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Southern Nigeria Presidency: A case for Dr. Ogbonaya Onu

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With less than a year to the 2023 general elections the race for the presidential ticket of political parties is getting more intense. As political parties strategize towards holding their party primaries, the issue of which of the 6 geopolitical zones in Nigeria will their presidential candidate emerge has been a subject of national discourse. Equitable zoning of the presidency in the 2023 general elections by the two major political parties, the All Progressive Congress (APC) and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), is currently one of the most contentious issues in Nigeria today. Although the concept of zoning electoral positions by political parties is not expressly captured in the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as Amended) it is in tandem with the Federal Character Principle as enshrined in its Third Schedule, as a way of promoting equity, justice and fair play and giving every constituent of the Nigerian society a sense of belonging. Zoning or Power Shift is a veritable instrument for protecting the equality of citizens’ rights and guides against the marginalization of the ethnic minorities. It ensures societal harmony through the equitable devolution of power and allocation of resources.

Power Shift or Rotational Presidency has been a major cause of feud in the Nigeria polity since independence in 1960. It carries with it a strong moral force that can threaten the existence of Nigeria as a sovereign entity. Rotational Presidency is a pragmatic means of stabilizing the Nigerian democracy and has been an ideological norm formally adopted by many political parties prior to Nigeria’s independence. Problems of cleavage along ethno-religious lines can only be addressed by this power sharing arrangement which although unlegislated upon, has been in prolonged usage and widely accepted by the people and commands the conscious obeisance by the majority of its citizens. Of the 62 years post-independence Nigeria, the North has ruled for 37 years, mostly as military Heads of State, and some political analysts belief this would have conferred some advantage on the region, as in the absence of parliamentary scrutiny many critical national assets, establishments and appointments can be inequitably sited in this part of the country by military fiat. In the current democratic dispensation, the North-West has produced two Presidents from the same state, and aside from the middle-belt, the core north is homogenous for language and religion and can conveniently cohabit as single ethnic entity. Southern Nigeria on the other hand, has 2 major ethnic groups, the Yoruba and Igbo that are clearly identifiable with little cultural inclinations.

Since the advent of the fourth republic, apart from the South-East and North-Central, the other geopolitical zones of Nigeria have had a shot at the presidency. The two major Political Parties, the APC and PDP have already zoned their party’s National Chairmanship position to the North-Central and barring any ‘extenuating circumstance’ and from antecedents and ‘their body language’, would choose their Presidential flag bearer from the South and the Vice-President from the North-East. Going against this arrangement no matter what expediency and zoning the Office of the President to the North or micro-zoning it to a Geopolitical bloc in the south that had already had a shot at it in the current republic will make nonsense of the zoning principle and defeat the spirit of its intendment with dire consequences on the stability of the country. Thus, contrary to arguments that there was no order of zoning, Nigeria has religiously adhered to this bipodal sharing of critical political offices as evidenced by the major political parties restricting their presidential tickets to a Presidential candidate who is a Christian from the South with a Northern Muslim Vice-Presidential running mate in the 1999 elections or vice versa since then, and mandatorily fielding Gubernatorial candidates paired with a Deputy from a different Senatorial Zone.

Proponents of the anti-zoning mantra, argue that zoning has outlived its usefulness and has no place in the Nigerian Constitution. They hide under their perceived regional numerical dominance, to posit that the President should be picked from any part of the country based on competence or merit. This call by critics of Rotational Presidency is unpatriotic, sounds politically arrogant and devoid of statesmanship as no segment of Nigeria has a monopoly of talents and will breed regionalism and ‘ethnic hegemony’ since the section with the highest voter population will always produce ‘the best man for the job’. Equity and fair play demands the status quo be maintained until the position of President alternates or rotates between all 6 geopolitical zones in Nigeria in full circle, before such proclamation can be made. Jettisoning zoning in the 2023 elections is tantamount to ‘changing the rules in the middle of a game’, and akin to the proverbial ‘elephant that breaks the pot after its turn to drink’. Besides, events in the Nigeria political space have shown that no geopolitical zone despite its voting strength can on its own meet the conditions precedent in the 2022 Electoral Act (as Amended) and score not less than 25% of votes cast in at least two-thirds of states in the federation to win the presidential election, especially with a stiff opposition from 3 or more geopolitical zones.

