By Oladapo Sofowora,

While many are wondering why naysayers of Governor Dauda Lawal are angered by his growing influence in Zamfara and Nigeria’s political space, which has led to his consistent inclusion in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s foreign trips entourage, such critics are rather myopic or economical with the truth.

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Instead, they should be excited that a highly cerebral and financially prudent Governor like him is being included in these high-level diplomatic engagements, from which Zamfara stands to gain significantly.

These trips open the state to better strategic positioning and create room for foreign direct investment in agricultural development, mining and mineral resources and other critical sectors.

While counting its gains and celebrating that a state once known as Nigeria’s poverty capital is gradually reclaiming its lost glory, all thanks to Governor Dauda Lawal, many are playing politics with the collective future of Zamfara’s people.

The recent malicious and unverified post with the headline “ZAMFARA, Hijacked by Thieves!!” being shared across social media maligning and casting aspersions on Governor Dauda Lawal should not be overlooked by well-meaning Nigerians rather we all should collectively rebuke the author for trying to spread falsehood ignorantly by positing unverified stories to start a campaign of calumny against Governor Lawal and the Zamfara State Government.

The author is definitely on a mission to paint a picture that does not reflect the true situation on the ground.

Despite the opposition’s constant wailing, Zamfara has continued to shine, recording not only a change in fortune but also unprecedented infrastructural development across the state one not witnessed since the creation of the state decades ago.

Many states have even called for the Zamfara blueprint to be replicated elsewhere to achieve similar success. This shows that Governor Lawal is getting things right with his policies and also ways of actualising them.

Personally, despite witnessing all the developmental strides of Governor Lawal in Zamfara State, I find it essential to speak up against the lies being peddled online about a Governor who is financially prudent and has ensured that Zamfara experiences unprecedented development.

He could easily have opened the state’s purse and spent like a drunken sailor, but instead, he chose to invest in healthcare delivery, educational development, security, women’s empowerment, skills acquisition, infrastructural development, agriculture, transportation and more.

Governor Lawal is Attracting Investment and Not Junketing Around the World

The author alleged that Governor Lawal spent millions of dollars on globe-trotting despite the figures being overly inflated by the author to suit his agenda, but conveniently ignores the results of these diplomatic missions. The world does not invest in a state it cannot see. Governor Lawal has been a tireless advocate for Zamfara’s visibility on the global stage.

Unlike previous administrations, this government has actively engaged with development partners and investors, positioning Zamfara as an investment hub, a strategy that contributed to the recent launch of the $200 million Zamfara Lithium Mining and Processing Plant operated by ZAM Mining Co. Ltd in Boko Village, Zurmi LGA, a joint investment by Chinese firm Jinlide Co. Ltd, Bima Mines and other partners. In business, you use money to make money and for Zamfara, foreign direct investment has not only positioned the state as an investment destination but has also created jobs and revenue opportunities that will drive sustainable development.

The trips the author listed have further secured critical partnerships in agriculture, infrastructure and security. The so-called “first-class tickets” and “charters” are standard for high-level diplomatic engagements, designed to protect the safety and security of the state’s number one citizen.

This is not a luxury; it is a necessity and protocols allow for such travel arrangements. As Governor Dauda Lawal has always advocated for open books and financial prudence with his budget performance published annually, the financial allocations the author mentioned are for official purposes and are documented not pocketed.

The accusations are merely beer-parlour talk, given the massive influx of international support currently benefiting Zamfara State.

The United Nations Secretary-General, Mrs Amina Mohammed recently paid a visit to the state where he lauded the governor for his strides also the educational sector is receiving positive attention from a global educational development body.

These are gains of the foreign trips and every kobo spent is properly appropriated and accounted for in the budget performance.

On the allegations of lavish spending on aides, the author also listed inflated figures allegedly allocated to the Governor’s close aides, figures that are clearly obnoxious.

One wonders whether the author was present when the money he quoted was disbursed. The figures are merely a figment of his imagination, a blatant lie from the pit of hell.

All those mentioned have vehemently disclosed that they only receive allocations tied to their offices, as required by law and that nothing extra was paid.

The way the author quoted figures in dollars suggests he believes the dollar is official legal tender in Nigeria, which shows the author is simply trying to sell lies in a palatable way.

On ACReSAL and Development Contracts, the author has attempted to paint contracts for rural development as a “looting” exercise.

This is an insult to the hardworking people of Zamfara, who can see where their taxes are being put to good use and where allocations are being expended.

