Headline

Osinbajo: The Travails of a Sitting Vice President

Published

5 years ago

September 21, 2019

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

Much as Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, the pastor-Vice President and his team try to hide it, it is obvious, as observers have noted that this is not the best of times for the legal luminary, who was against all odds, chosen to be President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate in the run off to the 2015 Presidential election.

As presented to the average onlooker, things appeared to have gone down well as the rappour between the Vice President and his principal was classic, necessitating the Vice President to describe Buhari ‘like a father to him’. The President’s men have never hesitated to transmute power properly to the Vice president each time there is a reason for the President to be away from duty. In fact, between 2016 and 2017, Osinbajo assumed the exalted position of Acting President when Buhari was in and out of the hospital. This was for a whopping 150 days cumulatively. Within this period, Osinbajo took far reaching decisions that changed game plan, and surprisingly achieved results that endeared him in the hearts of not a few Nigerians.

Most of his far reaching policy decisions included ordering the Central Bank of Nigeria to pump in more foreign currency into the money market, thereby helping to douse the biting recession the country went into, albeit unnecessarily. Again, Osinbajo was instrumental in wielding the big stick leading to the sacking of the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Lawal Daura in August 2018; a man who hails from the same area as President Buhari. Daura’s men in hoods had invaded the National Assembly; an action that was intolerable to democratic principles. Many had believed that the super spy was untouchable. But Osinbajo did the unexpected though desirable. Daura was booted out of office and replaced by Mr. Matthew Seiyefa from the Niger Delta (South South) region. Mr. Seiyefa was unceremoniously removed and retired immediately Buhari stepped foot back into the country.

Not standing for injustice, he saw to the confirmation of Justice Walter Onnoghen as the Chief Justice of Nigeria after the retirement of his predecessor. It is worthy of note that every action taken then, save for the economic decision that took the country out of recession, has been revoked, or persons involved sacked, retired or both.

The actions of the Vice President have not only been thwarted, but stakeholders believed that it has turned around, many months after, to hunt the number two citizen.

Penultimate Tuesday, the nation woke to the news that the Osinbajo-led Economic Management Team, has been disbanded, and in its stead is the Prof Doyin Salami-led Economic Advisory Council with Prof. Charles Soludo, Bismark Rewane and others as members. This committee draws its mandate straight from the President and reports directly to him. Other members are Dr Mohammed Sagagi (vice-chairman); Prof Ode Ojowu; Dr Shehu Yahaya; Dr Iyabo Masha; and Dr Mohammed Adaya Salisu (secretary).

A presidential spokesperson, in defence, said the change was made to bring “a new energy to refocus government to revamp the economy”. However, in other quarters, it was said that the vice president was underperforming, and that necessitated the sudden hammer.

But before that could die down, Buhari followed it up with an order mandating the Vice President to desist from direct supervision of all agencies under him. All instruction must henceforth pass through the President. The VP was once more stripped of his oversight functions; two of the major constitutional functions he performs. The VP’s office however, denied the issue as false. The VP may just be saddled with the responsibility of chairing the National Economic Council (NEC).

Some of these agencies which Osinbajo oversees are the National Emergency Management Agency; the National Boundary Commission; the Border Communities Development Agency, NEMA and the Niger Delta Power Holding Company.

Presidential source, which craves anonymity confirmed to the Boss that there may be plans on the way to further strip the VP of some of his initiatives such as the Social Investment Programme which comprises the Trader Moni initiative, N-Power, school feeding programme.

“Why do you think the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development headed by Sadiya Umar, was created. Osinbajo’s welfare programmes will soon be fused into the ministry, and then, he will go back to the markets to distribute money again.

“I may not know what preempted the sudden attacks on the VP but I can say that it is capable of ending his stewardship in the Buhari administration,” the source said.

Unconfirmed reports have suggested however, that some prominent South West sons are being pencilled down to replace Osinbajo in the case of eventual resignation or impeachment.