Naysayers also argue that since the return to democracy in May 1999, by the end of the current regime a northerner would have occupied the Office of the President for only 10 out of the 24 years, and that the north would have held power under the PDP Government for just 2½ years. Therefore, to strike a balance, there is the need for the Office of the President to remain in the North for additional 4 years, making 12 years back-to-back. This view is jaundiced, bereft of logical reasoning and has no historical basis. The unfortunate demise of President Umaru Yar’Ardua in 2010 was an act of providence and Nigeria as an independent nation has been in existence for 38 years before 1999. Therefore, for the sake of the country’s current fragile democratic governance and in the interest of natural justice, there is the need to run a politics of inclusion and all political parties should as a matter of exigency zone their Presidential ticket come 2023 to the South. This resolution of the Southern Governors Forum has been re-echoed by some prominent Northern political leaders such as Governors Babagana Zulum and Nasir El-Rufai of Bornu and Kaduna States respectively and some regional socio-political groups. The pros of zoning clearly outweigh its cons and therefore jettisoning it will be a dangerous precedent for the country’s nascent democracy and an affront on the collective will and peaceful coexistence of the people.

With the expected power shift to the South at the end of President Buhari’s statutory 8-year tenure, equity and national cohesion demands that the Office of the President of Nigeria be ceded to the South-East. This is because, the South-East is the only geopolitical zone in the south that is yet to produce a President or Vice-President since the return to civilian rule in 1999 and remains the most deprived of the Presidency. Therefore, in the eyes of equity it is imperative that all political parties rise above partisanship and regional sentiments and field presidential candidates from the South-East in the forthcoming election. This is within the tenets of democratic norms and ideals especially in a pluralistic society like ours. Egalitarianism cannot be fostered when a major component of society is nursing a feeling of discontentment. Hence, the collective interest and sanctity of the Federal Republic should be of paramount concern over the political interest of a few individuals, groups or political party. A political arrangement like zoning must accommodate the emotions and sentiments of those it is intended to serve for if not to out leave its usefulness.

The clamour for a President of Nigeria of Igbo extraction has continued to attract the attention of political actors in the build-up to the elections. This has received measurable support from the apex Igbo socio-cultural group the Ohanaeze Ndigbo and other regional bodies such as the Arewa Consultative Forum, Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum, Afenifere and the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF). The Igbo are indigenous to South-East Nigeria and aside the Hausa/Fulani and Yoruba are the third largest ethnic group, accounting for about 19% of its population. An Igbo President will assuage the feeling of real or perceived marginalization among them, guarantee their full re-integration into the post-civil war Nigerian state and end their agitation for socioeconomic and political emancipation, as happened to the militancy struggle in the South-South with the election of Dr Goodluck Jonathan as President in 2011. It will give the civil war veterans including former Heads of State a sense of fulfilment, seeing their dream of a truly unified Nigeria which they have fought for, materialize in their lifetime.

Ndigbo have been blamed for being their own detractors and architect of their misfortune. Igbo political leaders including the South-East Governors have been accused of not showing enough commitment towards the actualization of this regional agenda because of personal political interest and considerations. This was exemplified in their irregular attendance to crucial meetings of the Southern Governors Forum where issues critical to Igbo survival and advancement such as Zoning of the 2023 Presidency, Anti-Open Grazing Law and Regional Security Outfits, are discuss, even when the meeting was hosted at their doorstep in Enugu. The vacuum created by this lack of directional leadership is affecting the Igbo political struggle for self-determination and expressed in their “taking their destinies into their hands” in form of agitations for restructuring and struggles for outright secession.

Pundits have also argued that the South-East lack the voting strength to swing the pendulum in any direction in the political dynamic. This pessimistic view has made Ndigbo resign to second fiddle by playing the ‘spoiler role’ for political parties. They have been admonished for not being united, forming a common front and speaking with one voice. ‘Power they say, is not given but taken’ and in a multi-ethnic democracy like ours, the only way to win political power through the ballot is for the Ndigbo to close ranks, form an alliance and embark on constructive engagements with counterpart regional bodies through negotiations and persuasion in order to gain their confidence. They should remain politically active and consciously mobilize their electorate in order to boost their power of negotiation.

As political activities and permutations gather momentum ahead of 2023 election, most presidential hopefuls have commenced behind the scene consultations across the country. Others have deployed proxy groups and cronies to begin grassroot mobilization, while others have openly declared their intentions to contest the highest office in the land. Yet, their performance as politicians over the years and how they have fared in their respective parties is another issue to be considered in the zoning discourse. While we expect the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to conduct a free, fair and credible election that will respect the aspiration of the Nigerian masses, there have been debates on key attributes the presidential candidates are expected to possess to make them suitably qualified to occupy the coveted office. Nigeria at this precarious time needs a detribalized leader that will foster unity, put the interest of all Nigerians above sectional interest, fight endemic corruption frontally, tackle widespread insecurity pervading the land headlong and prosper the lives of its citizenry through economic emancipation and job creation.

A formidable contender from the South-East is the current Honourable Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, who has been an indigene of 3 South-Eastern States (Imo, Abia and Ebonyi) at different times. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu’s political career, like that of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar spans over 3 decades, and he is the most senior political office holder amongst all the aspirants currently jostling for the Office of President. He was elected the first civilian Governor of the old Abia State in 1991 and became the first Chairman, Conference of Nigerian Elected Governors. He is 70years old, sound in mind and body and is one of the most educated aspirants. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu is a First Class honours graduate of Chemical Engineering from the University of Lagos, with a PhD from the reputable University of California, Berkeley, USA. He was the pioneer Head of Department of Chemical Engineering and Member of Senate and Governing Council of the University of Port Harcourt before his foray into politics.

