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The Operation of Amotekun – A Security Outfit in Western Nigeria – To Be Or Not To Be

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6 years ago

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By Oluseun A. Mabogunje (Swanston House 72’ Set)

(It is not in the stars to hold our destiny, but in ourselves) The Chairman, Government College Ibadan Old Boys Association, Lagos Branch, Members of the Executive Committee, Ancient, Medieval and Modern Old Boys of our great old school I greet you all and thank you for agreeing to listen to me talk and therefore I won’t waste your time dwelling on too much pleasantries but move straight to the topic of the day.

I think the Chairman, who is also my classmate, has deliberately put me in a very difficult position by asking me to lead the discussion of a very topical subject matter which is certainly very contentious but possibly also trailblazing. It is even more difficult for me because I don’t think I have more information about Amotekun than most of us here today. What I know about this subject is what I have read in the papers, social media and heard on radio and television. I tried to do some research to see if I could find out more official statements on the purpose, thinking, formation and modus operandi proposed by the originators of Operation Amotekun beyond what we read in the papers. Not surprisingly I didn’t get much and if there is more, then those behind Amotekun are still keeping it very close to their chest as maybe they should at this point in time. I guess the reason why the Chairman got me involved in this is because he knows that I used to work in one of the security agencies in the country and maybe because of my experience in security I may have some insights and understanding of some issues as concerns national security. But I want to state very clearly that whatever I say here today are my personal thoughts and opinion. In sharing my thoughts and opinion on this very weighty and potentially ground breaking venture, my appeal would be for us all to objectively and dispassionately examine the subject matter and all its ramifications, devoid of sentiments, prejudices and unproven conspiracy theories. We must be prepared to scientifically interrogate some of our assumptions and myths about the nature of our country Nigeria and what Operation Amotekun can do and cannot do for South West Nigeria at this point in time when we are fast approaching the status of a fragile state. Fragility in this case refers to weak or failing structures and to situations where the social contract between the government and the governed is broken due to the state’s incapacity or unwillingness to deal with its basic functions, meet its obligations and responsibilities regarding service delivery, management of resources, rule of law, equitable access to power, security and safety of the populace and protection and promotion of citizen’s rights and freedom.

For the purpose of this discussion, I have divided this paper into two parts. The first part I titled, “How did we get here?” Which is just a summary of the build-up of some of the factors that led the governors of the south west to come together and decide to set up a regional security network code named “Operation Amotekun”. The second part of the paper will focus on the challenges and prospects that has been birthed by this decision which has led to the successful inauguration of Operation Amotekun on the 9th of January 2020. Again, I would like to remind the audience that what I am doing here is expressing my opinion and thoughts which I hope will engender a robust discussion where we can agree to disagree intelligently and without rancour.

So, how did we get here? I want to tell a small true story, a personal experience that made me know we were going to get here one day if certain critical and measurable steps were not taken when they ought to have been taken. Sometimes in 1992 I read a report that I still remember very vividly up till today because it triggered a fear for our country that has not left me up till today. The words of the report hit me very hard and I began to pray that our governments would heed the recommendations of that report with the urgency it deserves. To paraphrase that report it goes thus: “It has been observed that there is a growing number of young men between the ages of 9 and 21 years that can be found idling in the city centres of many of the major cities of the north. These young men are uneducated, unskilled and unschooled in any productive activity. They have been poorly socialised and can be easily instigated for mayhem and other unwholesome activities. This phenomenon should therefore be seen as a matter of national security as the devil is known to find work for idle hands. Recommendations. Government should immediately begin to invest in low skill, mass employment opportunities that can quickly train and absorb these teeming youths in gainful employment. Such opportunities include mass agriculture, solid mineral development, industrialization and major public works like railways, roads, etc. These are opportunities that do not require too much education and training and will be designed to be labour intensive. End of the report.

Since 1992, I have been hoping to see the implementation of these recommendations on a massive scale and with the urgency and seriousness they deserve. To date this has not happened to any appreciable level. Rather, the population of uneducated or poorly educated young Nigerians has continued to increase at an alarming rate and has spread all over Nigeria in varying degrees. So we have the militants in the South-South region, the area boys and omo-onile’s in the south west, the Bakassi boys in the south east and so many groups and gangs of uneducated, unskilled, idle, hungry, angry young men and women roaming all over Nigeria, watching and seeing the mismanagement of their future by their government and the complacent and decadent life style of their elites as they hop from one party to the other spraying money and consuming litres of champagne to earn them the record of being the highest consumers of champagne in the world and at the same time the world’s poverty capital. While the number of factories, farmlands, schools and other employment generating institutions continue to go southwards our churches and mosques increase in number daily. All of us here today passed through Government College Ibadan and we know the quality of education we received both in academics and character building. Has that quality been improved upon or is it worse than when we left the school? We all know the answers to these questions and if we remove our heads from the sands, connect the dots and follow the trajectory of my 1992 story should we be surprised about where we are today? It didn’t start yesterday. It didn’t start when Buhari came into power. It didn’t even start in 1999 when we resumed our democracy after many years of military rule. We are where we are today because of over 50 years of poor governance and failure to plan for the future. Because the haves have focussed on only themselves and their immediate family without a care in the world for the have-nots who have continued to multiply in poverty, suffering and smiling. The smiling was bound to come to an end one day when the suffering begins to manifest in anger, frustration and the type of hopelessness that leads to irrational and often violent actions.