However, facts emerging from various sources have not faulted intimidation of the VP as reason for the ‘witch hunt’. It hinted that the cabal in Aso Rock is bent on rubbishing Mr. Vice President for his decisions, and how he came about them. A source posited that one of such decision was the sacking of Daura. It said that the vice President had ‘blackmailed’ the cabal with resignation if he was not allowed to fire Daura. Recall that the resignation of the Vice President at the time (Buhari was away and terribly sick) would have created room for the then Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, to smell the Presidency, even in acting capacity. And that was one risk the cabal would never take. And so they gave in to Osinbajo’s demand, allowed him to fire Daura, and waited patiently for pay day.

The story of Onnoghen also added another twist to the problems bedeviling the VP. Another source had said that it was never in the agenda of the Buhari administration to appoint or confirm the ousted CJN, the recommendation of the Nigeria Judicial Council notwithstanding. That, according to the source, made the government swear him in on acting capacity even as he was the most senior Justice of the Supreme Court. Without much ado, Osinbajo as Acting President had forwarded Onnoghen’s name to the Senate for confirmation in February on the dot of the three months period allowed for acting, and swore him as substantive CJN a month later. This was an action the President refused to perform despite public clamour. The cabal took note, and waited.

It was obvious the VP was kept in the dark prior to the trial of Onnoghen, and his attempt to defend the President as not being aware was punctuated by the suspension handed down by the President himself even as the trial was yet to be concluded.

Buhari had justified his action, saying that “Although the allegations in the petition are grievous enough in themselves, the security agencies have since then traced other suspicious transactions running into millions of dollars to the CJN’s personal accounts, all undeclared or improperly declared as required by law.”

Quoting a source, The Punch wrote, “The VP underestimated the level of vindictiveness some of these people have towards him.

“They accused Osinbajo of sidelining them when he took critical decisions during Buhari’s medical leave. If you remember, there was a lot of drama surrounding the confirmation hearing of (Walter) Onoghen and the removal of Daura.

“They were also not happy about the issue of the presidential panel on recovery of public assets. Obono-Obla developed a life of his own in handling the assignment given to him. They thought the VP was supposed to have checked him.”

But the Vice President is still carrying on as if nothing happened. He boldly posted on his twitter account of how he chaired the meeting of the NEC on Wednesday. This is as most of his personal aides have been redeployed out of the Villa, to ministries and parastatals. It is believed there’s a grand design to make the VP irrelevant.

The Office of the Vice-President has however, insisted that governance was not affected in any way by Monday’s scrapping of the Economic Management Team by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Most respondents to The Boss opinion poll said nothing has gone wrong as the Vice President still performs his constitutional role. Some believe some people are trying to create a rift between the Vice-President and his principal.

The newly created EAC will advise the President on economic policy matters, including fiscal analysis, economic growth and a range of internal and global economic issues working with the relevant cabinet members and heads of monetary and fiscal agencies.

Again, it will have monthly technical sessions as well as scheduled quarterly meetings with the President. The Chairman may, however, request for unscheduled meetings if the need arises.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, has dismissed the controversy arising from the disbandment of Osinbajo’s team and many other issues as unnecessary, saying the presidency remains one. He hinted that the presidency has no plans to remove the Social Investment Programme from Osinbajo’s control.

“Nothing out of the ordinary is going on. Governance continues and the Presidency remains one. And this Presidency just wants to do what’s best for Nigeria,” he said.

He lambasted some Nigerians for trying to create another meaning to the issue on the ground and create enmity the President and the Vice-President.

But the Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere, believes Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo’s office has been rendered useless, impotent and irrelevant though it cautions against hasty decision.

“For now we will not jump into any premature conclusion that this is about 2023 alone. We will need to know if we will need more information to know whether it is political or whether there was abuse of office or process.

“But the barrage of the last 48 hours shows that there is something wrong. We will wait to have all the facts because we don’t want to say a Yoruba man is being attacked.

“They may have had a justifiable reason to do so. But we are taking note of every development and at the appropriate time, we will make our position known. But clearly, what has happened is that the VP’s office has been rendered impotent, useless and irrelevant,” the group said.

The Nigeria Vice President is empowered by the Constitution to participate in all cabinet meetings and, by statute, membership of the National Security Council, the National Defence Council, Federal Executive Council, and the Chairman of National Economic Council.