Dr Ogbonnaya Onu is a foundation member of the All People’s Party (APP) that metamorphosed into the All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) for which as National Chairman in 2013 he carried the ANPP flag to the union with the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) to form the APC. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu was the presidential flag bearer of the APP in 1999 but forfeited his presidential ticket to Chief Olu Falae who contested under the AD/APP joint platform. This move was to assuage the feelings of the Yoruba in their yearning for the presidency due to the annulment of the June 12, 1993 presidential election convincingly won by Chief MKO Abiola. As National Chairman, most of ANPP’s presidential candidates were Northerners, and Dr Ogbonnaya Onu stands out as one of the very few politicians pre-2015 that remained in the opposition despite its deprivations, because of his diligent and consistent nature. It is noteworthy that of the three major political parties that merged to form the APC, the ANPP stock appears to have been most short changed in the tripartite power sharing equation.

A multicultural society like Nigeria requires a nationalistic leader like Dr Ogbonnaya Onu that can be entrusted with its unity and treasury and can provide a transformational leadership devoid of sentiments and rancour. He has never had any brawl with the anti-corruption and security agencies, and this gives him the moral justification to fight corruption. Dr Ogbonnaya Onu prefers meritocracy to nepotism as a way of earning the confidence of the people. He has demonstrable capacity to work with every Nigerian irrespective of religious or tribal persuasion and his political sagacity, requisite experience, managerial acumen and comportment will earn him the respect of the government and people. The APC should therefore put its best foot forward and adopt Dr Ogbonnaya Onu as its consensus presidential standard bearer in its legitimate quest to retain power at the centre post-2023, as he is not only acceptable to the Ndigbo and APC, but to all Nigerians due to his broad appeal for which the majority of voters will coalesce.

Those in support of a President of Nigeria from the South-East have harped on the need for Igbo Elders, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo and other Igbo socio-political groups and Opinion Leaders to make a clarion call to all Igbo political leaders, especially present and former Governors, Federal Ministers and Legislators, to synergize, pull resources together, build bridges across party lines and rally support from the various regional interest groups for Dr Ogbonnaya Onu. He has been projected as the ideal President for Nigeria come 2023 as he belongs to an endangered species of statesmen who can galvanize all facets of this country and provide the much needed modern day progressive leadership. The election of Dr Ogbonnaya Onu as President will pull Nigeria back from the brink and sustain its existence as an indivisible entity. This worthy course if left to slide can only be realised in the next 16 years with the sustenance of the current democracy. I rest my case!

Prof Hakeem Fawehinmi
Former Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)
University of Port Harcourt, 08037076033

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Opinion

The Hypocrisy of Power Game Between The North and South: The Time To Talk Is Now

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The leadership of the Yoruba Council Worldwide (Igbimo Apapo Yoruba Lagbaye); the apex umbrella body for all Yoruba indigenous people globally is highly concerned about the recent devastating effects of the Northern quests and aggressive desperation for power ahead of 2027 or through any other irrational means before the ripe of time.

We are seriously concerned to witness all manners of unprecedented barrage of fireworks of incendiary rhetoric issued from different Northern elites as emanated from Prof Ango Abdullahi of the Northern Elders Forum seeking to call for an end of Nigeria based on the 100 years expiration of 1914 treaty after 10 years which lapsed in 2014.

To Alhaji Rabiu Musa Kwankanso’s crudity, unverified lies and tale of discords against the South: “Lagos colonising the North”, was his biased statements!

Hence, we must expressly express our dismay and disappointed on such insensitive rhetoric and by that laconically detest such an unflattering statement from chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, for intentionally misinforming and misleading Nigerians about President Tinubu’s Tax Reform Bills before the National Assembly.

Sadly enough, Alhaji Kwankwaso’s comments while addressing students of Skyline University during their convocation in Kano recently, demonstrated either a lack of understanding of the tax reforms or a deliberate attempt to politicize President Tinubu’s positive visionary and Renewed Hope initiative.

It is evident that Senator Kwankwaso is still grappling with the fallout from his abysmal performance in the 2023 presidential elections. This lingering disappointment seems to have influenced his repeated reliance on divisive rhetoric and unfounded accusations against the administration of President Tinubu.

While the 19 Northern States Emirs and Governors provokingly demanded their Senators and Reps to reject, end and fight the present Administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s tax reforms bill to a halt, in which one of the arrowheads: Senator Ali Ndume said the “TAX REFORM Bill is Dead on Arrival.”