Some states award contracts that never see the light of day, but the contracts the author mentioned are verifiable and are actively being executed by the administration or some have been delivered.

In Zamfara, contracts are bid for with solid requirements and when any contractor meets the required standards and demonstrates capacity, such contracts are awarded. Nobody unbiased can see the work being done by Governor Lawal and call it inferior.

Contracts in Zamfara are executed with quality specifications and in line with stipulated procurement processes.

According to sources, many contractors are awarded jobs based on performance and track records. As regards the allegation that contracts are given to Governor Lawal himself, that is a complete falsehood. Governor Lawal is not a contractor. He was a seasoned investment banker before venturing into politics.

If the author can provide the name of Governor Lawal as director or owner of any company that has received contracts from Zamfara State, let him do so by publishing with facts and not mere assumption in a bid to distort the truth.

On the ACReSAL Project, the administration is actively implementing the Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) project.

Just recently, the project supported 1,000 Zamfara farmers with agricultural inputs and improved seeds to enhance food security.

The contracts listed are not handouts to “friends”; they are development projects awarded to qualified firms. For instance, the ACReSAL project has specific contracts for flood and erosion control, such as the reclamation of 1,000 hectares in Gusau and Bungudu LGAs. These are projects that save lives and land.

The Governor is committed to ensuring that the disbursement of funds actually delivers visible projects, unlike the previous administration where money was simply “shared” without any physical legacy.

The “Outsiders” Claim

The author also claims that over 90% of contracts are going to “outsiders” is a blatant lie. The government is transparently awarding contracts based on competence, speed and capacity.

The pace of development across Zamfara and its local governments is unprecedented. His Excellency is focused on leaving a legacy of infrastructure. The billions of naira being spent on roads, hospitals and the airport are not “looted”; they are being constructed.

The Airport recently had Zamfara pilgrims going for holy pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia fly and land after performing Hajj. We see the roads, the new Government House renovations, the solar power lighting up communities, the hospitals, the primary healthcare centres, the schools and more.

The author also mentioned a Zamfara indigene who got a contract based on their capacity. The question to be asked is were contracts not carried out and delivered? When an indigenous company gets a contract, the effect trickles down to the people because it’s a way of making funds move around the local economy.

Governor Lawal has always advocated that 80% of Labour for Zamfara contracts should be picked from the people within the community this will create job opportunities and will also ensure inclusion in terms of economic effect on the people who will benefit from getting paid.

On the security funds embezzlement allegation, I also find it deeply offensive that the writer would accuse the Governor and his aides of embezzling funds intended for security. Governor Dauda Lawal has made security his top priority, investing heavily in the security architecture of the state.

In the 2025 budget, security constitutes 6% of the total N545 billion “RESCUE BUDGET 2.0,” totalling N32.28 billion allocated to security interventions.

The Governor has established the Community Protection Guard (CPG), which has curtailed the level of insecurity experienced before the advent of his administration.

He has also been a vocal advocate for state police, arguing that it would give governors genuine authority as chief security officers to combat insecurity effectively.

The results are there for all to see: attacks have reduced, farmers are returning to their lands, and communities that were once deserted are now being repopulated. To insinuate that this administration is embezzling security funds is to insult the sacrifices of our gallant security forces who risk their lives daily to protect Zamfara citizens.

As much as I have wanted to look away from the lies being peddled, posterity would judge me for keeping quiet when such falsehoods are being consumed hook, line and sinker by many who believe them.

The allegations are nothing but cheap political tricks. The administration under Governor Dauda Lawal has empowered more Zamfara indigenes in the last two years than in the previous ten.

However, the administration should not allow a “taxi” company without the machinery to execute a multi-billion-naira road project just to satisfy the quota of “indigeneship.” The government is building a state not an employment bureau for political cronies.

I urge the public to disregard this baseless blackmail. The Governor remains undeterred in its mission to reset the Zamfara narrative. The administration of Governor Lawal is open to scrutiny, but should not entertain a critique that ignores the visible evidence of development.

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The administration’s books are open, projects are visible and the Governor is firmly on the ground politically. Instead of spreading falsehoods, the author should visit these project sites and see for himself the transformation of a state finally freed from the shackles of poor leadership.

By Bola BOLAWOLE, 

Dr. Segun Osoba, Marxist scholar and historian, was one of my mentors and role models. Our paths crossed long before I came face-to-face with the enigma at the then University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, where he not only taught me courses in the History department, but was also our staff adviser and comrade.