To make the situation even worse is the fact that we have largely remained unconcerned about the goings on in the Maghreb and Sahel regions of Africa. Libya, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Sudan, Somalia and the Central African Republic. These countries have been in turmoil for the past 10 years or more. Most are fragile or failing states with weak governments and bands of heavily armed men roaming around in the large ungoverned spaces of North, West and Central Africa. Our borders are extremely porous and poorly manned, particularly our extensive northern borders, such that the movement of goods, people and animals is difficult to control. Movement of small arms and light weaponry is a major trade in this region with Nigeria probably the biggest market. As far back as 2005 under President Obasanjo, regional summits were sponsored by Nigeria to find solutions to stem the influx of arms into the country. As with many things done by our government words are often more than action and good initiatives are regularly poorly implemented and quickly made unsustainable often due to poor planning, incompetence and of course corruption. Between 2008 and 2011 under President Yaradua, the volume of small arms and weapons recovered from the Niger Delta militants before, during and after the amnesty program is said by some people to rival what was used to fight the Nigerian civil war. This can be said to be an indicator of the effectiveness of our maritime security along our extensive coastline and our capacity to deal with threats such as smuggling and piracy. Add to this again the increasing use of drugs and hard substances by our teeming and disenfranchised youths, children of both the rich and the poor and the picture gets even more desperate. There are also insinuations from some quarters that some foreign powers are sponsoring some of the hostile activities against the Nigerian state for their own agenda but this remains unconfirmed. There is much more to say about this situation, but to cut the matter short the resulting scenario of the picture that I am trying to paint is Boko Haram, ISWAP (Islamic State West African Province), Ethno-religious conflicts, Kidnappings, Cultism, Armed Robbery, Banditry, Piracy, Cattle Rustlings, Ritual killings, Thuggery, Yahoo-Yahoo boys and cybercrime, Area boys, Gangsterism, Secessionists, Ethnic Militias, Drug Abuse, Human Trafficking and high levels of prostitution.

Still more bad news as I ask the question, what is the capacity and capability of the Nigerian state as presently structured to deal with the clear and present danger facing us? I believe some statistics about Nigeria and educated estimates conjured by me will help to make my point.

• Population – 180 million conservatively

• Land Mass – 923,763 Km2

• Boundary Length – 4,900 Km

• Coast Line – 853 Km

• Staff Strength of Nigerian Police – 370,000 • Staff Strength of Nigerian Army – 156,000

• Staff Strength of Nigerian Navy – 20,000 Estimate • Staff Strength of Nigerian Airforce – 20,000 Estimate

• Staff Strength of the Nigerian Customs – 20,000 Estimate

• Staff Strength of Nigerian Immigration Service – 20,000 Estimate

• Staff Strength of National Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) – 30,000 Estimate

• Staff Strength of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) – 12,000 Estimate

• Staff Strength of Department of State Services (DSS) – 15,000 Estimate

• Number of Holding Facilities (Prisons) in Nigeria – 240

There are many more important data such as number of police stations, military barracks, military assets, border posts, holding capacity of prisons, etc. that can help complete the picture but I can assure you the picture is quite dismal no matter what government wants to say to the contrary. But these are just numbers which clearly shows the manpower and asset inadequacies. What about actual human capacity? How well resourced are our security agencies? What kind of training is provided for them to carry out their arduous duties? Are they well compensated for the type of work they do? Are they given the proper orientation and support to do their jobs well? Is the current security architecture fit for purpose? To explain further, National Security Architecture includes management, decision-making and oversight structures and institutions as well as national policies, strategies and plans. Many agencies and institutions contribute to national security management, so coordination of decision-making is important. The national security architecture is vital for ensuring security priorities accurately reflects citizen’s need not institutional interests.

At this point I want to quickly differentiate between National Security and Human Security. National security is the requirement to maintain the sovereignty and survival of the state through the use of economic power, diplomacy, intelligence gathering, power projection and political power. Security threats involve not only the conventional enemies such as other nation-states but also non-state actors such as terrorists, drug cartels, multi-national corporations and non-government organisations. Threats could also include natural disasters and severe environmental damage. Human security on the other hand is commonly understood as prioritising the security of people, especially their safety, welfare and well-being rather than that of the state. It gives primacy to human beings and their complex social and economic interactions. This distinction should not in any way make us undermine the importance of both National and Human security. Both are very important and must receive equal attention by responsible governments. The problem is that most authoritarian or totalitarian states often place national security above human security. Though Nigeria is neither of the above today, unfortunately the orientation of our security agencies remains a vestige of our colonial and military past where the colonial masters, state or regime are not very concerned with human security but in regime protection. A prime example of this orientation is how the Nigerian military disempowered the Nigerian police force and other civilian security agencies in order to eliminate their perceived threat to their hold on power. Ironically, during the same period, the military systematically weakened their own capacity and capabilities through coups and counter coups that led to the early deaths and retirements of many brilliant well-trained military officers still in their prime. The involvement of the military in politics was not only a major disservice to the nation but also to themselves as military discipline and professionalism was traded on the altar of power and filthy lucre. Unfortunately for us again our political class have conveniently adopted the same orientation of the military where the interest of those in power far outstrips the interest of the people they were voted in to serve and I don’t care whether it is PDP, APC, APGA or whatever, their orientation remain the same and the security agencies have had no choice but to play along as we all know that who pays the piper dictates the tune. It is speculated that at least 50,000 police men out of their 370,000 total staff strength are deployed to guard our political masters and their friends while 320,000 are left to guard the rest of us.

