Headline

Pendulum: Now That Presidential Election is Over, Life Continues

Published

7 years ago

March 2, 2019

Eric

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, let me say congratulations to both President Muhammadu Buhari and his main challenger, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, for different reasons, even as Atiku claims that it was as if he has been robbed in broad daylight. For me, what we witnessed last week was one of the worst elections ever in Nigeria, in many ways. It is a big shame that the opposition was totally annihilated and obliterated in multiple attacks. What should have been a simple and straight-forward election was turned into full-scale war. It is saddening that a leader who was the greatest beneficiary of a much freer and fairer election in 2015 would not provide a level playing field for others to play, despite his much vaunted public avowal to ensure credible elections by not interfering with the electoral umpire and the security agencies.

APC and Buhari decidedly and deliberately set out to frustrate the main opponent, Atiku, using the appurtenances of power in a reckless and inconsiderate manner. It is my hope that this has not set a dangerous precedent for others to follow. The over-militarisation of a democratic process was unconstitutional and unnecessary. Maybe our insurgency and militant problems would have been long curtailed if the same might and firepower had been deployed in these problem areas. Disenfranchising voters in different parts of Nigeria in various ways from failed and ineffective card readers to intimidation and the ⁶irresponsible Inflating of voter turn-out in some areas and reducing them in other areas was undemocratic. Voiding ballots like pop-corn was farcical. The infractions were just too brazen, to say the least, although Atiku, and the PDP itself, cannot be absolved of being involved and culpable in some of these infractions.

Despite all these hocus-pocus, I’m a very practical human being. Over time, I have learnt so much about the meaning and significance of sacrifice. Disappointment and pain go together. As mere mortals, we find it hard, and sometimes impossible, to forgive those who have wronged us, remorselessly. The recent election was nothing to rejoice about, in good conscience, after the worst evil of death was visited on fellow Nigerian citizens. I sympathise with the families of these unfortunate deceased patriots and offer them my condolences. May their souls rest in peace. But no matter our agony over spilt milk, we must all clear the mess while awaiting God’s judgment. There is a saying in our culture that whosoever you can’t defeat by your own power should be handed over to God. That is my attitude to this unfortunate saga.

Nigeria has gone through great difficulty and hardship in recent times. Expectations have turned into mirage and ashes. Hope has vaporised. But there are those with mighty faith who still believe Buhari will move mountains in his second term. To them and the government, I say good luck. Nothing is impossible. For me, the government has been given a reprieve, like a condemned man on death row. The hope and expectation are that the Yoruba saying “eni a wi fun, olorun oba je ko gbo” (the person we talk to, we can only hope will listen) will be imbibed. After every election, we must take stock, learn new lessons, and settle down to keep working. I’m happy that many serious-minded Nigerians have corroborated and supported my sincere advice on the way forward. I have come a long way in political struggles in Nigeria not to know our dear country well enough.

I witnessed one of the worst Nigerian general elections in 1983. The ruling NPN party had claimed landslide and “moonslide” victories everywhere, including the most unlikely of places. My boss, Chief Akin Omoboriowo, was one of the beneficiaries having been declared the winner of the Ondo State Governorship election. A perfect gentleman, Chief Omoboriowo was extremely reluctant to follow the NPN to Golgotha, but was persuaded by desperate party members who told him “that’s how they do it…” By the time things fell apart, and the blood started flowing like a river while human beings were roasted like grilled suya, my boss had to retreat and give up the mandate that was stolen for him by his party, NPN. We all knew there was no way Omoboriowo would have defeated his erstwhile boss, Chief Adekunle Ajasin, in Ondo State at the time. Omoboriowo had been the Deputy Governor to Ajasin. I was barely 23, when I served as his Private Secretary. That was my baptism of fire.

About 36 years after that conflagration erupted in Nigeria, we witnessed a similar event last week. It seemed the militarisation was copied from that ungodly era. The heavily militarised Nigeria Police Force was in the centre of operations at that time and not soldiers like Buhari drafted out last week although the Police headed by the Inspector General of Police, Sunday Adewusi, was equipped with armour-tanks and military hardware to take on innocent Nigerians. What happened thereafter? Three months later, the Mallam Shehu Shagari government collapsed like a pack of cards and the cookie crumbled. Who took over power in the military putsch? The one and only Muhammadu Buhari. One of the reasons adduced for the military coup was the recklessness of the ruling party NPN, which acted similarly to what APC has now repeated, before our very eyes.