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Cerebral and unflinchingly principled, Osoba snubbed the usual hussle, if I may call it that, of many academics to attain to the professoral status, preferring to remain “Dr.” even though everyone knew he was not the mate of many a professor!

For me, Osoba’s fame travelled far ahead of him. Appointed by the Murtala Muhammed regime into the Constitution Drafting Committee in October 1975, Osoba, together with his ideological soulmate, Dr. Bala Usman of the History department of the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, broke ranks with the other members of the CDC to author a people-oriented draft Constitution that made the Nigerian people’s interests, aspirations and well-being its focal point. It was termed the Minority Report.

Expectedly, the conservative Olusegun Obasanjo regime that succeeded Murtala Muhammed rejected the Osoba/Bala Usman report while accepting the report of the majority members of the CDC on September 14, 1976. The CDC was chaired by Chief FRA Williams.

The majority/minority report divide apart, the CDC was not without its controversies: The sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, had declined to serve on the committee, thereby reducing its members from 50 to 49. There was also the debate as to what would have been the choice of a much more radical Murtala Muhammed had he not been assassinated on February 13, 1976.

Specifically because of Osoba and Bala Usman, I chose to study History in the university! And I was fortunate to drink from the fountain of knowledge at the feet of Dr. Osoba on and off the classroom. As comrades, our relationship did not end at Ife; usually, comradeship is a life-long endeavour.

In late December 2023, after a spell of ‘long-time-no-see’, four of us old students/comrades of Comrade Osoba decided to visit him at his Ijebu-Ode residence – Femi Falana, SAN; Ambassador Ayo Olukanni; Kayode Komolafe (K.K.) and my humble self.

Comrade was still his very sharp and humorous self. Despite his health challenges, he still “recognised” each and everyone of us by our voice. We discussed for hours and it was amazing that ill-health spared his intellect. He was his familiar self – analytical, even if caustic, going down memory lane and recalling facts and figures as if he was reading them from a book spread out before him.

We promised to return. Unfortunately, we procrastinated, despite Olukanni’s repeated prodding. But as individuals, we attended his 90th birthday celebration held at Ijebu-Ode on 9th January, 2025. His book, “Critical and Contentious Issues in the Modern and Contemporary History of Nigeria: Collected Writings of Samuel Olusegun Osoba”, which was unveiled at the occasion, adorns my Library. See also my “Tributes to Comrade (Dr.) Segun Osoba at 90”, published in this column in the Wednesday, 15 January, 2025 edition of the New Telegraph newspaper.

Dr. Osoba passed away peacefully at home in Ijebu-Ode on 14 May, 2026. A flurry of activities by comrades from all the nooks and crannies of this country as well as abroad celebrated his life, extolled his virtues, pledged to continue the struggle from where he stopped, and bid him farewell from this earthly plane. In this were the words of Che Guevara fulfilled: “Wherever death may surprise us, let it be welcome, provided that this, our battle cry, may have reached some receptive ear and another hand may be extended to wield our weapons (Message to the Tricontinental, 1967).”

I was unable to participate fully in some of the activities because of the tragedy that fell at my doorsteps at about the same time.

First, my elder sister’s husband, Gabriel Alani Olusola Omiyale, died on June 11, 2026 at the age of 89 years. He was a mentor. Then came the bombshell: His daughter – and my sister’s second child, Abosede Oluwayemisi – died the same month on June 29th at the age of 54!

That was massive! To say we were devastated is an understatement. If the pains that attended Bose’s death remain indescribable, the ways and manners of her husband and his family immediately before and after her death remain a puzzle. They rubbed insults on our injury.

They desecrated our Yoruba customs and traditions. Bose had heroically battled the scourge of breast cancer; after undergoing an operation, we were all optimistic she was on the path to full recovery until tests showed she needed more medical attention.

Naturally, she was devastated but, gradually, she built up the confidence and strength required to see her through. No stone was left unturned by her extended family who did not leave the load for the husband and his family to carry. All hands were on deck.

The extended family had always been there for Bose. Her siblings had been wonderful; never allowing her husband’s unstable job situation to show or affect Bose’s treatment and other needs, including her children’s education and welfare. I also played my part. I am grateful to everyone who responded to our clarion call in many ways.

We were hopeful we would all pull through it and that Bose’s case would be another testimony that cancer can be beaten. All she needed – as much as medicare – were words of encouragement and support. That, however, became the weakest link!