Rather than engaging in constructive national dialogue or offering meaningful contributions to national development, Kwankwaso, Ali Ndume and other co-travellers appears to have chosen a path aimed at inciting division between the North and the South, and casting aspersions on initiatives being painstakingly designed to benefit all Nigerians.

Such actions are not only unhelpful but also risk undermining the unity and progress of the country at a critical time when inclusive leadership and national cohesion are paramount to stability, progress and prosperity of our dear nation.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s tax reforms are a necessary steps toward addressing the economic challenges facing the country and ensuring equitable development for all Nigerians, including those in the north especially the President’s initiative to tackle the disproportionate distribution of revenues from the Value Added Tax to all 36 states of the Federation and the FCT.

In strongest term we are not oblivion of the ongoing despicable threats bothering on excessive interference and high powered conspiracies to disrupt and hijack power from the South with the systemic and surreptitious renewed onslaught recruitment of the former President Olusegun Obasanjo as one of centrifugal forces being radically committed through his offensive and disparaging statements being deliberately orchid in running the current Administration down by all means possible.

Moreso, as reflective of his self styled selfish act and hatred for Constituted authority, his megalomaniac inclination and inordinate ambitions against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led government, especially having lost power through his proxy kid Peter Obi via the ballot in 2023 Presidential election.

We hereby warn former President Olusegun Obasanjo to refrain from making statements that is capable of undermining Nigeria’s unity, peace and progress.

While we reiterate and assert our absolute confidence, that the country is functioning effectively under President Bola Tinubu led Federal Government, though with some surmountable challenges, still as they postulated, peace is what matters and not a all manner of provocative statements within the polity, because there will be light at the end of the tunnel, God’s willing.

To set the record straight, hence, it is necessary to respond and react appropriately to Chief Obasanjo’s recent keynote address at the Chinua Achebe Leadership Forum at Yale University in Connecticut, USA.

Wherein in his address, Baba Obasanjo criticised Nigeria’s leadership, describing the country as being a failed state of “state capture” and urging Nigerians to prioritise credible leadership for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to ensure electoral integrity.

Regrettably, former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s language of the war on peace time is a disaster and unpatriotic move in calling for anarchy, which is quite an anathema to the status of an elder statesman in his referential eldership.

The vituperation of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s lecture or better defined as tantrums Talk show, as the Chief harbinger of our worsening state of hunger and hardship was full of energy to condemn the current Administration with utter hatred of his avowed “do or die” mentality that has been infamously reputed to be offensive disappointing and disgusting as the only salvo that can be fired from a despotic and totalitarian personality only found to be hypocritically and deceitfully projected himself as a true democrat.

It was in record how he levelled the land of Odi with deadly precision and mortality even without any Justice till date, he removed Dariye and Fayose through illegitimate means of declaration of state of emergency all because he lacked the receptive mind for criticism and tolerance.

Now we must reiterate and state emphatically in admonishing the Northern elites to think twice on their incendiary staments and spiral bombardment of attacks through sponsored protests, media adverts or careless statements as well as the links such as: the #EndBadGovernance which started by some Northern youths, that was latter aggravated further and taken over by the #DayofRage led by thier proxies.

Unfortunately, this furtive and clandestine motivated underwater currents are largely engendered and orchestrated towards a obvious suspected Northern quest and desperation for power by all means ahead of 2027 Presidential elections.

How do we rate a situation wherein throughout the 8 years tenure of the former President Muhammadu Buhari, the entire Northern elites do not consider ending Nigeria treaty of 1914 only to wake up at the 99th hour of a Southwest Presidency to rage all manners of brimstone?

Hence, we warn in strongest term that this premeditated plan and well marshalled evil agendas to cause disunity, mayhem and strive among the citizens must be stopped once and for all for the betterment of our dear nation.

We vehemently frowned at the spurious and unverified lies, especially devastating propaganda actions targeted at the minds of their Northern kinsmen and women to hate and wish the President dead, this we unequivocally resist and condemned in its entirety.

This hypocrisy must stop now, wherein we lost lots of our brave minds to unbearable brazing manipulations and desperation in the past; Chief Obafemi Awolowo and MKO Abiola are proven records of similar antecedents of Northern hypocrisy and Power mongering.

It is hightime we talk truth to ourselves at a National Confab after each regional dialogue on the way forward, for if the North continuously hold the cliché of the “North are born to rule” ideology at the expense of the South, that means the rest of us are meant to be treated as their “slaves”, that are not safe in this country.

Have we for ones queried why the Northern Nigeria has more political advantages compared to their Southern counterparts: More state Governors and State House of Assembly members and Speakers, local government Chairmen and counsellors, Senators and House of Representatives members and more Federal institutions and employment opportunities and placements to mention a few.

This was why the Northern elites are eager to shut the tax reform bill down through their Northern Senators if the bill is brought for deliberation without having a concise dialogue with the rest of us.

