Headline

Pendulum: Why It Is Good to Be Fair to All

Published

7 years ago

December 28, 2019

Eric

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, please, let me start with my favourite passage in the Holy Bible, and, believe me, this I hold very dear to my heart:

“Then Peter came and said to Him, ‘Lord, how often shall my Brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.'”

Nothing in this world is greater than loving your fellow humans and possessing the heart of forgiveness. I have not read the Holy Koran as much as I have read the Holy Bible, but I’m almost certain most religions preach and teach forgiveness. I don’t see how you can claim to love God if you hate, detest and despise your fellow being, HIS creation. You will soon understand and appreciate the reasons for my sermon on this page today.

Of all the Nobel Prizes, my favourite is the one devoted to, and awarded, for Peace. As simple as it sounds because peace is a concept that we all aspire to achieve, yet, it must be one of the most difficult to obtain or attain. To qualify, you must have performed some extraordinarily difficult feats or be imbued with an equanimity of mind, strength of character or nerves of steel. The feats performed by those who win this prize are not usually easy or comfortable. Most of the time they involve great personal sacrifice on the part of the recipients. Take Nelson Mandela as example. Most people would fail the acid test that recipients are subjected to when confronted with situations that demand and warrant the need to forgive an enemy who has potentially injured you mortally. It would take God’s personal intervention for anyone to just shrug his shoulders and move on carelessly in that condition. However, there are some who do. And that is why they receive this most sought after of recognitions for courage and boldness. Has any of you found yourselves in such tough situations? I certainly have. And if you are true to yourself, you will admit that you have too. What did you do? That is the million-dollar question.

During the June 12, 1993, brouhaha, I was picked up one early morning by some top and tough police officers, led by then Assistant Commissioner of Police Ganiyu Dawodu, now of blessed memory. I had spent the previous day virtually at Chief Moshood Abiola’s residence. He had asked me to see him about 2.00pm that July afternoon and when I got there the whole place was swarming with human traffic, as Abiola’s house usually was. I waited till about 4.00am before he had a chance to see me. Once we finished our discussions and he gave me my assignment, I left for home. To cut a long story short, unknown to me, I was being trailed by these security operatives who waited for me to arrive home before pouncing on me.

They took me to Force Headquarters at Moloney Street, Lagos, and later dumped me at Alagbon detention camp, where I was briefly interrogated by a senior female cop, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mrs Lawal. It was such a harrowing experience for me, and I would have thought I would carry the bile and bitterness endlessly and forever. For over two decades, I never saw Dawodu and Lawal. Though, at the time, they tried to be as nice and pleasant as much as the dictates of their jobs permitted, I still couldn’t get them off my mind.

I bumped into Dawodu at the Virgin Atlantic lounge one evening, shortly before he died. I didn’t recognise him, but he recognised me, and he reintroduced himself. The great gentleman who rose through the ranks to become Deputy Inspector General of Police soon died after that brief encounter. In the case of Mrs Lawal, a successful Police Officer, our meeting after over two decades was too surreal to be true. Her grandson and my youngest son were attending the same school at Somerfield, Oxford, and she and her daughter brought their son to spend time with us. If I took a million guesses, I would never have guessed right, that this disarming lady was the one who had almost permanently scarred me, although I was spared this blight because God gave me the grace not only to forgive, but also to forget.

My second example was with the Abachas. I was forced into exile for three agonising years during the terrorising and oppressive hard-nosed rule of the maximum dictator, General Sani Abacha. Yet, it was during this period that God gave us the African wonder, Ovation International magazine. It is doubtful that Ovation would have been birthed or nurtured had Abacha not become God’s instrument to send me on a long arduous journey into exile. Before we could say Jack Robinson, the three years sped by and Abacha passed on whilst we grew in leaps and bounds. By the time we returned from exile, Ovation was already a household name. The meat of this story was how we featured the weddings of two of Abacha’s daughters, Zainab and Gumsu, despite the travails that we suffered under the iron fist of their father. And all hell broke loose after those stories!

Why should Ovation cover the weddings of those who practically sentenced Abiola to perpetual detention and his eventual death? Dele has sold out. Ovation must die. A classic case of outsiders weeping louder than the bereaved. Unknown to my traducers, I was only acting and practicing my religion as much as possible. That Edition not only sold out completely, it established us as thoroughbred professionals and we were respected more for detaching ourselves from the pettiness of using our media influence against our enemies.

This is the crux of the matter. I have had cause to thank President Muhammadu Buhari for his intervention in matters concerning two recent prominent detainees, retired Colonel Sambo Dasuki and former Presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore. Many wondered why I should ever thank Buhari, a dictator, who had earlier detained many people without proper trial and had pointedly refused to obey a plethora of court orders. But that is who I am. Whosoever cannot forgive is not my kind of person. I hold strongly to the tenet and belief that forgiveness is not just the path to salvation, it is salvation itself.