So, gentlemen to my mind this is where we are today. There is clear and present danger from a myriad of threats that were sown many years ago which we largely ignored and even watered and on the other hand, the capacity and capability of the state today to respond to these threats quickly and effectively is to say the least very suspect. And, of course not only the security agencies are challenged. Almost all our institutions in the federal, states of local governments have been weakened and become cesspools of corruption, mediocrity, incompetence and greed. Can we boast about our civil service, our educational, health and traditional institutions? Even the private sector is far from optimal. If the ebola or coronavirus enter this country today and we are not as lucky as we were the last time ebola came knocking how well do we think the state can respond effectively to this threat? Add to this the fact that our economy is seriously challenged and we no longer have the kind of money we used to throw around at every little problem which led us to believe we were very rich and will remain so for ever. And again, it is not only about President Buhari. Certainly, his performance and leadership style has been very disappointing and has definitely worsened an already precarious situation. His nepotistic appointments and insistence on populating the leadership of 13 out of the 16 security and defense agencies with people from the northern states and of the same religion has been extremely divisive, exclusive and contrary to the letter and spirit of the federal character principle as enshrined in Section 14 (3) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This more than anything to my mind has impacted negatively on the confidence that most southerners have in the sincerity of his government to protect the region and has led many to believe rightly or wrongly that the President has a different agenda for the people of the region other than what he professes. One often wonders what is actually discussed in the National Security Council meetings where there is an absence of southerners present to speak for the interest of the south. This is most definitely a very wrong signal and counter-productive to the unity of our country and ethno-religious harmony.

But, to be clear, these existential threats that are already upon us is not only against the north or the east or west, it is threatening the entire geographical space called Nigeria whether we are part of it or not. Yes, today, the north is the epicentre and main theatre of violent crimes but the rest of the country has its own share in varying degrees and cannot be insulated from the fallout of the northern situation and ensuing crisis. Just as the failed states of the Maghreb had serious impact on the peace and security of northern Nigeria, I assure you that the threatening collapse of Northern Nigeria will any which way have serious impact on the survival of the south and the consequences would be very dire for us all whether we remain a part of Nigeria or not. Please let us be wise and look towards facing these challenges that are already upon us united rather than divided. Finger pointing, blame gaming, stereotyping, profiling, broad generalizations, fake news and hate speeches at best allow us to vent our frustrations but these are just distractions that will not affect or reduce the gravity of the situation but rather exacerbate it.

Now to the second part of my paper if I have not already bored you and this is about the Challenges and Prospects of Operation Amotekun. According to Mr. Seye Oyeleye, the Director-General of the DAWN Commission (Development Agenda for Western Nigeria) said to be one of the initiators of the Amotekun idea, “Amotekun is not against the Fulanis, it is not against the Igbo, it is not against the Ijaw and it is not against anyone, except the criminal. Its primary duty is community policing, protecting lives and property of everyone that lives in this geographical space”. And what is community policing? It is a philosophy that promotes organisational strategies that support the systematic use of partnerships and problem-solving techniques to proactively address the immediate conditions that give rise to public safety issues such as crime, social disorder and fear of crime. The primary purpose for its inception was to have police engaging with communities to build strong relationships between its members and law enforcement. In today’s modern era this has evolved to incorporating social media and/or community engagement systems to share relevant local information with residents. In most places of the world, community policing is a strategy and initiative of the police and the police officers engaged for community policing “belong” to the community, they know the community, and they understand how their community works and “who is who” in relation to services and operations. The case of Amotekun is different. First off, it is not an initiative of the police. Secondly, as the name implies, it is a regional based security network. This I must say to the best of my knowledge is quite novel and introduces a few complexities to the equation, which I hope over time will be resolved in a way and manner that it will be able to achieve its purpose without further complicating the existing poorly articulated and poorly coordinated national security architecture.