Buhari and his deputy, Major-General Babatunde Idiagbon, announced their intention to instil discipline in Nigerians and banish corruption totally. Poor Nigerians rejoiced, believing their Messiah had come to liberate them from the brigands and looters. Politicians were hurled into detention, faced military trials and received horrendous and unprecedented sentences. But recession soon set in. Essential commodities had to be rationed. Anyway, the government itself fell in 1985 and the same people who hailed the coming of Buhari were seen rejoicing.

Please, fast forward to 1993. Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola won the June 12, 1993, election, fair and square, by defeating his opponent, Alhaji Bashir Tofa. I left Nigeria on June 9, 1993, and was in Vienna, Austria, by June 10, 1993, to represent Chief Abiola, at the Bruno Kreisky Awards, where the gadfly, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, was a distinguished recipient. The award ceremony took place on June 11, and I departed Vienna on June 12 to London. I was in London on June 14, when I made a call to Nduka Obaigbena, an uncommon Publisher who had shown extraordinary knack for sniffing major news from a tender age. Nduka told me he’d been trying to locate me. I told him I was in London. His next statement shocked me to my bones and out of my wits: “Dele, it seems your man Abiola is going to win the election, but the military won’t hand over to him. You need to reach him urgently to talk to his friend IBB…” I thought “Nduka must be joking”. “How can someone win a Presidential election and he won’t be allowed to govern?” I soliloquised. I later discovered that Nduka passed the same message to Dr (Mrs) Doyinsola Abiola.

One thing led to another, but the effort to get Chief Abiola and President Babangida talking did not materialise. There were too many expert advisers, with all manner of suggestions. Babangida soon came up with an Interim Government, headed by Chief Ernest ‘Degunle Shonekan who lasted only three months before the Abacha coup sacked him. Abacha came on the pretence that he was going to redress the injustice by spending a short period, sack the Babangida boys in the military, and hand over to Abiola. That too was a charade, indeed, phantasmagoria!

On a personal note, I got caught up in the imbroglio. First, I was detained at Alagbon Detention centre. Whilst incarcerated, some people were busy abusing me, “what’s your own, are you Abiola’s biological son?” There were those who said my arrest was fake, that I was working for government. Such is the pain of fighting for social justice in our country. People regretfully sit in the comfort of their homes casting aspersions at those willing to make the necessary asacrifice.

Chief Abiola was arrested and detained in 1994. Prince Ademola Adeniji-Adele (of blessed memory) and I were vehemently opposed to Abiola being captured by Abacha. We felt that Abiola should disappear once more and fight from abroad. But some elders opined that he needed to be in Nigeria to defend his mandate. I will never forget the night Abiola was arrested. We had gone to Chief Wahab Dosunmu’s house in Surulere to bring Chief Abiola back home. We arranged a human shield at Abiola’s home so that it would be difficult to arrest him. Abiola’s family did all they could by arranging food and drinks for his huge crowd of supporters. As Abiola’s motorcade drove into his home in Moshood Abiola Crescent, we noticed about 600 police officers perching along Toyin Street. Everywhere was bustling.

Once he entered his bedroom, Chief Abiola said I should go home to freshen up because I had been part of some crazyqq11 operations for the past 48 hours with his Personal Assistant, Fred Enoh. Ironically, the crowd dispersed after eating free food. I returned later in the night to discover that the police had cordoned off the building. I went to a business centre, telephones were not common then, to call Chief Abiola. He told me not to worry and that I should go home. “I’ve been told they are coming to arrest me at 1.00am but I don’t think Sani (Abacha) can try it o…” Those were Abiola’s last words to me on earth. As soon as Abiola got arrested, he was taken to some terrible prison in the Northern part. He was able to smuggle a letter out in which he instructed Dr Abiola to ask me to visit him. I was on my way to Gashua, via Maiduguri and Damaturu, when we heard he’d been moved from the prison to another location. The crowd around his house began to thin out. Abiola spent about four years in solitary confinement and never came back alive.

Whilst doing my utmost to support Abiola during his incarceration, one day, I myself had to flee as, on July 22, 1995, my wife told me that I had to run for my dear life. I have told the story of my escape to London via Benin Republic, Togo and Ghana several times. I spent three years in harsh and difficult years in exile but did not relent in the struggle to see democracy return to Nigeria. Despite my significant suffering, some people were busy saying I ran away, bla, bla, bla. The lesson I learnt was that Nigerians are generally not ready to make any sacrifice for democracy, and those who are willing would always be discouraged by negative comments and abuse. My thesis is that this is why we have not been able to sustain any struggle.

