for the Bosnian defender
Anel Ahmedhodzic, who
moved last summer.
The embargo was im-
posed as Prince Abdul-
lah, the club’s present
Saudi owner, was close

Osimhen: Napoli want €100m

ments on signings. to selling the South York-
This included payments to shire club.

bid from Man Utd, PSG International friendly:

F/Eagles outclass Zambia in

M 6-goal thriller
ANCHESTER
United and
Paris Saint-
Germain will
be expected
to pay a transfer fee of at
least €100 million ($109m) if
they are to win the race for
Napoli striker Victor Osim-
hen’s signature during the
summer transfer window, a
source with knowledge of
the player’s valuation told
ESPN.
Osimhen, 24, has become
one of the most sought-
after strikers in Europe this
season by leading Napoli’s
pursuit of a first Serie A ti-
tle since 1990. The Nigeria
international has scored
15 goals in 20 games in all
competitions and, with 14
league goals, is two clear of
Atalanta’s Ademola Look-
man in the chase for the
Capocannoniere award as
Serie A’s top scorer.
With Erling Haaland (Man-
chester City), Darwin Nunez
(Liverpool) and Robert Le-
wandowski (Barcelona) all
moving to their present
clubs last summer, Osimhen
has emerged as the leading
option for the clubs looking
to bolster their attacking op-
tions for next season.
Sources told ESPN last
month that United were
also considering moves for
Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry
Kane and FC Salzburg’s Ben-
jamin Sesko. Juventus for-
ward Dusan Vlahovic could
also become an option if
the Italian club are forced to
sell the Serbia international,
who was signed in a €70m
transfer from Fiorentina in
January 2022, due to the fi-
nancial impact of being de-
moted 15 points for transfer
irregularities. But Osimhen’s
form for Napoli this season
has led to both United and
PSG putting the forward
high on their list of priority
targets.
A source told ESPN that
Napoli will not part with
Osimhen for less than €100m,
however, and that the pros-
pect of United and PSG both
making a serious effort to sign
the player has raised the pos-
sibility of an even greater fee.
Osimhen has two years
left to run on his contract at
Napoli, having arrived at the
club in a €70m move from
Lille in 2020.
Taofeek Lawal|Abuja
NIGERIA’S Flying Eagles
on Friday at the Moshood
Abiola National Stadium,
Abuja, outclassed their Zam-
bia counterparts 4-2 in a
friendly.
The match watched by an
inpressive crowd was part of
the preparations for the U20
Africa Cup of Nations (AF-
CON) to be hosted by Egypt
later this month.
The Ladan Bosso-tutored
On resumption, the Zam-
bians equalised in the 50th
minute through Moses Mu-
lenga whose shot beat Na-
thaniel Nwosu in goal.
Olamilekan Adams re-
stored Nigeria lead in the
63rd minute after rising
highest past the Zambian
defenders to beat goal-
keeper Jeban Tembo. Las-
mond Phiri brought the
Zambians back to the game
in the 66th minute through
a corner kick.