His other duties are as determined by the President. Going by how vice presidents are chosen in Nigeria, it is not surprising that most of them are not given juicy functions. They sit and wait upon the whims and caprices of Mr. President. The selection of the vice presidential running mates most of the time are by arrangement, with or without the presidential candidate’s express permission, and Osinbajo was no exception. His emergence was a product of the alliance of three parties the CPC, ACN, and ANPP with a minute fraction of APGA led former Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha.

Political watchers are of the opinion that if Buhari was in need of a vice president, it would definitely not be an Osibanjo. Many had believed that former President Goodluck Jonathan is the typical example of a badly treated vice president, but Osinbajo is fast overtaking the trend.

It must not be forgotten that only last month, Buhari had instructed that all ministerial authorities be channeled through his Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari, for approval just as issues concerning the Federal Executive Council were also instructed to go through the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha. Observers have questioned ‘wherein lies the vice president in all these.

Osinbajo, according to a respondent, may just have to make do with sharing tradermoni for now, attending condolence visits and enjoying the pleasures that come with being a VP while it lasts. And only God knows how soon it will last.

Headline

I’m Not Joining You in SDP, Lamido Tells El-Rufai

Published

24 hours ago

March 17, 2025

Eric

A former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, has rejected Malam Nasir El-Rufai’s call for opposition leaders to join the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

El-Rufai, who recently joined the SDP after dumping the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), appealed to opposition leaders in an interview with the BBC Hausa.

Although he did not mention Lamido’s name, the former Governor of Kaduna State invited key opposition figures, including Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi, and Rauf Aregbesola, to join the SDP.

Responding to El-Rufai’s call in a separate BBC Hausa interview on Sunday, Lamido described the former governor’s invitation as an insult, saying the PDP laid the foundation for El-Rufai’s political career.

“The party we formed, the PDP, is the one that gave birth to El-Rufai. You’re not enough to make us leave the PDP,” Lamido said.

He added: “He once said that there are no adults in Nigeria in politics, but now he is calling on us to join him in the SDP.”

Lamido also questioned El-Rufai’s motive for dumping the APC for the SDP and his leadership style.

“Leadership is done with patience and vision, and doing things for the peace of the followers and the country as a whole,” the PDP chieftain said.

Restating his loyalty to the PDP, Lamido said the opposition party has not done anything to warrant his defection.

“If I was going to leave the PDP, I would have done so in 2014 when the APC was formed,” he said.

Lamido also enjoined El-Rufai to put patriotism first instead of showing anger towards others.

He said: “What should be done is to put patriotism first, instead of showing anger towards someone.”

“The PDP has been working to rebuild its strength after losing the 2015 presidential election,” he concluded.

Headline

Siminalayi Fubara: A Governor in Limbo

Published

2 days ago

March 16, 2025

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

This is not the best of times for Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, as the political crises in the state is speedily threatening to drown his incumbency.

The governor, who had talked tough in the last 18 months when the friendship between him and his political godfather, who is the immediate past governor of the state, Nyesom Wike, unceremoniously collapsed. The two men have since been on each other’s jugular over the control of the state, both in party structure and administrative mechanism. While the governor is fighting with the weapon of his executive powers, Wike is remote-controling Martins Amaewhule and his 26 loyal lawmakers to his advantage as his own weapon of warfare in the infamous war of supremacy in the state.

Today, after 18 months of unpleasant ups and downs, the Wike camp has secured an upper hand with the verdict on February 27, 2025, of the Supreme Court, which practically gave Wike and his team judgment, leaving Governor Fubara in the cold of uncertainty, waving in limbo, eating a humble pie and offering the olive branch in the war of attrition. Of course, Wike and his gang has conscientiously rejected the peace deal.

“All Wike and the 27 lawmakers and their supporters want is the tag ‘former governor’ to be attached to Fubara’s name. Nothing short of that. They want him impeached, and are doing everything humanly possible to see it happen,” a source told The Boss.

On Friday, February 28, 2005, the Supreme Court on made landmark pronouncements that placed Governor Fubara on the receiving end, and giving Wike and his supporters victory in what seem to be a foreclosure in the game of throne that paralysed the political and administrative existence of the state since inauguration in 2023.