If the Southern tax regime money is good to construct good roads and railway line to Maradi Republic of Niger, why now that the tax reform which is the best for the country is being campaigned against brutally, using legitimate means to commit illegality.

It is high time we are all captured into the ongoing comprehensive tax system, wherein both the citizens in the Northern and Southern parts are taxed eqaully , while the need to undermine this great efforts of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is highly condemned.

We are bold to say that the need and quests for power must be done with absolute decorum and human face.

2027 election should not end in Ethnic wars and civil strives, we can discuss No Holdbar on all issues of our Nationality without hurting ourselves.

In conclusion, we would not tolerate any capture of Power through coup or any other means of manipulations, or whatsoever in causing instability.

We use this medium to commiserate with the families of the late Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja, while as a matter of necessity we call for a detailed investigation into his cause of death and other surrounding circumstances, which calls for concern having witnessed recent threats of coup.

We implore President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to remain steadfastly committed and focused on ensuring good governance to the greatest benefits of greatest numbers.

We have emphatically and unapologetically spoken!

Signed:

Prince Isaac Aderemi Ajibola,National Publicity Secretary, Yoruba Council Worldwide.

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Day Mamman Vatsa welcomed Ken Saro-Wiwa to his Abuja Village

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Tunde Olusunle

By Tunde Olusunle

He reincarnated in the form of a cream coloured, two-storey building in the bosom of the boulder-braided, writers’ commune, in the rocky delight of Abuja’s Mpape district. His happy host, like him an erstwhile member of the tribe of wordmongers was despatched over a phantom putsch one decade before him. But he rolled out a carpet of dry laterite with the steady onset of northerly harmattan, to receive his new guest and kindred spirit. The air was sedate, the biosphere alluring and serene as his name echoed from the signage hoisted in front of the structure. This, henceforth, will be the haven of scribblers from across the globe desiring genuine solitude to commune with their muses in the very intricate venture of creative expression. Not too many of the young writers who enthusiastically witnessed the recent commissioning of the *Ken Saro-Wiwa International Writers Residency* in Abuja, however, knew enough about the martyr who was so canonised, nor the nexus between Ken Saro-Wiwa and his figurative “host,” Mamman Jiya Vatsa.

As part of the activities commemorating the 43rd International Convention of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (ANA), which held between Thursday October 31 and Saturday November 2, 2024, a newly built edifice christened after Saro-Wiwa, was scheduled for inauguration. Ken Saro-Wiwa remains one of Nigeria’s most multitasking and most productive writers of all time. He lived for only 54 years but left behind an authorial legacy which continues to challenge the prolificity of successor writers. Saro-Wiwa was a compelling novelist, an engaging essayist, a consummate poet, an arresting dramatist, and a fearless public scholar.

Regarded as Africa’s very first purpose-built writers village, the expansive hilltop project in Mpape, Abuja, was named after Vatsa, an army General who was a Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), under the regime of Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. Less than seven months into the Babangida milieu in March 5, 1986, Vatsa was executed by firing squad for alleged “treason associated with an abortive coup.” He was 45 at the time. I had the privilege of meeting Vatsa’s only surviving biological child, Aisha, at the “World Poetry Day 2024,” hosted in honour of her father in March 2024, at the same writers’ village. Vatsa was a writer who reportedly published about 20 anthologies of poetry. These include: *Verses for Nigerian State Capitals,* (1972); *Back Again at Wargate,* (1982); *Reach for the Skies,* (1984), and *Tori for Geti Bow leg and other Pidgin Poems,* (1985).

The renowned literary scholar, critic, polemicist and Emeritus Professor, Biodun Jeyifo, was perhaps the first notable intellectual to engage authoritatively with Vatsa’s works in the primordial *Guardian Literary Series, (GLS),* published by *The Guardian* newspapers of old, in the 1980s. The essay is published in *Perspectives on Nigerian Literature, (Volume 2, 1988),* edited by Yemi Ogunbiyi. Vatsa as FCT helmsman, it was, who allocated the generous swathes of hitherto pristine land with scenic views upon which the writers village is sited today. The complex is deservedly named after him in eternal gratitude by the writers fraternity.

Ken Saro-Wiwa was the fourth President of ANA. He succeeded the renowned dramatist and Emeritus Professor of theatre arts, Femi Osofisan, in 1990, and was a very energetic personality, famous for the tobacco pipe which was permanently seated on his lip, drawing parity with that of Ousmane Sembene, the famous Senegalese frontline African novelist and filmmaker. Saro-Wiwa had a multitasking career which saw him as a university lecturer in his earlier years; an administrator and public servant, and an environmental activist, at various times. He was leader of the *Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People,* (MOSOP), which prosecuted a nonviolent campaign for the protection of Ogoni land and water resources from devastation by oil multinationals.