Furthermore, I make bold to say our current national security architecture is very deficient because coordination is weak and there are very few policies guiding it, thereby resulting in most of our security agencies and institutions working in silos with conspicuous interagency rivalries. Policies are very important in the design of the security architecture as it gives direction to all agencies of government (not just security agencies) as to their roles and responsibilities in security matters and crime prevention. I know for sure that we currently don’t have any National policy on crime prevention, community policing and neighbourhood policing. We have a National Counter-Terrorism Strategy that was launched in April 2014 by President Goodluck Jonathan but I am not sure it has been adopted and put into effect. In the world today, particularly after the 9/11 attacks, the need for collaboration and cooperation between security agencies became mandatory. No one single agency can handle the type of threats that we face today. Information sharing, centralised data and technical resources and joint operations need to be promoted and encouraged. Unfortunately, there is no evidence that our security agencies are today working as collaboratively as they should. There is so much mutual suspicion amongst the agencies as they all struggle for pre-eminence and bigger budgets. I won’t say more about this but I mention it because, Amotekun cannot be expected to work in isolation and must therefore be able to fit into the troubled national security architecture. If we don’t get the fit right it could lead to conflict, ineffectiveness and inefficient use of resources thus defeating the purpose for which it was set up leaving the residents maybe worse off than they are today. It is noteworthy that it is only after all the fanfare of the inauguration of Amotekun that the legal framework is just about to start at the individual state legislature.

In considering the legal framework it is my hope that the following issues will be addressed and properly debated with wisdom and understanding:

• What is the modus operandi of Amotekun? – Intelligence gathering, armed/unarmed patrol duties, undercover operations, crime prevention, crime detection and investigation, powers of arrest, powers of prosecution??

• Rules of engagement with hostile forces such as terrorists, kidnappers, bandits, armed robbers, etc. – Will Amotekun be restricted to just being a first responder with limited role in response and intervention or will it have a Special Forces Operation Arm to engage with the hostile forces?

• The command and control structure – Regional and/or state based, Chain of Command?

• The funding arrangement – State by state or common purse? – Security is very expensive

• Interstate relationship – Rules of engagement, cross border issues, etc

• Interregional relationship – Rules of engagement, cross boundary operations, intelligence gathering, etc

• Interagency relationship – Police, DSS, Military, Prisons, Customs, Immigration, NDLEA, etc

• Management of interagency conflicts and resolution mechanisms

• Subordination of Amotekun to the Police under the Federal Government’s community policing framework?? How does this work out when there are conflicting interests?

• Power to carry arms – What type of arms? If no arms then what?

• Relationship with the judiciary and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution

• Setting up of offices, stations and posts in urban and rural areas

• What type of technology and infrastructural support will be required – Communication, armament, mobility, technical aids, etc

• Relationship with the community – Neighbourhood watch, community engagement strategy, security requires the participation of all members of the community and need to be organised, etc

• Recruitment policies – officers to be recruited from and for the community?

• Training, Capacity Building and Orientation, – To avoid replication of the existing police situation

• Salaries, Welfare and Compensations – Remember if you pay peanuts you will get monkeys

• Issues of sustainability and institutionalization of Amotekun beyond the current political actors

• Implication of Amotekun with regards to State Police, Restructuring and True Federalism

• Management of Political Interference and Abuse of Power

So, old boys and gentlemen, for me at this point I would say there are more questions than answers on the issue of the operational effectiveness of Operation Amotekun but it is my sincere hope that these issues will be quickly resolved so that Amotekun can swing into action to arrest the rapidly deteriorating security situation for our dear country and especially the south west region where most of us reside. We must keep at the back of our minds the demographics of Nigeria with a very youthful population. Surely, the young do not think like the old. There are definitely generation gap issues. The old should be careful about transferring their prejudices and biases to the young and extending the vicious cycle of distrust, mutual suspicions and hate. I make bold to say that the problem of Nigeria is not our ethno-religious divide much as many would like to believe. Our biggest problems are (1) Our leadership culture, (2) the greed and lack of conscience of our political class, (3) the apathy and self-indulgence of the elite and (4) the docility and long-suffering nature of the masses. This is a topic for another day.

On a final note, I must say that what excites me most about Operation Amotekun is not so much about its potential to wholesomely tackle the prevailing security threats but its propitiousness at this point in time. Propitious because it has the potential to force this country to have a conversation that we should have had long ago. I am sure that all of us here today will agree that Nigeria is not working. It is not working because we do not presently have a constitution of the people, by the people and for the people. We had one before that was the product of years of conversations and conferences that worked much better than what we have today. For Nigeria to have any hope of surviving as a nation and achieving its full potential, I believe very strongly that Nigeria must be restructured along the lines of fiscal federalism and decentralization of power to the states or regions as it were. To date it appears the powers that be are resisting any change to the existing order. But they can only resist for so long. Nothing can stop an idea whose time has come. I have a gut feeling that Amotekun is the first loud salvo in a series of events that could force all the various interest groups, ethnic nationalities and other stakeholders in the Nigerian project to the negotiating table from positions of strength for the purpose of having a frank, no holds barred, honest discussion with no No go areas in order for us to decide collectively how we want to live and work together in a just and peaceful nation that we can hand over to our children. If we miss this opportunity to have this discussion peacefully, then I fear for the future of this country. We must remember that No one will save us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.