Lookman beats Osimhen to Jan award in Italy

Mbappe has a vague injury —Bayern coach
BAYERN Munich coach, Julian
Nagelsmann, said on Friday he
expected Paris Saint-Germain
striker Kylian Mbappe to play
against them in their Champi-
ons League round-of-16 first-
NIGERIAN international, Ade-
mola Lookman, has been named
Associazione Italiana Calciatori
(AIC) January player of the month
at the expense of compatriot, Victor
Osimhen.
The Super Eagles forward was se-
lected by AIC, the Italian Footballers’
Association, based on his January
performance for his club, Atalanta.
Lookman, who started off the
bench as the Oribici lost 1-0 to
Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia
match has been dazzling this sea-
son, scoring 12 goals with three as-
sists in 19 league matches for Gian
Piero Gasperini’s team.
The Black and Blues played with-
out their top player throughout the
first half of the game, which con-
tributed to their defeat by the Ner-
azzurri during their visit to the San
Siro stadium.
Lookman has five goals and two
leg tie on February 14 despite 24-year-old had limped off dur-
having been ruled out with an ing the first half of PSG’s 3-1 win
injury for three weeks. at Montpellier on Wednesday.
PSG said Mbappe would “I don’t think he will be miss-
be out for three weeks after ing [against Bayern] so I expect
sustaining a thigh injury. The nothing else,” Nagelsmann told
assists in the Goddess’ last three
league games, making him one
of Gasperini’s new system’s key
cogs.
Players who excelled at their
highest levels in January were
Paulo Dybala (two goals and
three assists), Victor Osimhen
(five goals and one assist), and
Mattia Zaccagni (three goals and
one assist).
However, the former Leicester City
star outclassed these competitors,
including his own countryman, by
scoring goals, which led to his be-
ing named January’s Player of the
Month.
Osimhen is leading the Serie
A goal chart with 12 goals, two
ahead of Lookman who featured at
the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AF-
CON) held in Cameroon last year.
a news conference. “I don’t
know what he has so I assume
he will play. It is a bit vague on
their [PSG’s] homepage saying
he would be out for up to three
weeks.”
side dominated proceedings
from the blast of the whistle
and made incursions into
the Junior Chipolopolo’s vital
areas, but for lack of finish-
ing on the part of the attack
comprising Ibrahim Muham-
mad, Ayuba Abubakar and
Rilwanu Sarki.
Nigeria eventually opened
the scoring in the 40th
minute through Rilwan
Sarki.
Champions League: Chelsea drop
Aubameyang for Fernandez
PIERRE-Emerick Aubam-
eyang has sensationally
been kicked out of Chelsea’s
Champions League squad for
the knockout stages to make
room for £107m signing Enzo
Fernandez.
Chelsea have also been
forced to leave £35million
January signing Benoit Ba-
diashile out of their Cham-
pions League squad, while
wantaway winger Hakim Zi-
yech keeps his place.
Unsurprisingly, new sign-
ings Mykhailo Mudryk and
Joao Felix join Fernandez
in being added to Chelsea’s
squad.
The hosts did not give up
as they registered the third
goal in the 77th minute
through substitute, Em-
manuel Uchebu, while an-
other substitute, Samson
Lawal, made it four in the
87th minute to seal the vic-
tory for Bosso’s side.
Nigeria will play in the
group A of U20 AFCON
alongside hosts Egypt, Sene-
gal and Mozambique.
Reports in Spain claim that
the 33-year-old was desper-
ate to leave Stamford Bridge
- and would have preferred a
return to Barcelona - but he
did not exit during the Janu-
ary window.
Since making his move to
Stamford Bridge in August,
the striker has failed to es-
tablish himself in the Chelsea
side, with Kai Havertz often
deployed as a No 9 instead.
Aubameyang has however
started all six games for Chel-
sea in the Champions League
this season, scoring against
AC Milan both at Stamford
Bridge and the San Siro.
 SATURDAY TRIBUNE
31 www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune @nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune tribuneonlineng 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
 SATURDAY
www.tribuneonlineng.com Nigerian Tribune
NO 1,501 SATURDAY, 4 FEBRUARY, 2023
with FAROOQ KPEROGI
Three major shifts in the presidential campaigns
THREE unanticipated, barely perceptible,
but nonetheless significant and potentially
seismic shifts are happening in the presiden-
tial race, which are confounding attempts to
predict the outcome of the presidential elec-
tion. The shifts are in the changing pattern-
ing of the fortunes and political coalitions of
the presidential front-runners.
APC’s Bola Ahmed Tinubu is suffering a
deep, organic, almost irrecoverable deple-