Act one: Against the best advice of her mother, my niece was made to consume a concoction that turned the tide. According to her husband, the concoction was procured by his own brother in Akure, Ondo state, taken to a church for prayers after which it was dispatched through a motorpark! Bose drank this concoction and started vomiting. In his own testimonies, Bose’s husband took her to a hospital where she was given drips, which gave her some strength, but because the doctor was late in coming, he took her back home despite the fact that the test they ran indicated that she had a blood infection! That night at home, she started vomiting again and, according to the husband’s testimony, he took her again to the hospital by 1.30am. She was left unattended until late afternoon when she fell into a coma! Bose’s blood infection was never treated until she passed away!

Act Two: Our standard practice had been to always double-check whatever a doctor said or prescribed, but on this fatal day, Bose’s husband kept all of us in the dark. We were not told of the blood infection. We were not alerted when she started vomiting again in the night. We were not informed when he took her again to the hospital. According to him, Bose walked with her own legs into the hospital, climbing the row of stairs all by herself.

Act Three: At the hospital, the husband took Bose’s phone and locked it in the car parked downstairs. So she had no access to her phone – to call out or receive in-coming calls. She was held incommunicado. And there was no one else there with the husband and wife. He called noone; he also snubbed repeated incoming calls into his own phone, including from my elder sister, who is Bose’s mother.

Act four: Later that afternoon, the husband called me to say Bose was not responding to treatment and that I should start interceding for her. I was aghast! I had been waiting all day for them to link up with me for a scheduled appointment. Later, a female voice using the husband’s phone called me to quickly come to the hospital. I was on my way there when Bose’s second child, a girl writing exams at the Obafemi Awolowo University, called me, sobbing! “Daddy, what is happening to my Mom? My Daddy called me and said my Mummy is in coma” Coma! “Yes, sir”, the girl replied, “and my Daddy said my Mummy is dead!” I almost lost control of the wheel because I was driving.

Act Five: On getting to the hospital, they had already started embalming Bose! I screamed at the husband, but the hospital staff restrained me. Why the haste? Without any of her family members present! A thousand thoughts ran riot in my head. At 6.28 pm, Bose’s mortal remains were deposited in the morgue and we left.

Act Six: While we were agonizing about how to break the sad news to Bose’s mother, her husband and his family had posted Bose’s death on every conceivable social media platform, breaking the news to her young children, the oldest of whom is just a little over 20 years while the youngest is 14!

Act seven: We the siblings of Bose’s mother wanted a decent burial for her. We wanted her dreams and visions for her children respected. Bose’s husband and his family spurned all of that! They weaponized Bose’s young children against us. They threw their so-called customs and traditions in our face at every turn – as if the Yoruba have no customs and traditions. They employed deceit and subterfuge and hurriedly committed Bose to mother earth without any of her family members present! We warned! They ignored and played games!

Google says Edema is a name answered by both the Urhobo and Itsekiri people of Delta state. Does their culture permit the trumping of Yoruba customs and traditions? Should a husband boast to his children – while their mother was still battling cancer – that, if she dies, he will remarry? So, expect his wedding invitation!

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Had Bose died of cancer, our pains would have been less insufferable; but she did not! Were they tired of the stress and wanted closure so they could move on with their own life? Hastened to her death! Hurried to the grave! This is to put the records straight. Our immediate attention, however, is the good health of Bose’s mother – and Daddy Omiyale’s burial slated for 29th and 30th of October this year.

Let Dr. Segun Osoba rest in power! And eternal rest grant Abosede Oluwayemisi Edema (nee Omiyale), O Lord!

(Published in the TREASURES column on the back page of the Wednesday, 5 August, 2026 edition of the New Telegraph newspaper).

By Dr. Sam Akpe,

The hall wore a robe of expectations as minutes ticked towards the hour. The city was wrapped in the mood of impending festivity. Something was in the air. Road safety personnel and armed policemen were on duty—directing traffic and maintaining orderliness along Woji Road.

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A walk into the event hall felt like an excursion into a carnival. From the urbane music equipment emitting jazzy tunes, to the symmetrically-arranged seats, the arty wall decorations, and the storybook backdrop, poetry was on display.

Outside, directly opposite the car park, a massive poster announcing the event in the making—the Annual Wole Soyinka Lecture with a life-size portrait of the literary legend—exhibited what was about to unfold.

The imposing poster also indicated two other persons—the technocrat extraordinaire, Chief Ndutimi Alaibe, as chairman of the day, while the former Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister, Chief Osita Chidoka—was the guest speaker.