Thank you for your attention

 

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Trump’s Envoy, Riley Moore: There’re over 600,000 Christians Languishing in Benue IDP Camps

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6 days ago

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December 13, 2025

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United States Congressman Riley Moore has alleged that more than 600,000 Christians are currently living in internally displaced persons’ camps across Benue State, following years of violent attacks that have forced communities from their homes.

In a post on X on Wednesday, Moore recounted testimonies he said were shared with him during a visit to several camps in the state.

The congressman said he met “dozens of Christians” who had survived deadly assaults and were now seeking refuge in makeshift shelters.

According to him, the displaced residents described “horrific violence” that wiped out families and emptied entire villages. Moore cited the account of a woman who, he said, “was forced to watch as they killed her husband and five children,” escaping with her unborn child.

Another woman, he added, told him her family “was murdered in front of her and her baby was ripped from her womb.”
He also referenced a survivor who claimed “his family was hacked to death in front of his eyes,” leaving him permanently injured.

Moore described the scale of displacement as alarming and accused “genocidal Fulani” of driving indigenous Christian communities from their ancestral lands. He said the situation demands heightened international attention.

“There are more than 600,000 Christians in IDP camps in Benue State alone.

“These Christians should be able to live in their ancestral homeland without fear of genocidal Fulani,” he said.

During his visit, Moore also met Tiv and Catholic leaders, including Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, Bishop Isaac Dugu, and Tiv traditional ruler, His Royal Highness James Ioruza. He said discussions centred on what he called an “ongoing genocidal campaign” in Benue.

The congressman noted that his trip to Nigeria included meetings with National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and other senior officials. He said the talks focused on terrorism in the North-East, the killings in the Middle Belt, and security priorities he shares with President Donald Trump.

Moore added that both sides reviewed possible steps to improve security cooperation, pointing to what he described as an already established joint Nigeria–US task force as a sign of progress. But he emphasised that “openness has to translate to concrete action,” insisting there is still significant work to be done.

Ribadu confirmed meeting the US delegation, noting that the discussions followed earlier engagements in Washington and covered counter-terrorism, regional stability, and efforts to strengthen the strategic partnership between both countries.

President Donald Trump had on November 30 redesignated Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern over alleged religious freedom violations, while warning of possible US military intervention.

The Nigerian government has repeatedly rejected claims of systemic persecution of Christians, arguing that insecurity affects Nigerians of all faiths and ethnic groups.

Moore, meanwhile, commended recent security operations, including the rescue of more than 100 abducted Catholic schoolchildren, and said US concerns had been “positively received” in Abuja.

He maintained that the experiences shared by displaced communities “will not be ignored,” and vowed to brief the White House as ordered by President Trump.

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There’s No Govt in Nigeria, Tinubu is the Person in Power – Dele Momodu

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6 days ago

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December 13, 2025

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Media entrepreneur and former presidential aspirant, Chief Dele Momodu, in this interview by SAM NWAOKO, does a thorough examination of the Nigerian polity and comes to the conclusion that the country is on the cusp of a one-man rule.

Some people have said that the issue involving Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu and the governor of Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, was a convivial episode between two former colleagues in the Senate. Do you agree with this contention by some observers of the matter?

You know that spin doctors will spin anything no matter how unreasonable it is. Everybody, including Mrs Tinubu, acknowledged that what happened was wrong. Whether she now apologised or not, I am not aware, but she herself said it was a minor misstep and that we should not escalate it. So let us not debate what is not debatable.

When my favourite writer, Uncle Dare Babarinsa, said that the video of the incident in Ile-Ife was AI-generated on Facebook, I replied to him and said it was not. I gave them the original video that was shot by Ovation TV and said: “This is an original video that was shot by Ovation TV and not AI-generated, Sir. The governor was clearly disrupted and momentarily lost composure.”

The whole saga looks like it is not going away. What would you advise the First Lady to do at a time like this?

It is not going away because we are all prone to mistakes – nobody is perfect, I am not perfect, the First Lady is not perfect and when we are wrong either knowingly or unknowingly, we should just apologise. That is all. The thing would have gone down immediately. However, the thing is that her spin doctors are busy trying to window-dress the incident which is ordinarily a scandal because you embarrassed Governor Adeleke in his own state because you momentarily got him confused. If you look at the video, you will see that she disrupted him and the governor was momentarily confused. The governor was flustered because he was not expecting such an intrusion during his speech. Even if you were in a hurry to leave the palace and all that, you could have sent someone or just asked someone to write something on a small paper that ‘We are running late, please hurry up’. It is not that you will now stand up on your own. The First Lady stood up, and we saw her conversing with the Ooni of Ife before then, reporting that ‘I want to go and tell this man to stop singing’.

However, I know the reason she is angry, because she used to enjoy his singing and music when they used to dance together in Osogbo and all that. I have video evidence of that. She is angry because the governor refused to join the All Progressives Congress (APC). You know, APC has this entitlement syndrome afflicting it. APC believes that every governor should be in APC. The only thing that will give them joy and comfort is for every governor in Nigeria whether from the North, or from the East or from the West – wherever – should join APC. Then Tinubu can become an emperor in word and indeed. That is what they seek to do. They succeeded in Lagos and they wish to succeed at the national level. That is what is going on. Anybody who does not join them is considered an enemy.