Most Nigerian politicians cannot survive in opposition. When tomorrow comes, Atiku Abubakar, will see many grumblers saying they can’t die because of him. At the beginning of the Abacha government, a meeting was held in Abiola’s house. Abiola and loyalists were shocked, when politician after politician, started giving reasons, and excuses, why Abiola should let them join the Abacha Government. Chief Abiola had given me names of those who have decided to join the new government, prior to the meeting and so he was not disappointed when they did confirm they were leaving him. Nigeria is a very complicated society where most lives depend on government patronage. Chief Abiola used to say, “you can’t blame a hungry man for looking for food”.

I have witnessed enough of Nigeria’s trajectory and the future is still very bleak for opposition because elections in our country are usually a matter of winner-takes-all. The Jonathan concession now seems an aberration. It was partly for this reason that I enjoined Atiku to accept his lot and congratulate President Buhari. It is my view that Atiku would have demanded the same had he won. What would he have done if Buhari refused and tried to cling on to power? A sitting President has the power and might to do as he pleases. Atiku must demonstrate that he is the Statesman that some of us believe he is by being gracious. The other reason is the fact that no successful litigation has ever been achieved by any defeated Presidential candidate in Nigeria. The rigours and demands of an election petition make it practically impossible for such success.

The panacea for peace is for members of the Peace Council and other well-meaning Nigerians to do everything possible to bring Buhari and Atiku together, face to face. I accept that Atiku is not in the same position as Abiola because he has no mandate and therefore should not be making demands of the government. However, the example of Kenya should be adopted. While it is not possible within our Constitution to attempt the Kibaki/Odinga hybrid, as President and Prime Minister, it should be possible for Buhari to show uncommon magnanimity by tolerating and accommodating Atiku in some mutually acceptable manner. Buhari and Atiku can jointly appear in an interdenominational day of prayers and seek to unite our divided country.They should say the right things to affirm that the country is greater than both of them. No Nigerian henceforth should be oppressed or victimised on account of political affiliation, religion, ethnicity or gender. Nigerians should be treated as citizens of one indivisible country created by God.

No price is too heavy for peace.

Headline

GbajaGate: I’ve Done No Wrong, Govt Playing to Shut Me Up – Adeyemi Matthew Speaks from Hiding

Published

18 hours ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, the man alleged to have forged government appointment letters and falsely paraded himself as the Director-General of the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and Presidential Economic Advisory Council, has denied the allegations against him, claiming the Presidency is attempting to silence him.

Speaking with PREMIUM TIMES from an undisclosed location on Thursday, Adeyemi insisted he had done nothing wrong and described the government’s actions as a “defence mechanism.”

“You know the government we have. They are just playing a defence mechanism to shut me up. My organisation was set up in 2024,” he said.

Adeyemi declined to disclose his whereabouts, saying he had gone into hiding because his life was under threat.

“They are now after my life. I have gone into hiding. I’m underground,” he said.

When asked whether he had fled the country, he declined to respond directly.

“I will not be able to disclose any information now. I don’t consider myself safe,” he added.

The embattled suspect also declined to provide his alleged appointment letter or any document to support his claim that he was legitimately appointed, saying his lawyers had advised him not to discuss the matter publicly.

“I just decided to speak to you out of respect. My lawyers are working on something. Whatever they say, I will let you know,” he said.

The Presidency has accused Adeyemi of forging appointment letters and other official documents while falsely presenting himself as Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council, agencies it insists do not exist.

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said Adeyemi and two others have been charged before the Federal High Court on an eight-count charge bordering on forgery, impersonation and related offences.

According to the Presidency, concerns first emerged after the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission reported that another body appeared to be performing functions similar to its statutory responsibilities.

The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, subsequently petitioned the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force, alleging that forged appointment letters bearing fake signatures, official seals and reference numbers had been used to create the impression that the suspects were presidential appointees.

The Presidency said investigations revealed that Adeyemi and his associates allegedly operated from an office within the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja, held meetings with Nigerian and foreign officials and sought diplomatic support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for visa applications.

According to the Presidency, police arrested Adeyemi on October 27, 2025, after which searches conducted at his office and residence allegedly yielded forged government documents.