Speaking to The Punch, on the excitement exhibited by Wike on the pronouncements, the PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, said, “Wike and the House of Assembly members should manage their egos to ensure the people of Rivers State do not suffer. Wike was almost pushed out of politics by Governor Fubara; he was almost turned into a neophyte. This would have caused a ruckus in Abuja. His rejoicing is not out of bliss. He rejoiced because he has his life back home. That was the essence of Fubara’s fight—to not only demystify him but to render him homeless.

“Wike’s excitement about this judgment is understandable, as he was almost gone. Whatever Fubara has done is not alien to politics.”

The apex court judgment stopped the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Accountant-General of the Federation from releasing funds to the Rivers State Government until the Rivers House of Assembly is properly constituted in accordance with the 1999 Constitution.

It further affirmed the Martins Amaewhule-led Rivers House of Assembly members as valid members of the house, and Amaewhule, the authentic speaker.

The apex court, in a 62-page judgement on the case against the lawmaker (SC/CV/1174/2024) held that there was “no iota or shred of evidence” to support the claim that the lawmakers defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The pronouncements were made by a five-member panel of the Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision delivered by Justice Emmanuel Akomaye Agim, declared that no money should be released to the Rivers State Government until a lawful Appropriation Act is enacted in the state, thereby affirming the judgment of the Federal High Court that initially barred the state’s allocation of funds.

Earlier, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja, on October 24, 2024, had in a judgment issued an order barring the Central Bank of Nigeria from further disbursing monthly financial allocations to the Rivers State Government.

The trial judge, in her ruling, also stopped the Accountant-General of the Federation, Zenith Bank, and Access Bank, where the state holds accounts, from releasing funds to the government.

Justice Abdulmalik had declared that the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara’s receipt and use of the state’s monthly allocations since January 2024 constituted a violation of the constitution that cannot be permitted to continue.

Meanwhile, delivering judgment in the appeal brought before it by the 27 lawmakers, Justice Agim set aside the Court of Appeal judgment, which earlier nullified the Federal High Court judgment on grounds of lack of jurisdiction and restored the trial court’s decision.

He said, “The judgment of the Federal High Court is hereby affirmed.”

The apex court also declared, “The Rivers State allocation fund is to be seized until they purge themselves of all the shades of unconstitutionality.”

Meanwhile, recalling the Appeal Court judgment that lambasted Fubara for presenting the 2024 budget before the four Assembly members, Justice Akomaye described the governor’s actions as “bigamy.”

The apex court, in its judgment, agreed with the trial and appellate courts, which declared the presentation of the 2024 budget before 4 out of 31 members of the house as a nullity.

Not only did the court nullified all the structures that sustained Fubara’s administration, it lambasted the governor, thoroughly reducing him to a laughing among Wike and his followers, berating him for breaking down the Rivers State House of Assembly building as a way to stop the defected 27 lawmakers from sitting, thereby forcing them to sit outside to carry out their lawful activities.

The justices said it is a regular occurrence for those in executive power who feel threatened that their seat is being taken or is about to be impeached to resort to actions like demolishing buildings and other acts of bigamy.

The court held, that “Four members sitting as purported members of the House of Assembly in disobedience to the subsisting order of the court is a nullity.”

The court added that the legislature represents the fulcrum of the Assembly and must be protected at all costs.

Justice Agim ordered that the Clerk and Deputy Clerk, who were unlawfully redeployed out of the House of Assembly, be allowed to resume work alongside the House of Assembly workers.

The court even awarded N5 million court against Fubara, saying that his actions were ‘a joke taken too far’.

“The Supreme Court spoke as if it was reading a script written by FCT minister, Nyesom Wike. The arguments and conclusions did not in anyway take into consideration of the prayers of Gov Fubara. It sounded more like the judgment that validated the Tinubu election, and of course the resolutions of the peace brokered by Tinubu in 2024,” the source further said.

But while the Fubara camp are going cap in hand in search if peace, the Wike camp has been proving heady, rebuffing every approach towards settlement.