Don’t you think that he has succeeded in doing that in many other places too because we only have one governor of PDP left in the South, so to say?

To me, this does not matter. Some people will choose to be voluntary slaves while some people will choose to act like freeborn. Everybody has a choice, that is what democracy is all about. Some people are coerced; some people are cajoled. When they get there, I hope they get whatever they are looking for.

Could this thinking be the reason Governor Ademola Adeleke did not go to APC but chose to go to Accord instead?

They tried to woo him into APC but he decided that he would rather leave his fate in the hand of God instead the hand of man. He didn’t get to where he is today by himself, it is God that made it possible. In his first attempt, he claimed that they stole his votes. He went away quietly. He didn’t destroy Nigeria, he didn’t destroy anything. He didn’t even fight Tinubu. He went away and he came back stronger. In fact, this Mrs. Tinubu incident has played to his favour because he has been trending since Sunday. Governor Adeleke has been trending because of this “little mishap” according to Mrs. Tinubu. And, can you imagine that it coincided with the time he was joining his new political party, Accord. Everything in life works perfectly once God has a hand in it. I see Governor Adeleke as a very lucky man and that is why he is always singing. He said nobody can stop him from singing and praising his God.

Now that the PDP has all its flanks broken, what would you advise the party as an observer, when you remember what it used to be in the Peoples Democratic Party?

I left the party much earlier because we already saw where it was headed. It is not the fault of the party, it is the fault of the fifth columnists within the party who sought to keep the party in ICU and hope to switch off the ICU machine and kill the party if it is no longer useful to them, or keep it alive in the ICU until the day they will need the party. So, what those people have been doing is to gradually kill the party on behalf of Tinubu, because it is Tinubu that has that kind of power. It is not people like Nyesome Wike that are wielding that kind of power.

From your thinking, you seem to agree with Nigerians who are of the opinion that the problem with PDP and the other opposition political parties is the handiwork of the government, Tinubu himself and his people?

There is no government in power. Tinubu is the person in power, no other person is in power. Tinubu does not share power with anybody. I had predicted in 2022 that if he gets power we have a potential dictator in our hands. This was in October 2022, I said it on a TV programme and it has come to pass. When I speak, people would react and abuse me but I don’t mind. My body is that of a porcupine, nothing worries me that much, I don’t even bother. I saw this because I was trained in Ife on how to conduct research and I am conversant with how to go about postulations, permutations and all that. I might not be able to use it effectively for myself to win elections because I don’t have the resources, but I can tell you what will happen in 2027 and give you different scenarios.

So that is what is going on right now. Tinubu is a one-man mafia and all the other people under him are afraid because of that. Paulo Freire, a Brazilian author, wrote “The Pedagogy of the Oppressed,” in which he contends that the oppressed man respects and loves only one man: his oppressor. So, it is a theory in political psychology. So, all the people you see rushing to Tinubu are doing so out of fear in advance. Tinubu does not even need to tell them that if you don’t join me something is going to happen to you because of the reputation of Tinubu as a one-man mafia. So nobody wants to cross the line and even dare to try. So, it is in the nature of the oppressed to be fearful in the presence or in front of the oppressor. The oppressor does not need to say anything, just his eye-look alone is enough to scare them, so they are all scared and you know that the average Nigerian does not joke with power, position and wealth.

So, this second term nonsense is as if, if you don’t have a second term, you will die. That is the attitude of an average politician. But Donald Trump was defeated by Joe Biden. He went away. Is he not back today? President John Mahama was defeated by Nana Akufo-Addo in Ghana. Is he not back today? So, I don’t know why people are so desperate. If Tinubu will not allow you to come back, for as long as you have life there is hope. You can go away and come back later.

So, the fear of a one-party Nigeria is real – the fear that Nigeria is drifting into a one-party state is not unfounded?

We are not drifting, we are there already. The situation in which the entire South-South has been captured by one man… and a lot of them who didn’t even need to go there are running into the APC. Look at Akwa Ibom State. Akwa Ibom has no business in APC, Akwa Ibom is a traditional PDP state. It can survive on its own, it does not even need the Federal Government. Akwa Ibom is so blessed with resources that every governor of the state has always been considered very important in Nigeria. But when you have a man who was brought in by PDP and he ran away from the PDP even by the second year… What is chasing him? And now he is saying that only APC people can get jobs in Akwa Ibom, it is unprecedented. History is awaiting all of us. Was it APC that worked for him to become governor? If he wanted to give everything to APC, then he should have waited for APC to vote him for a second term then he can transfer everything to APC. But for, what he is enjoying is from PDP, it is not from APC, so why are you now shutting out those who brought you to power? And he is a pastor, he knows that God will judge him. I know it is his democratic right to go wherever he chooses but he cannot use what you have gained from someone else to give to another person.