Indeed, almost the entire Port Harcourt—a city of political frenzy, soaked in oily wealth but surrounded by shantytowns—was in colourful feel of expectancy, as it awaited the arrival of Akinwande Oluwole Babatunde Soyinka, Africa’s first Nobel Laureate in Literature.

Then almost surreptitiously, the literary idol walked into the hall unannounced. Except for his traditional white hair, the big smile, and the hawk-like penetrating eyes, the hall almost missed his entry. Eventually, everyone rose in honour of the reverential figure—the father of modern political literature.

The 92-years old, with a deep voice, was in the city not just to attend a lecture in his honour, but to participate in a highbrow yearly ritual of the National Association of Seadogs, also called Pyrates Confraternity—a body of intellectual militants founded by him several decades ago.

It turned out to be quite an explosive event. Chairman of the summit, Chief Ndutimi Alaibe, known simply as ‘Timi, paid extensive tributes Wole Soyinka before setting the tone for the lecture that triggered off wide-ranging discussions.

‘Timi told the audience that Nigeria is immeasurably better today because of people like Soyinka who, throughout his remarkable journey, has consistently chosen the harder path—the path of conscience, courage, and truth—when silence could have been safer, easier, and far more rewarding to him.

Labelling the scholarly sage as a man with generosity of spirit and loyalty to friends, he applauded Soyinka’s readiness to encourage worthy causes, and the extraordinary willingness to show up whenever principle, rather than prominence was needed.

He declared, “Today, we honour you not merely with words, but with our presence and our shared commitment to engage the very questions your life has posed to our nation for more than six decades—questions of justice, accountability, freedom, and the moral courage required to build a truly democratic society.”

Besides, the lecture, the event was also a celebration of those described as the National Association of Seadogs Martyrs—a group comprising members of the confraternity arrested on February 17, 1997, imprisoned and tortured by the military in Rivers State on accusation of undue radicalism.

Their ordeal, which lasted 72 days, stated Dr Joseph Oteri, the confraternity leader, was an unplanned journey into the darkest hell of the late General Sani Abacha’s regime, “for daring to believe that Nigeria deserved better than the boot of a dictator,” until they were freed by a court of law.

‘Timi noted that the arrest and prosecution of the Pyrates was basically “for refusing to be silent in the face of oppression” describing the victims as “enduring symbols of resilience and civil courage in the struggle for the restoration of democracy and the rule of law.”

He said the anniversary of the event reminded everyone that democracy not freely bestowed; but was won through the sacrifices of countless Nigerians –many celebrated, many unsung—who endured intimidation, persecution and personal loss in defence of freedom, justice and accountable governance.

Going down memory lane, he mentioned other martyrs of democracy to include “Dele Giwa, whose fearless journalism challenged military authoritarianism until it claimed his life, Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni Nine, whose martyrdom awakened the world’s conscience to environmental justice and human rights, Kudirat Abiola, whose courage sustained the struggle to reclaim a stolen democratic mandate.

“We remember Chief Alfred Rewane, whose unwavering commitment to democracy cost him his life. And we remember Chief Bola Ige, Nigeria’s former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, whose assassination remains, to our enduring national shame, unresolved.”

Then he added: “Whether through imprisonment or assassination, torture or intimidation, these men and women bore heavy personal burdens so that future generations might live under the rule of law rather than the rule of fear.

“Their stories remind us that civil courage is not an abstract ideal. It is rather the willingness to stand for what is right, even when the consequences are severe and deadly.

“As we honour their memories today, may we also recommit ourselves to completing the work for which they sacrificed so much—building a Nigeria founded on justice, accountability, constitutional governance and respect for the dignity of every citizen.”

The hall sat in silence, except for intermittent applauses and fulfilled smiles from Soyinka as ‘Timi recalled rare moments of encounter with the erudite professor several years ago—a part of four decades of relationship that has profoundly shaped his understanding of what Soyinka means to Nigeria.

He mentioned an instance of close interaction in 2006 when, under the auspices of the Commission of Nobel Laureates, Soyinka was part of an international mission that visited the Niger Delta to promote peaceful dialogue and undertake a fact-finding exercise in the region—including a visit to the Niger Delta Development Commission, where ‘Timi served.

He recalled that after listening to their presentation, Soyinka remarked that the NDDC had taken on an enormous burden on behalf of a beleaguered region and deserved to be remembered as one of the positive initiatives of the Obasanjo administration, adding with characteristic generosity, “I will remember to commend him when next I see him.”  