tion of his political goodwill in the Muslim
North among everyday voters as a direct
consequence of his failed, politically ill-ad-
vised attempts to recite the Fatiha on three
different occasions. The North’s Tinubu-sup-
porting APC governors will have a hard time
reversing this.
In the aftermath of Tinubu’s Fatiha mis-
adventures, videos of which have gone viral
and have become grist for the mill of preach-
ers, there is a growing consensus among or-
dinary voters in the region that Tinubu isn’t
the Muslim he said he is, that he is either a
munafiq or a Christian. In Islam, a munafiq
(i.e., a religious hypocrite who pretends to
be a Muslim) is worse than an unbeliever.
Whether or not this conclusion is warranted
or justified is beside the point. I am only stat-
ing the prevailing sentiment among every-
day folks there.
I personally want a country where the
doctrines people choose to subscribe to—or
choose not to subscribe to—don’t determ-
ine their qualification for political office.
There is absolutely no relationship between
faith—or lack thereof—and competence.
In fact, overly religious people, on average,
tend to be dangerously inept phonies.
But it’s undeniable that religion is shaping
up to have an outsized influence in mapping
the contours of this presidential election.
For instance, Tinubu’s erstwhile edge in the
Muslim North was anchored on the notion
that he was a Muslim who chose to “hon-
our” his religion by damning consequences
and choosing another Muslim to be his run-
ning mate. Voting for him was framed as a
political “jihad” in sermons. No one preaches
that in mosques these days, and people who
did in the past are now objects of stone-cold
derision.
The biggest beneficiary of the diminu-
Ronaldo nets first Al Nassr goal
CRISTIANO Ronaldo finally opened his
goalscoring account in the Saudi Arabian Pro
League for Al Nassr during their 2-2 draw with
Al-Fateh on Friday afternoon.
The Portuguese forward stepped up to con-
vert a late penalty for the visiting side, having
hit the crossbar and scored an offside effort
earlier in the match.
Anderson Talisca continued his impressive
form for Al-Nassr after scoring in the first-half -
before later getting sent off - as Christian Tello
and Sofiane Bendebka notched for the home
side.
It was the first time that Ronaldo has found
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MANAGING DIRECTOR / EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: EDWARD DICKSON. EDITOR: LASISI OLAGUNJU. All Correspondence to P.O. Box 78, Ibadan. ISSN 2712. ABC Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation. 4/2/2023.
SINCE 1949
@nigeriantribune Nigerian Tribune
Notes from Atlanta
farooqkperogi@yahoo.com | Twitter:@farooqkperogi | (+1)404-573-9697
tion of Tinubu’s religio-political capital in
the Muslim North is PDP’s Atiku Abubakar
about whom northern Muslim voters had
been lukewarm at best. Atiku’s opposition
to sharia in the early 2000s at a time it was
both literally and politically suicidal to do
so for a Northern Muslim had been held
against him, particularly by the conservative
clerical establishment.
He had also once repudiated the honor-
ific West African Muslim title of “Alhaji” in
a press statement and said he preferred
to be addressed simply as “Vice President
Atiku Abubakar.” That rankled many north-
ern Muslims. Plus, his cosmopolitanism and
associational politics had caused him to be
labelled “a southerner in northern skin,” to
borrow the phrase of a Kaduna-based friend
whose identity I’ve chosen to conceal.
In spite of the best efforts by APC’s north-
ern governors, Atiku’s acceptance is on the
upswing in the Muslim North in a dramatic-
ally incremental manner not because of any-
thing he has done or said but because he is
the only other option for voters in the region
after Tinubu.
Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso may marginally
win the plurality of votes in Kano, but there’s
a sense everywhere else in the Muslim
North that he is merely a petulant “spoiler”
on whom people won’t “waste” their votes.
Obi barely registers a presence in the minds
of most Northern Muslim voters and is gen-
erally seen in an unflattering light.
Tinubu has detected the phenomenal
transmutation of his political fortunes in
The trope of slavery and servitude is an
emotionally persuasive dog whistle in Yoruba
nationalist politics. It evokes images and
sensation of “Fulani domination” without
mentioning it.
the back of the net in Saudi Arabia since scor-
ing two against PSG in a friendly for an All-Star
XI.
The Portuguese forward hadn’t scored in
his previous two appearances for Al-Nassr, but
made sure to end that streak with his late spot-
kick this afternoon.