Investigators also alleged that financial intelligence uncovered 34 bank accounts linked to Adeyemi, including accounts allegedly opened in the names of purported government agencies.

The Presidency further claimed that Adeyemi used forged documents to open an account with the Central Bank of Nigeria in the name of the alleged agency, although investigators found that no public funds were paid into the account.

Onanuga also dismissed allegations that Gbajabiamila demanded money from Adeyemi, saying the accusations surfaced only after the suspect was granted police bail.

The case is scheduled to come up before the Federal High Court on July 27.

Headline

Court Dismisses Abejide’s Suit, Upholds Mark-led Leadership of ADC

Published

22 hours ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday affirmed Sen. David Mark’s leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

Justice Musa Liman, in a judgment, also dismissed the suit filed by Rep Leke Abejide challenging Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as national chairman and national secretary of the party for lacking merit.

Justice Liman upheld the preliminary objections filed by ADC, Chief Ralph Nwosu, Mark and Aregbesola which challenged Abejide’s suit.

The judge held that the court lacked the jurisdiction to dabble in the internal affairs of ADC, as the suit was non-justiciable.

He also held that Abejide lacked the legal right to have instituted the suit, having failed to show to the court that his rights had been violated in any way as a result of the emergence of Mark-led leadership.

He equally held that Abejide, who is a member of the House of Representatives, failed to explore the party’s internal mechanism for dispute resolution.

Justice Liman also resolved the three issues in the substantive suit in favour of the defendants.

On whether Mark, the former Senate president and Aregbesola, who was the former Governor of Osun, emerged as leaders of the party in compliance with the enabling laws, the judge resolved this against Abejide, the plaintiff in the suit.

He held that the handing over of the leadership of the party by Nwosu to Mark did not violate the provisions of the party’s constitution.

The judge agreed that the disputed July 2, 2025, meeting of the party was a stakeholder meeting which preceded the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on July 29, 2025, which produced Mark and Aregbesola as the party’s leaders and was monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Justice Liman, therefore, declared that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola as leaders of ADC was valid and in accordance with the constitution, the Electoral Act, 2026 and the party’s law.

The judge consequently awarded a fine of N2 million each in favour of all the defendants which shall be paid by Abejide.

He also awarded a N10 million fine against Abejide’s lawyer in compliance with the Electoral Act, 2026.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Abejide had instituted the suit to stop the Mark-led leadership of ADC.

In the originating summons, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1637/2025, filed on Feb. 15 by Idris, the lawmaker sued ADC, Ralph Nwosu, Mark, Aregbesola and INEC as 1st to 5th defendants respectively.

NAN reports that Nwosu was the former national chairman of ADC who stepped down for Mark, the ex-Senate president.

Abejide, among the eight reliefs, sought an order nullifying Nwosu’s handover or transfer of ADC’s leadership to Mark and Aregbesola as interim national chairman and interim national secretary respectively on July 2, 2025, at Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre, Abuja, for being illegal, unlawful, null and void.

He sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining Mark and Aregbesola from parading themselves as leaders of the party “as their purported appointment, selection or election was unlawful, illegal, null and void.”

He also sought perpetual injunction restraining INEC from recognising Mark and Aregbesola as ADC’s interim national chairman and interim national secretary.

He alleged that their appointment, selection or election did not meet the requirements of Section 82 of the Electoral Act, 2022, among other prayers.

NAN

Headline

Alleged N27.4bn Scandal: Presidency Exonerates Gbajabiamila, Says Adeyemi Matthew is a ‘Con Artist’

Published

1 day ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

The Presidency has volunteered details on how a certain Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, allegedly built an elaborate web of forged documents, fake government appointments and fictitious agencies to deceive public officials and present himself as a senior presidential appointee under the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

The Presidency, in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described Adeyemi as “a con artist” who allegedly used forged appointment letters bearing the name of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to create and operate a non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, later referred to as the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

According to the statement, the alleged scam was uncovered after officials of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council raised concerns that another purported government agency appeared to be operating alongside it.

The Office of the Chief of Staff subsequently alerted security agencies, accusing unnamed individuals of forging official appointment letters purportedly issued from his office.

“The attention of this office has been drawn to the activities of certain individuals and groups engaged in the forgery of official appointment letters purportedly issued from my office,” Gbajabiamila said in a petition dated October 17.