Look at my home state, Edo State. There, if you are not a member of APC, you are declared a persona non grata. That is not right. The governor is free to choose his friends and so on, at least there the APC brought him to power unlike Akwa Ibom, where PDP brought him to power and suddenly you want to kill PDP in your state. I think that is ungodly.

The contention out there is that you are for Atiku Abubakar and not for any political party, including the ADC. How true is this and can you throw light on this assumption sir?

I have always chosen candidates that I admire and believe can deliver. I am not one of those who would do otherwise because of some parochial considerations. I have been very fortunate because God brought me from different backgrounds, my father came from Edo State while my mother came from Osun State. So I am very detribalised and I am a full Nigerian. I fought the military alongside other people for Nigeria to remain one. So, I would not allow any politician to brainwash me into seeing any Nigerian as my enemy. This is a ploy by some politicians to use us, and use divide and rule to continue to dominate the country and dominate our life, I am not involved in it. If I like you, I like you. I see Atiku as a shining star and I saw it from 1993 when he stepped down for Chief Abiola at the SDP convention, I have always admired him since then in 1993, it is not because of today. To me, whether he becomes president or not is not the issue, if I wanted a president as my friend then I would have chosen Bola Tinubu because I am one million times closer to him than to Atiku. But I am a principled man, I have chosen to support Atiku. If you don’t like him, support your own candidate. I cannot force anybody to support Atiku. There are democratic traits which I see in him, he is a thorough democrat, a man who will never promote thuggery, a man who had been Vice President and delivered outstandingly and spectacularly. When he was the Vice President, he was able to assemble some of the brightest stars in Nigeria wherever they came from. He did not populate his office with Fulani or Hausa or any tribe in particular. A man who left governance in 2007 and till today he is successful as a businessman investing in education, in agriculture, in health and so on and so forth. If every politician has a job or a business like Atiku, we will not be where we are as a country today. An average Nigerian politician has no job, has no business, and has nothing doing other than to feed on the government. That is part of my admiration for Atiku. Atiku has been able to elevate and upgrade himself intellectually by going back to school as a student. He has been able to maintain and carry himself gracefully at his age. So, Atiku’s experience is not something that we can throw away and he is one of those people who have contributed to the growth and development of Nigeria. So, why should I not express my support for him if he chooses to run?

Is he going to run in 2027 or is he going to back a candidate?

Definitely, he will run if he gets the ticket of the party. If he doesn’t get the ticket of the party then he will have to join someone else and support the person. He has always been a very forthright person and he was the first person to bring Peter Obi on the national platform, but people forget that.

But the ADC seems to have been largely quiet. It might be strategic, but the party is seeing the onslaught on the PDP and has been quiet. What would you say has been happening in the ADC and what should Nigerians expect in the near future?

ADC has not been quiet. They are working from state to state. Even in Edo State where the governor did not expect any opposition, we have worked hard in Edo State and we are gaining ground. In Adamawa, and I saw how people from different walks of life are joining ADC. Recently, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar went to Jalingo to launch ADC with them there. So, we are working and I am sure a lot of people who are leaving PDP now to join APC, when they finally get frustrated by especially Tinubu, they will come over to ADC. ADC is the only national platform that is available and it offers Nigerians better and credible options.

So what would be your advice to Nigerians considering the changing political landscape of the country?

They must resist a one-party dictatorship in the country and they must resist Tinubu. Tinubu’s ambition to have Nigeria entirely to himself the same way he has Lagos should not be allowed. I assure Nigerians that if he is allowed to get away with it then we shall all end up in servitude.

But he is said to be managing the economy better, and that the security situation is improving under his administration. Don’t you see these?

When people love you they will love you blindly; that is what is happening with those saying that Tinubu is performing and that the economy has improved. The situation in Nigeria now is far worse. What we have seen are statistics; statistics that do not have effect on the people or reflect in their standard of living. We have removed the petroleum subsidy which has thrown most homes in Nigeria into the worst poverty, yet we are not seeing what they have done with the money and they said the economy is improving. They should come out and tell us what they are doing with the money. Now, we have incurred unprecedented debts globally and we are still acquiring more almost on a daily basis. What exactly are we doing with the money? So, those who are talking about the economy improving don’t know what they are saying, they are just talking for the sake of talking or because, maybe they hope they will also benefit from the largesse of the government.

Culled from The Trubune

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2027: Nigeria Sliding into ‘Fanatical Governance’, Momodu Blasts APC, Submissive Legislature and Weak Opposition

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6 days ago

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December 12, 2025

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By Eagle Radio

Journalist and politician Aare Dele Momodu has raised alarm over what he calls Nigeria’s drift into “a fanatical, unrestrained form of governance” where oversight institutions have become subordinate to the executive.

Momodu made the remarks during an exclusive interview on Frontline, a current afairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM Ilese, Ijebu, on Wednesday, where he discussed national security, the wave of defections to the APC, internal party crises and the build-up to the 2027 elections.