He backed up this enterprise with regular interventions in the public space as a writer and columnist for a number of authoritative newspapers. He consistently drew attention to the despoliation of the natural resources of his people and wrote regularly for *Vanguard* and *Sunday Times,* among other publications. He was a regular, long-staying guest of the gulags of successive military governments, through the administrations of Ibrahim Babangida and Sani Abacha. In 1994, he was arrested and charged with instigating the murders of four Ogoni leaders, May 4, 1994, on a day he was indeed barred from accessing Ogoniland. Saro-Wiwa and his eight “accomplices” were executed by hanging at the Port Harcourt prison where they were held and convicted, on November 10, 1995, exactly one month after his 54th birthday on October 10, 1995.

By some uncanny calendrical coincidence, the *Ken Saro-Wiwa International Writers Residency,* was inaugurated early November 2024, the very same month he was despatched 29 years ago in 1995. Global outrage trailed the killing of Saro-Wiwa and his compatriots, with the Commonwealth suspending Nigeria for three years, among other sanctions. The death of Sani Abacha in June 1998, the subsequent acceleration of processes which returned Nigeria to civilian rule by Abacha’s successor, Abdulsalami Abubakar, and the enthronement of the Fourth Republic in 1999, gradually tempered the world’s coldness towards Nigeria.

At least three dozen book titles are credited to Ken Saro-Wiwa’s name. These include novels, novellas, anthologies of poetry, plays for radio and television, memoirs and diaries, and so on. His works have received some international attention and have been translated into German, Dutch and French. His authorial oeuvre includes: *Tambari,* (a novel, 1973); *Tambari in Dukana,* (a sequel to *Tambari,* 1986); *A Bride for Mr B,* (a novella, 1983), and *Songs in a Time of War,* (poetry, 1985). Ken Saro-Wiwa also wrote *Sozaboy: A Novel in Rotten English,* (1985); *A Forest of Flowers,* (1986, short stories); *Prisoners of Jebs,* (a novel, 1988) and *Pita Dumbrok’s Prison,* (1991), which like the former is very biting political satire.

*On a Darkling Plain: An Account of the Nigerian Civil War,* (memoirs, 1989), a war which he witnessed firsthand, is also one of his very gripping works of prose. Saro-Wiwa’s public engagements are aggregated in several volumes of essays notably *Nigeria: The Brink of Disaster,* (1991); *Similia: Essays on Anomic Nigeria,* (1991) and *Genocide in Nigeria: The Ogoni Tragedy,* (1992). Even in his final days, weeks and months of his sojourn on this side of the divide, Saro-Wiwa “remained incredibly productive.” Posthumously, his family, foreign concerns and nongovernmental organisations continued to call-up manuscripts from his personal library to publish new works by him. A personal diary he kept while he was in incarceration before his eventual annihilation was published with the title *A Month and a Day: A Detention Diary,* in 1995. Over 20 years after his demise, some of his essays were assembled as *Silence would be Treason: Last Writings of Ken Saro-Wiwa,* and published by Daraja Press in Ottawa, Canada, in 2018.

The *Ken Saro-Wiwa International Writers Residency* is one of the first major physical projects delivered by the leadership of Usman Oladipo Akanbi. Fortuitously, Akanbi’s deputy, Obari Gomba, winner of the 2023 *NLNG Prize for Drama,* is from Saro-Wiwa’s Ogoni country. He must have felt gratified by the honour done his *countryman,* whose trajectory he followed as a much younger writer. The eventual breaking of the ice, the decisive commencement of the physical development of the hitherto forlorn and controversial expansive hectarage of ANA property was consummated under the leadership of Denja Abdullahi in 2017. Obi Asika, Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture, (NCAC), commissioned the *Ken Saro-Wiwa International Writers Residency.*

The ceremony was witnessed by an impressive array of writers, headlined by Emeritus Professors Osofisan and Olu Obafemi, both former Presidents of ANA, as well as Nuhu Yaqub, OFR. Yaqub holds the distinction of being the only Nigerian scholar thus far to have served as Vice Chancellor in two federal universities, those of Abuja and Sokoto. Other literary greats at the event and the main Convention included: Professors Shamshudeen Amali, OFR, former Vice Chancellor, University of Ilorin; Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo; May Ifeoma Nwoye and Sunnie Ododo, all Fellows of the Nigerian Academy of Letters, (FNAL) and the Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA).

There were also Professors Joe Ushie, a Member of ANA Board of Trustees; Emeka Aniagolu; Udenta Udenta; Maria Ajima; Al Bishak; Mabel Evwierhoma; Razinat Mohammed; Vicky Sylvester Molemodile and Mahfouz Adedimeji. Immediate past ANA President, Camillus Ukah, Emeritus diplomat and writer Ambassador Albert Omotayo, featured at the Convention. Canada-based writer, scholar and Professor, Nduka Otiono who served as General Secretary of the association under the leadership of Olu Obafemi, was admitted into the College of Fellows of the body. Chairman of the *Abuja Chapter of ANA,* Arc Chukwudi Eze, was the resident host with compelling responsibility to stay through all events.