“The fake documents, bearing falsified signatures, reference/folio numbers, and seals, have been used to claim leadership appointments to non-existent entities, with particular reference to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.”

The Chief of Staff disclosed that Adeyemi had allegedly established an office at the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja, where he reportedly hosted meetings with Nigerians and foreign nationals while presenting himself as the Director-General of the fictitious agency.

According to the petition, the group even sought diplomatic support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate United States visas for its purported staff.

“The above development not only constitutes a serious criminal act but also undermines the integrity of the Presidency and the credibility of official government communication,” Gbajabiamila wrote.

“I therefore urge you to initiate a thorough investigation to identify and apprehend those involved and also to uncover the network facilitating the forgery.”

Foreign Affairs Ministry raises red flag

The statement revealed that concerns over Adeyemi’s activities had also reached the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs after he reportedly convened a meeting with ambassadors at the Wells Carlton Hotel and Apartments in Abuja on October 10, 2025, without the ministry’s knowledge.

In a letter dated October 15, 2025, signed by Ambassador Anderson Madubuike and addressed to the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Office of the Chief of Staff, the ministry sought clarification regarding the status of the purported agency.

“This act contravenes extant rules and regulations guiding diplomatic practices globally,” the ministry stated.

The enquiries triggered correspondence among the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff.

Responding to the enquiries, Gbajabiamila categorically denied appointing Adeyemi or recognising the agency.

“Prince Adeniyi Matthew, Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, is unknown to any office, nor do we have any dealings with the said council,” he wrote.

“My attention was drawn to a letter of this purported application, which is fake, and my office has instructed the police and other relevant security agencies to carry out investigations on the person and the entity he claims to represent.”

The Presidency stressed that the Chief of Staff could not have issued any appointment letter because appointments into government offices are the exclusive responsibility of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Police uncover alleged forgery network

Following the petition, the Police launched an investigation and arrested Adeyemi on October 27, 2025, at the Abuja office from where he allegedly operated the scheme.

Searches conducted at both his office and residence in Suleja reportedly yielded several documents and exhibits believed to be connected with the operation.

Investigators said Adeyemi claimed that one Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola assisted him in procuring the forged appointment letter.

However, police investigations established that Tanimola had died in a fire incident at Kachi Hotel in Abuja on October 22, 2025, five days before Adeyemi’s arrest.

According to the State House, investigators established that the agency Adeyemi claimed to head never existed, while the appointment letters and several official documents recovered during the investigation were allegedly forged.

Police also accused him of falsely presenting himself as a presidential appointee and fraudulently requesting a diplomatic note verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate visa applications for himself and members of his organisation.

Investigators further alleged that Adeyemi operated no fewer than 34 bank accounts, including nine accounts opened in the names of fictitious organisations, including the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and Public Private Partnership (FIPA-APP).

The investigation also found that he allegedly succeeded in opening a Central Bank of Nigeria account by misleading the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation using forged documents.

The Presidency, however, noted that investigators confirmed no government funds were ever paid into the account.

“The act of the suspect constitutes criminal forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence, thereby bringing the office of the Chief of Staff to the President and the Presidency to disrepute before the public and international community,” the police report stated.

Eight-count charge filed

Based on the outcome of the investigation, police filed an eight-count charge before the Federal High Court in Abuja against Adeyemi and two alleged accomplices on November 27, 2025.

The matter is scheduled for hearing on July 27.

According to the Presidency, Adeyemi, while on police bail, recently resurfaced with fresh claims that the Chief of Staff had genuinely appointed him as Director-General of the agency.

The statement noted that the claim directly contradicted the statement he voluntarily made to investigators during the police probe.

It said the renewed allegation prompted Gbajabiamila to issue another public disclaimer on June 8, reaffirming that Adeyemi was an impostor.

Presidency urges caution

The Presidency said Adeyemi had a history of alleged fraudulent misrepresentation, recalling that in 2016 he allegedly presented himself as President-General of the World Youth Organisation, claiming it was affiliated with the United Nations before the UN reportedly disowned the organisation.

Describing the case as that of “a con artist who appears to have built a web of false claims to deceive unsuspecting government officials and the public,” the Presidency urged politicians and members of the public to avoid drawing conclusions before the ongoing criminal trial is concluded.

It further advised that, since the matter is before the court, interested parties should allow the judicial process to determine the allegations against Adeyemi and his co-defendants.