In a press conference with selected journalists, and media houses, Wike spoke with zeal and confidence, rebuking Fubara and his government, and supporting members of the assembly for locking out the governor when he came to present the budget in as much as they had earlier issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the governor to present the budget.

“Politics is not play. If he has done something to be impeached, let them impeach him. It’s not a criminal offence,” Wike had said as a matter of factly, suggesting the intention of the camp to impeach him.

Wike, appearing to be the spokesperson for the Amaewhule-led Assembly, also criticised Fubara for choosing to send a public letter rather than directly contacting the Assembly Speaker and his team by phone to arrange a private meeting.

He argued that the lawmakers were not Fubara’s subordinates and deserved to nbe treated with respect.

Fubara had, in his bid to seek peace, invited the lawmakers to a meeting on Monday, March 10, 2025, in a letter signed by the Secretary to the Rivers State Government, Tammy Danagogo.

Even the factional chairman of the APC in Rivers State, Tony Okocha, attacked Fubara, asking him to resign from office or be impeached.

But in a twist of events, the state boils again with threats from the Ijaw nationalities, to blow up oil installations should Fubara be impeached; a threat Wike dismissed as ‘rubbish, nonsence’.

While the impeachment the pro-Wike lawmakers, comprising majority of the assembly members, 27 in number, are seeking, is a tall order, taking into consideration a few variables not in their favour, Fubara is exploring every option to ensure that impeachment is never put on the table. As a result, putting aside the disgrace of being locked out of the assembly quarters, the governor has promised to re-present the budget in fulfillment of the Supreme Court order, choosing Wednesday March 19, 2025, or any other date in March, the lawmakers might choose.

The governor, in a letter dated March 13 and addressed to the Speaker, Martin Amaewhule, said his decision is in compliance with the Supreme Court judgment and in response to the lawmakers’ request for him to re-present the budget.

He recalled the bitter experience of visiting the Assembly Quarters with his entourage, where the lawmakers were temporarily sitting to present the budget, but he was denied access to the complex.

The letter read, “You may recall my failed visit to the Rivers State House of Assembly on Wednesday, 12th March 2025, for the presentation of the 2025 Rivers State Budget in compliance with the judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

“As you know, the planned presentation of the said budget could not take place because my entourage and I were locked out at the gate and denied entry into the premises despite the prior delivery of a soft copy of the notice to you following the failure of the Clerk to accept the hard copy from us.

“Recall further that before this unfortunate incident, the House issued a 48-hour ultimatum to present the 2025 budget even when we were yet to be served with the certified true copy of the judgment and accompanying enrolled orders.

“Therefore, we were simply complying with both the order of the Supreme Court and the request of the Rivers State House of Assembly when we came to present the 2025 budget on the 12th of March, 2025.

“The Supreme Court has directed that all arms of government should exercise their powers and perform their duties within the ambits of the Constitution and ordinary laws of our country, and this we must do to end the lingering stalemate and advance the progress of our state and the well-being of our people.

“No matter the depth of our differences, we believe the interests of the state and our people should take priority over political conflicts.

“Against this background, it is my pleasure to again notify you, Mr. Speaker, of my desire and intention to present the 2025 Budget to the Rivers State House of Assembly on Wednesday, 19th March 2025, by 11.00 a.m. or any other date within March 2025 that you may consider convenient.

“Thank you for the kind consideration of my request by the House, and please accept, Mr. Speaker, the assurance of my highest regards.”

But the Martin Amaewhule-led House, has denied receipt of the governor’s letter, accusing him of frustrating the implementation of the Supreme Court’s judgment, especially the re-presentation of the budget.

According to the Chairman, House Committee on Information and spokesperson, Dr Enemi George, on Sunday, the House urged the public to pressure the governor to follow due process in presenting the 2025 Appropriation Bill, rather than attempting to gain public sympathy by portraying lawmakers as obstacles.

He challenged the governor to produce an acknowledged copy of the letter he claimed to have sent to the House.

He said in part, “Nothing can be farther from the truth. We want to state categorically that there is no such letter before the House of Assembly nor any of its staff.