Tunde Olusunle, PhD, Fellow of Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA), teaches Creative Writing at the University of Abuja

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That ‘fake’ Sanwo-Olu vs EFCC suit: Whodunit? Who sponsored it?

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By Ehichioya Ezomon

Strange things happen in Nigeria, one of the latest being a suit purportedly filed by Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, to prevent the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) from investigating, arresting, detaining or prosecuting him or his aides after his eight-year tenure of office in 2027.
However, the Lagos Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro (SAN), has debunked the widely-publicised suit, saying Sanwo-Olu neither sued nor authorised any legal practitioner to file a suit on his behalf concerning the matter, adding that the EFCC isn’t investigating the governor and hasn’t invited him or threatened to arrest any of his staff, domestic or otherwise.
The odder and curiouser angle to the alleged pre-emptive writ at the Federal High Court in Abuja is that it’s filed in June 2024, almost three years ahead of Sanwo-Olu’s terminal governance of Nigeria’s commercial capital, the richest State in the Federation, and the fifth largest economy in Africa as of 2022 GDP figures, which Sanwo-Olu’s pledged to advance further by 2027.
Thus, the suit is a new one on Nigerians, as the proverbial bridge is way too far off – 36 months to Sanwo-Olu’s end of tenure – to attempt to cross before getting there! Snapets from EFCC’s moves against outgoing governors are telegraphed a few months or weeks before they bow out of office, so giving them the jitters. They either begin to express being squeaky clean, alleging political witch-hunt or daring the EFCC to carry out its threat to make them account for their stewardship.
Since democracy returned in Nigeria in 1999, a few ex-governors have escaped overseas and were forced to return to Nigeria to face prosecution; many have remained in the country to face the EFFC and years of legal ordeal; a couple of them, such as former Ekiti State Governors Ayo Fayose and Kayode Fayemi, have presented themselves to the commission for interrogation and/or prosecution.
Some former governors have engaged in a hide-and-seek, for instance, Yahaya Bello of Kogi State, who’d gone underground for months only to unexpectedly show up at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja in October 2024, and yet wasn’t booked, interrogated, or detained having been on the wanted list of the EFCC and the courts; two have been tried, jailed and served their sentences; one was tried and jailed but his sentence overturned on appeal and was released from prison; while one was tried overseas and served his sentence before returning to the country.
Lately, the EFCC threat to investigate, arrest, detain or prosecute former governors has become mostly academic, and the norm rather than the exception. It appears some ex-governors now relish being dragged by the EFCC, at least, as a way to keeping themselves in the news after missing the years of free spotlighting. 
  But even as Sanwo-Olu’s reported  counsel, Darlington Ozurumba, sues the EFCC as sole defendant over the said threat to arrest, detain and prosecute the governor after his tenure, the EFCC has denied knowledge, contemplation or plans by the commission or any of its officers to harass, intimidate, arrest or prosecute Sanwo-Olu after May 29, 2027, 
As reported by The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), when the matter was called for mention on October 29, Ozurumba informed the court that he’d withdrawn the earlier originating summons, and that the EFCC had been duly served with the latest court documents, which the commission’s counsel, Hadiza Afegbua, said she’s yet to sight, even as the proof of service of the processes wasn’t in the court file, and Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the matter to November 26 for further mention.
In an originating summons, marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/773/2024, dated and filed on June 6, Sanwo-Olu, reportedly raising seven questions and seeking 11 reliefs, prays for a declaration that, under and by virtue of the provisions of Section 37 of the amended 1999 Constitution, “the plaintiff, as a citizen of Nigeria, is entitled to right to private and family life as a minimum guarantee encapsulated under the Constitution, before, during and after occupation of public office created by the Constitution.”
Besides craving a declaration that, upon community reading of the provisions of Sections 35(1) & (4) and 41(1) of the Constitution, the threat of his investigation, arrest and detention by the EFCC during his tenure of office as governor is illegal, Sanwo-Olu allegedly prays the court to declare that the incessant harassment, threat of arrest and detention against him upon the EFCC’s instigation by his political adversaries based on false and politically-motivated allegation of corruption, is a misuse of executive powers and abuse of public office.
Hence, he purportedly seeks, among others, an order restraining the EFCC from harassing, intimidating, arresting, detaining, or prosecuting him in connection with his tenure as the governor of Lagos State.
However, the EFCC, describing as speculative and a conjecture the alleged Sanwo-Olu’s claims and reliefs in his fundamental right enforcement suit, has denied it threatened, invited or took any step at all to encroach on the governor’s right to freedom of movement or violated his right to private and family life and personal liberty.