Many had described and painted Buhari in lurid colours. And as a result of his taciturnity, it is easy for anyone to reach untoward and unfavourable conclusions about him. In one fell swoop, he changed some of the negative impressions of him when he did the unthinkable by freeing those two, albeit speculations continue to whirr on the social media circuit as to the reasons for this volte-face. I agree that it seems more than coincidental that the release of these two enfant terrible, as far as the present junta considers them, could happen on the same day, Christmas Eve, when the American Ambassador, Mary Beth Leonard, presented her Letter of Credence to President Muhammadu Buhari. Others have suggested that it is in keeping with the spirit of Christmas, and to demonstrate that the President is not the religious bigot he is painted to be and does possess a Christmas spirit too. What seems remarkable, and lends credence to the American influence, is the fact that there is no nexus or similarities about their alleged roles, offences and length of confinement to warrant both being released at the same time. The only link appears to be that they were incarcerated without trial for lengthy periods notwithstanding strident calls for their release from the Bench which granted both of them bail on several diverse occasions. On my part however, I am simply elated by the gesture and what it symbolises or portends.

It is my hope that the release of the duo, detained under different economic and political circumstances, signals the beginning of greater adherence to the rule of law. This administration has made mountain top pronouncements about the fact that it considers the rule of law as a cornerstone of the government’s covenant to the people of Nigeria to bring good governance to them.

However, any discerning mind will be slow to give a pass mark to the Buhari administration on this score. Observance of the rule of law had become like anathema to the government until the release of Dasuki and Sowore. Both had faced the prospects of a lengthy period of detention for doing what they perceive to be nothing.

On Dasuki’s part, his defence to the numerous corruption and diversion charge he faces, is that his activities were all done, not just on the authority of the President, but on the basis of the security of the nation. His beef is that compelling him to say more about these matters will be to require him to breach the sacred oath he swore to defend the country. His claim is that a spook is no longer one if he must willy nilly divulge state secrets in order to save his own bacon. As a former soldier, he would be true to his principal and would not seek to undermine him in any way shape or form. I must confess that I am sympathetic to some of his defence. Rightly or wrongly, he believed that he was acting in the best interest of the administration for the good of the country. The problem in Nigeria, as is the case with most countries, is that officials pledge allegiance to the state but often owe allegiance to their principals, the individuals heading the state apparatus, who are responsible for their appointments. The truth is that for the most part, the interests, of the State and those of the individual head of a unitary government, are largely the same where those interests relate to the improvement of the state. Where those interests diverge is when the individual head and his cronies seek to perpetuate themselves in power, and for that reason begin to attack and decimate real and imagined enemies, like Dasuki.

I have written repeatedly and copiously that President Buhari needs to change his mien and do things in another way and await how God will transform Nigeria promptly and positively. No country can thrive in an atmosphere of chaos and confusion. This is why I hailed the President with the hope that we can encourage him to do much more.

Whilst Dasuki’s nightmare commenced from the standpoint of nationally injurious economic misdeeds, the same cannot be said about Sowore. He was ensnared because the government became suddenly jittery and nervous about his political utterances which were seen as being capable of bringing the government to its knees and forcing the government to capitulate. The mere use of the word ‘revolution’ by a social critic and activist without any form of military training or support base was as astonishing as it was tragic. The government and its handlers simply got its knickers in a twist because of this much dreaded word where despots are concerned. Notwithstanding what has gone before I will hesitate to label this Buhari government as such, but clearly there are those in the government that behave far worse than that.

The unlawful and unjust detention of these two gentlemen and many others, the gross disobedience of court orders, the crass impunity, the subjugation of the judiciary, the taming of the legislature, the muzzling of the press, the Gestapo tactics employed by certain government security agencies, all led us to conclude that this was an administration determined to turn democracy and all democratic norms on their heads. In one singular move and for any number of reasons, President Buhari turned the narrative around and behaved like the “Change” agent we all hoped he would be when he was first elected in 2015. We voted for fairness and justice back then in 2015.

We were on the brink, on the precipice of an abyss and we must not kid ourselves that releasing Dasuki and Sowore has suddenly changed our democratic fortunes, but it is a good start. It is not too late to return from the road leading to perdition and take our country back to the path of honour and glory by being fair and just to all.

This witting or unwitting act of President Buhari is ample reason and basis we must say no to all forms of division, oppression and intimidation. It is not too much to ask for…

Headline

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

Published

1 day 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

1 day 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.