Momodu reviewed recent political events including the Senate’s swift approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s request to deploy Nigerian troops to Benin Republic, the removal of police escorts from some VIPs, the widespread collapse of opposition structures and the ongoing tug-of-war within the PDP and Labour Party.
Momodu said the chamber’s unanimous and speedy approval of the president’s request did not surprise him, arguing that the National Assembly now operates as an extension of the presidency.

“There is no request President Bola Ahmed Tinubu sends to the National Assembly that they will not promptly approve. Even if it goes against national interest, they will approve it. Nigeria is virtually running a fanatical government the way we operate today. Checks and balances are gone. “I wasn’t expecting anything new from the Senate. They are not confrontational to a ruler. Some people are coerced, some cajoled, and some just cannot place the interests of the country above their own personal interests.”

He noted that while some Nigerians worry that the military is overstretched due to internal security operations, he disagrees.

“Our military is not overstretched. I’ve seen them in action in different countries from Liberia to Zimbabwe. We have some of the best officers on the continent. What is troubling is the politicisation of their work at home. That is the real danger.”

Gale of Defections: ‘Opposition is in the ICU’

Speaking on the wave of defections that has hit opposition parties, including the high-profile defection of Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara to the APC, Momodu said the ruling party has strategically crippled rival platforms.

“I cannot blame all the people defecting. Some of them did not leave voluntarily. They were coerced. The ruling party made sure the PDP was crippled, tied down and kept in the ICU. The Labour Party is battling factions everywhere. The opposition has never been this weak.”

According to him, this systematic collapse is part of a grand strategy for the 2027 elections.

“The plan is simple: keep the opposition in a permanent coma. If the PDP or Labour tries to rise, another crisis will erupt. You can see the pattern.”

“I Am ADC Not Official Yet”

Momodu confirmed that although he has not completed his formal registration, he now aligns politically with the ADC.

“Yes, I am ADC. Not officially yet, but I am with the party. I still need to go to my village to register formally. But politically, that is where I am standing now.”

He explained that the current political reality makes the APC the most dominant platform heading into 2027.

ADC’s Internal Strength and Why He Believes APC Will Lose Members Soon

Responding to a caller who asked whether the African Democratic Congress (ADC) is facing internal crises similar to the PDP and Labour Party, Momodu disagreed.

ADC is growing stronger every day. Some of the most seasoned politicians in Nigeria are part of it. Once it becomes obvious that there are no more appointments in government, you will see politicians leaving the ruling party in droves.”

“The interest of the president now is all about him. We are frustrated because this is not the democracy we envisaged. Leaders are too focused on their image and position rather than serving the nation.”

He suggested that the defections into APC are largely transactional and may reverse as soon as people realise appointments are limited.

Insecurity: ‘Our Military Can End Banditry If Allowed to Work’

On Nigeria’s worsening security situation, Momodu insisted that political interests, not military weakness, hinder progress.

“The Nigerian military can end this insecurity in months if allowed. They know where the bandits are. We have videos of bandits riding on motorcycles in convoys. Why can’t they be stopped?”

He referenced Nigeria’s successful peacekeeping records abroad.

“In Liberia, our soldiers controlled 10 of the 15 regions under ECOMOG. They were called the backbone of the mission. How can the same military now be helpless at home? Something is wrong.”

“Everything is politically motivated. Our army can enter forests, flush out bandits, and achieve results in days or weeks. I’ve seen them operate in Sierra Leone and Liberia. The challenge at home is politics, not military weakness.”

He accused government officials of playing politics with national security.

Ambassadorial List, Global Perception and the President’s Legacy

On questions about President Tinubu’s international reputation, especially following debates over the ambassadorial list and restructuring of foreign missions, Momodu said he is not convinced the president prioritises global perception.

“I don’t know if the president cares about perception or legacy right now. The focus seems to be proving political strength, not building institutions. But the world is watching.”

He expressed concern that Nigeria’s diplomatic system is losing credibility due to political interference.

‘Politicians Have Abandoned Service for Personal Luxury’
Momodu criticised political elites for living extravagantly while ordinary citizens struggle.

“Politicians behave as if they are in a permanent entertainment state. Someone who had nothing yesterday suddenly flies jets and lives in luxury. People will naturally ask questions.”

He said Nigerians feel deeply betrayed by leaders who appear disconnected from the reality of poverty.

“People are bitter because leaders are not serving them. They lord over them. When citizens are hungry and insecure, leaders shouldn’t be gallivanting everywhere.”

‘Silence from Leaders Is Killing Democracy’
Momodu noted that prominent elders who once spoke boldly now remain silent due to fear or personal interest.

“During Obasanjo’s time, Yoruba leaders criticised him. They were not afraid to speak truth to power. Today, many people are too scared or too benefitted to say anything. That silence is dangerous.”

He warned that history will judge those who fail to speak up.

“Tomorrow will come. What will we say we stood for? This is not the democracy we fought for.”

A Call for Courage and National Renewal
Momodu urged citizens, elites and opposition politicians to find the courage to rebuild democratic values.

“Nigeria needs courage right now. Courage to criticise. Courage to correct. Courage to rebuild institutions. If we lose that courage, we will lose our democracy.”

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