The hosts took the lead against Ronaldo’s
side in the 12th minute after Tello latched onto
a cross and provided a neat finish to open the
scoring.
Ronaldo then had the ball in the back of the
net, only for his effort to be ruled out by the
linesman. Replays did show that he’d strayed a
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the Muslim North not because Muham-
madu Buhari and the Aso Rock cabal (who
frankly now have zero political capital) are
machinating against him but because of his
Fatiha debacles. In response, he has chosen
to change tack and go full-on Yoruba nation-
alist.
In campaign stump speeches in Yoruba in
the Southwest, Tinubu has been increasingly
recoiling into his ethnic shell. For example, on
Thursday in Osogbo, he said to a mammoth
crowd: “Omo oko ni wa, a kii se omo ale
[We are sons of our fathers; we are not bas-
tards]. Awa la gbe won de be [We put them
in power]. Awa l’a maa ro po won [We are
the ones that will replace them].” That was
clearly a dig at Buhari and his inner circle.
On Friday in Ekiti, he repeated the ethnic
nationalist themes that have now become
his customary style of campaigning when he
speaks in Yoruba to a Yoruba audience. “This
election is yours. It is the election you will
use to liberate yourselves,” he said. “They
want to turn us into servants. We are not
servants.” That’s obviously not the language
you would expect of the candidate of the rul-
ing party.
The trope of slavery and servitude is an
emotionally persuasive dog whistle in Yor-
uba nationalist politics. It evokes images and
sensation of “Fulani domination” without
mentioning it, and galvanizes a united eth-
nic front, particularly because Buhari and
his cabal who are against him, and Atiku,
his closest challenger, are Fulani people. In
other words, Tinubu’s latest campaign style
few yards past the defence.
He then had a guilt-edged chance to open
his account - and level the game - in the 35th
minute but produced a shocking attempt at a
finish.
Talisca ran through on goal and poked an ef-
fort towards the goalkeeper, which was tipped
onto the post, and it fell to Ronaldo within
the six-yard box but he failed to keep his shot
down and it flew well over the goal.
Luckily for the ex-Manchester United for-
ward, Talisca did end up levelling the match
shortly after, when he produced a neat finish
from the edge of the area.
Tottenham vs Man City 5:30pm
NPFL, TODAY:
Insurance FC vs Gombe United
SUNDAY:
Enyimba vs El-Kanemi Warriors
Dakkada FC vs Abia Warriors
Shooting Stars vs Nasarawa United
Plateau United vs Kwara United
Akwa United vs Remo Stars
is straight out of “Yoruba Nation ‘’ playbook.
A Yoruba friend who helped me translate
Tinubu’s stump speeches said Tinubu “is ac-
tually preparing the West for a resistance.”
And he may be successful because, at least
on the surface, his grievance is valid. He
and the Yoruba supported Buhari and his
“Fulani” people to ascend to power on con-
dition that their gesture would be reciproc-
ated after eight years.
Now it’s payback time, and Buhari and his
“Fulani” people are reneging on their pledge
and want to hand over power to one of them
from a different political party. You may
question the merits of this argument, but it
seems to be gaining traction in the Southw-
est even among people who previously des-
pised Tinubu.
If what seems to be happening in the
Southwest turns out to be true, this is bad
news for Peter Obi who has anchored his
entire presidential campaign on galvanizing
Christian grievance over the faith’s exclusion
at the top of APC and PDP’s presidential tick-
ets. Ayo Adebanjo captured the Christian
nationalist impulses in Obi’s popularity on
Friday when he said, “If Obi loses, a Christian
southerner may never be president again.”
Of course, that’s an inaccurate, off-the-
wall claim, but it was strategically calculated
to mobilize the Christian vote for Obi against
Tinubu whom Adebanjo and his associates
have a personal beef with. Nevertheless,
Tinubu’s seeming rejection by Northern
Muslim voters who now question his Muslim
faith on account of his inability to recite the
most recited chapter of the Muslim holy
book is buying him sympathy from Yoruba
people who didn’t care for his politics.
Increasingly, even Yoruba Christians
are reassessing their rejection of Tinubu’s
“Muslim-Muslim” ticket. It isn’t what they
thought it was. This will potentially cut into
the “Christian” vote that the Obi campaign
had been banking on. But it was always a
politically risky strategy to rely on the reli-
gious solidarity of Yoruba voters because
ethnicity is historically a stronger force in
Yorubaland than religion.
How these changing dynamics will impact
the outcome of the election is still up in the
air.