“We challenge the governor and his aides to produce an acknowledgement copy of such a letter or any evidence that such a letter was sent or received by the House of Assembly. It is absolutely untrue and unfortunate. The general public must as a matter of importance ignore such claim.

“It is now very obvious that if at all there was such a letter, the intended recipient was not the legislature, but the public, and the clear intention was to play to the gallery, whip up public sentiment, demonize the House of Assembly and set the public against us. This is demeaning, denigrating and perilously unfortunate.”

So, while it is not clear if the lawmakers will honour the governor’s request, they are fighting tooth and nail to ensure that the Chief Judge of the state is removed. His removal will pave the way for smooth removal of Fubara as a replacement, planted by the lawmakers, will surely sanction any impeachment move.

They Chief Judge, Justice Simeon Amadi, has been accused by the House of age falsification, and directed the Department pf State Service (DSS) to investigate him.

From.every indication, it’s still a long walk to peace and resolution as the Wike camp continues to breathe fire down the neck of the executive governor, who as it appears, exists presently in a limbo.

The coming days however, will further unravel more matters

Headline

Bella Disu: The Rise and Rise of a Boardroom Guru

Published

1 week ago

March 9, 2025

Eric

By Eric Elezuo

Nigerian women have shown resilience, strength and character in administration, government and entrepreneurship, contributing more than their quota, and giving vent to the growth and development of the nation’s socio-economic sector. Among them is the Executive Vice Chairman of the A-list communications outfit, the Globacom Group, Mrs. Bella Disu.

A strong purpose-driven professional and boardroom guru, whose administrative skills, intellect, experience and academic trajectory have remained a subject of reference, Bella, as she is fondly called, is a woman, who though has a privileged background, carved a niche for herself, climbing through ladders and cadres to get to where she presently is, and more importantly, can boast of the desired leverage and ability to defend her position.

Born Belinda Ajoke Adenuga, on May 29, 1986 to the duo of Emelia Adefolake Marquis, a Nigerian entrepreneur, and the global phenomenon, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr., Bella received her early education in Lagos, at the prestigious Corona School in Victoria Island before enrolling at Queen’s College for her secondary education. In 1998, she transferred to Vivian Fowler Memorial College for Girls, where she concluded her secondary education.

She proceeded to the University of Massachusetts, Boston, USA, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations, and later, a Master of Science degree in Leadership from the Northeastern University, also in Boston.

In 2004, Disu joined her father’s Globacom, and consistently rose through the ranks to become the Executive Vice Chairman of the company. She is also a non-executive director with the construction giant, Julius Berger Nigeria Plc.

In April 2010, Bella took a break to solemnize her romantic relationship with her heartthrob, Jameel Disu, a venture capitalist, and both formalized their union in a fairytale wedding that is still the talk of the town, almost 15 years after.

As phenomenal and weighty as her family name, Bella dropped, and picked up completely her husband’s name, signifying undying love and loyalty. That’s still the name she bears till date. Both are blessed three wonderful children.

In 2019, the French Government awarded Disu the Chevalier dans ‘l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in recognition of her efforts in promoting French culture.

In January, 2021, Abumet Nigeria Limited announced her appointment as Chairman of its Board of Directors. Abumet Nigeria Limited maintains worldwide partnerships with reputable manufactures and maintains a state-of-the-art production facility, located in FCT Abuja, fully equipped with cutting-edge machinery and technology.

Abumet is a subsidiary of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, and a leading solutions provider for the planning, processing and installation of aluminium and glass products, from single standard windows to sophisticated facades and large-scale design masterpieces. She replaced Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, upon his resignation from the board. Bella is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Management of Nigeria (MNIM) and the Institute of Directors of Nigeria (MIOD).

In addition to her French National Honour if Chevalier dans l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres (“CAL”), and currently the Executive Vice- Chairman of Globacom Limited, she is also the Chief Executive Officer of Cobblestone Properties & Estates Limited, and a Director on the Board of Mike Adenuga Centre.

In less than four years of her leadership, Abumet’s profits, according to Billionaire Africa, surged 307% in 2024, marking a major turnaround from losses in 2021.