Countering the originating summons Ozurumba purportedly filed on behalf of Sanwo-Olu, the EFCC, in an affidavit filed on October 31 by its lawyer, Hadiza Afegbua, the deponent, Ufuoma Ezire, told Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court, Abuja, that the plaintiff’s depositions in Paragraphs 4, 5, 6, 7 and even 8 are unfounded, untrue and unknown to the defendant, and calculated to mislead the court, and are hereby denied.
Noting that the EFCC isn’t investigating Sanwo-Olu, and has never invited him or threatened to arrest any member of his staff, domestic or otherwise, Ezire states that the EFCC invites members of the public for interview, interrogation or any engagement vide a written invitation, phone calls or text messages by any of its officers, who shall introduce themselves by name, rank, designation, and section to enable the invitee trace the officer easily.
Ezire says the EFCC is unaware of any threat to arrest Sanwo-Olu’s “aides, accusation of maladministration or diversion of Lagos State’s funds nor is it aware of any likelihood of a breach of the applicant’s right to liberty or right to own movable and immovable properties in this case.”
Stressing that there’s no petition or any intel gathered before the EFCC to warrant its officers to invite, or threaten to arrest the plaintiff at the moment, Ezire asserts that the entirety of the alleged Sanwo-Olu’s dispositions isn’t true, as the application is “misconceived and brought in bad faith to mislead this honourable court,” adding that, “it will be in the interest of justice to refuse the reliefs sought by the plaintiff.”
Similarly, Mr Pedro, the Lagos Attorney General, in a statement on October 29 rebutting “the news circulating in a section of the media, titled: ‘Sanwo-Olu sues EFCC over alleged plan to arrest, prosecute him after tenure,’” clarified as follows:
“Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, at no time, sued or briefed any legal practitioner to file a suit on his behalf concerning the above subject matter. Moreover, it is implausible for the Governor, who enjoys immunity as conferred by the Constitution, and has almost three years remaining in office, to engage any lawyer on this matter.
“To the best of my knowledge, my inquiry confirmed that the EFCC is not investigating the governor and has never invited him or threatened the arrest of any member of his staff, domestic or otherwise. We are currently investigating how the case came to be without our knowledge.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu has demonstrated exemplary service delivery and prudent, judicious management of public resources. Therefore, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who is tirelessly working to improve the living conditions of all Lagosians, has no cause for concern when he eventually leaves office at the end of his tenure in May 2027.
“We, therefore, urge media organisations to be cautious about the reports they publish on their esteemed platforms to avoid misleading the public.”
Needless to ask: Whodunit? Who sponsored it? Without a doubt, the so-called Sanwo-Olu’s suit, filed by an “unauthorised legal practitioner,” against the EFCC is the handiwork of his political adversaries trying to induce, instigate or coerce the anti-graft agency to embark on a fishing expedition it’s no reasonable grounds for, either from a petition(s) or intel that points to a likelihood of (mis)appropriation of funds and resources of Lagos by the governor or his aides.
That said, many will defend Governor Sanwo-Olu for perceptively seen as deploying the resources at his disposal to upgrade and develop existing and new infrastructural and human capital needs to match the Lagos motto of “The State Of Excellence” and its Mega City status that’s attracted unprecedented public and private investments.
These include the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA-) managed ground-breaking Blue and Red Rail Lines, the Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) system, the proposed Fourth Mainland Bridge, the Atlantic City project, the fully-automated Imota Rice Mill, and the Lekki Free Trade Zone that houses the multibillion dollar 650,000bpd-capacity Dangote Petroleum Refinery – the largest single-train refinery in the world at full capacity – which’s Nigeria’s window to self-sufficiency in production and supply of petroleum products.
Other areas in the Lagos socio-economic sphere: Education, ICT, innovation and technology, healthcare, commerce, agribusiness, small-scale industries, entertainment, showbusiness, tourism, and youth and sports development are receiving adequate attention, and have become a source of pride to Lagosians, and emulation by other States in Nigeria.
Lagos, a hub of international engagements all-year-round, has moved up the ladder as one of the most preferred destinations on the continent of Africa, and is up-scaling on the global leisure spots, thanks to Governor Sanwo-Olu and his vastly young, professional, dynamic and dedicated team, who’ve deployed their expertise in various fields to achieve a shared dream of Lagos leading or being among the best in all human endeavours.
Sanwo-Olu isn’t just a workaholic delivering on the promises of his administration, but he’s the epitome of the alias, “Mr Project,” in the true sense of the lingo in our clime. So, why should he be worried about the EFFC when he’s deploying the resources of Lagos to develop the state to an enviable standard! The “amiable” governor should free his mind and continue “to finish strong” with the good works he’s been doing, for which he’s received umblemished praises, accolades and awards within and outside Nigeria.

Mr Ezomon, Journalist and Media Consultant, writes from Lagos, Nigeria

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