Two years later, ‘Timi’s late wife, Alaere, extended an invitation to the revered literary czar who was then in the United States, immersed in an exceptionally demanding schedule, to visit ‘Timi’s village of Igbainwari in Opokuma, Bayelsa State, to inaugurate the Wole Soyinka Library—an initiative of Alaere’s organisation, Family Reorientation, Education and Empowerment (FREE).

He revealed that what made that visit even more remarkable was that Soyinka “did not merely fly in to perform a ceremonial duty and depart. He chose to spend the night in our modest country home in that remote riverine community.

“For a man of such global stature—a Nobel Laureate whose voice commanded respect across continents—it was an extraordinary act of humility. Let me add that he also tried Izon local brew.

“By his presence, he honoured not only our family but also an entire community that had long felt disregarded, affirming that no place is too small, and no people too insignificant, to deserve dignity, learning, and hope.

“He spoke with genuine admiration of my late wife’s vision, courage, and steadfast determination, recognising in her work a powerful testament to what conviction and selfless service can accomplish. He said ‘I am not often impressed with people, but she has succeeded in impressing me with her drive, her vision and her total commitment.’”

‘Timi noted that Soyinka created more impact during that visit when he spoke to the youth of the Niger Delta whose militancy at that time had emerged as one of the defining challenges confronting the Niger Delta.

Soyinka offered a wise counsel urging them to choose dialogue over violence and a future built on peace, not conflict.

With characteristic moral clarity, he challenged them to embrace “intellectual militancy in pursuit of the region’s development—a powerful call to exchange the force of weapons for the power of ideas, knowledge, and constructive engagement.”

By his confession, ‘Timi’s reminiscences were not merely out of nostalgia, but because they spoke directly to the event of the day, or as he put it, long before “reclaiming the state” became a familiar phrase, Soyinka was already living it’s meaning.

Or how would you describe a man of Soyinka’s standing journeying to a remote community which many considered too insignificant to matter, just to inaugurate a library and spend a night among strangers without ceremony or pretence, in an environment of budding militancy—with violence on parade.

Soyinka’s act simply affirmed that the true measure of leadership is not the distance one travels, but the willingness to stand with people wherever they are. ‘Timi described this as principled leadership and accountability exercised with wisdom and humility.

On the of the theme: “Reclaiming the Nigerian State through Accountability, Justice and Civil Courage” the former managing director of NDDC said it speaks directly to the realities of the Nigeria—a country we inhabit and the nation we aspire to build.

His words: “Nigeria is blessed with extraordinary human talent, abundant natural resources and remarkable resilience. Yet we continue to fall short of our collective potential. Our national challenge has never been a lack of diagnosis; it has been a failure to act consistently on what we already know.”

It was his view that too often, the institutions designed to hold power accountable have been weakened, thus making justice, for many Nigerians, a privilege rather than their inalienable right.

Restating the virtues of the confraternity, he said: “This gathering cannot, in good conscience, speak of reclaiming the Nigerian state without confronting one of the cardinal evils that the National Association of Seadogs was founded to repudiate.”

That evil, called tribalism, has birthed partisanship, clannishness, ethnic chauvinism and statism, while the enduring values of nationalism, absolute honesty, absolute selflessness, and love for all have been neglected, said ‘Timi.

He asserted that, tribalism has become less an individual prejudice than a systemic condition, coursing through Nigeria’s national bloodstream and eating away at the very fabric of our society.

He noted that reclaiming the Nigerian state must therefore begin with reclaiming ourselves—by ensuring that the principles we so proudly profess are applied consistently, without fear or favour, irrespective of tribe, political affiliation, or the identity of those who wield power.

Ultimately, he said, “accountability is sustained not by laws alone but by the courage of men and women who insist that those laws apply equally to the powerful and the powerless.”

His position was that reclaiming the Nigerian state would not be achieved by a single dramatic event, but through the steady accumulation of principled choices by citizens who refuse to be indifferent, institutions that remain faithful to their mandates, and leaders who choose integrity over expediency and courage over convenience.

Falling back on his modest experience in public service, ‘Timi said the journey has reinforced one enduring lesson in him, that sustainable development cannot exist without accountability, and that where institutions are weak, hope gives way to cynicism; where accountability is upheld, even limited resources can produce lasting impact.

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He urged participants to see beyond the event of the day as they aim to rebuild Nigeria, knowing that “nations are not reclaimed by rhetoric alone,” rather, they are reclaimed “when conscience triumphs over convenience, when institutions are stronger than individuals, and when citizens summon the courage to do what is right, even when it is difficult.”