The paper reported of her exploits as follows: “As a Non-Executive Director, she helped boost Julius Berger’s revenue to N566.2 billion, pushing it into Nigeria’s top 50 listed firms.

“At Abumet, Disu is driving innovation in façade technology, deploying unitized curtain walls for improved insulation and energy efficiency in Nigeria’s construction sector.

“Nigerian business executive Bella Disu has led Abumet Nigeria Limited, an innovative glass and aluminum manufacturing company, to record-breaking earnings, with profits quadrupling at the end of the 2024 fiscal year. Her leadership has not only steered the company back to profitability but has also reinforced the business acumen that runs deep in the Adenuga family.

“In a LinkedIn post, Disu, who has served as chairman of Abumet since 2021, shared the company’s turnaround: “Abumet is reaching new heights, and I’m excited to share our latest achievements. I am especially proud of the remarkable turnaround we’ve achieved—transforming from a loss in 2021 to delivering a 307 percent increase in profit in 2024.

“At just 38, Disu has earned her place among Africa’s top executives under 40, proving her ability to drive business success while steadily stepping into the legacy of her father, billionaire Mike Adenuga, who ranks among the continent’s wealthiest individuals with a fortune of $6.8 billion. She took over as chairman of Abumet’s Board of Directors in January 2021, succeeding Bamanga Tukur at a time when the company was struggling with steep losses.

“Since then, Disu has orchestrated one of the most impressive corporate recoveries in Nigeria’s manufacturing sector. Under her leadership, Abumet returned to profitability by the end of the 2022 fiscal year, bouncing back from the impact of COVID-19 and the financial challenges of 2021. The company sustained its profit in 2023 before posting a fourfold increase in 2024.

“Reflecting on this achievement, Disu credited the success to strong leadership and teamwork: “This success is the result of strategic leadership at the Board level, the dedication of our management team, and the collective effort of every Abumet employee.”

“Bella Disu expands Abumet’s market reach
As a 90-percent subsidiary of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, Abumet plays a key role in the construction giant’s success. Bella Disu, who also serves as a Non-Executive Director at Julius Berger, has played a ‘much more’ active role in driving growth in the building solutions sector. By the end of the 2024 fiscal year, Julius Berger’s revenue rose from N446.1 billion ($296.4 million) in 2023 to N566.2 billion ($376.2 million) in 2024.

“Profit after tax also increased from N12.74 billion ($8.5 million) to N14.97 billion ($10 million), boosting the company’s market capitalization on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to N202.1 billion ($134.3 million). This has placed Julius Berger among Nigeria’s top 50 publicly listed firms, ranking 35th on the NGX.

“Under Disu’s leadership, Abumet has strengthened its market position by expanding its sales and marketing efforts. The launch of its Lagos sales office has helped grow its market share for made-in-Nigeria window and door solutions, while its EVONIGGLASS insulated glass brand has gained wider recognition. Despite market challenges, the company has posted record-high revenue and profits, exceeding expectations.

Abumet deploys energy-efficient curtain walls

Looking ahead, Disu is focused on pushing innovation in advanced façade solutions, leading Abumet’s efforts in glass and aluminum manufacturing.

“Abumet is deploying unitized curtain walls that will completely envelop the façade, ensuring not just aesthetic excellence but also enhanced energy efficiency through modern insulation technologies,” she said.

With a strong record of turning businesses around and driving growth, Disu is cementing her leadership in Nigeria’s business world. Her influence now extends beyond construction, telecommunications, and real estate into the country’s broader manufacturing sector, where she continues to make a lasting impact.”

Bella’s trajectory in the world of enterprise is a clear case of the demystification of the proverbial a tree cannot make a forest’, as she has conscientiously turned tables around wherever she found herself, bring in new ideas, new innovations and structural discipline that completely overhauls a system for all the positive outcomes.

Hers, is a case of continuous rise in the business world, and the home front. She is a better definition of a virtuous woman, and at less than 40 in age, the sky holds no barrier to how much more Belinda Ajoke Olubunmi Disu nee Adenuga could achieve in the coming months.

Congratulations ma!