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Opinion: Unraveling The Puzzles Of Earthly Life (2)- Aare Kola Oyefeso

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By Aare Kola Oyefeso

We are continuing with the topic of last week and thereafter, we will elevate this discourse to; MAN BEYOND THE STHETOSCOPE AND SURGEON’S SCALPEL.

Before proceeding, i wish to acknowledge some of the readers who reminisced over the matter of Abiku/Ogbanje and were very assertive about having experienced the incident.

One of Nigeria’s fiery writers and prolific social commentators-Akogun Tola Adeniyi who is not given to frivolities confirmed having witnessed it in Ago Iwoye. He has challenged any doubting Thomas to come to Ago Iwoye to verify his claim.

On the same subject a Finance Guru-Hon Semiu Oganla FCA, wrote that the Abiku incident actually happened within his family in Abeokuta. Kudos to all others that responded to confirm Ogbanje/Abiku is real.

I offer apologies for inability to mention them all while  I have no issues with anyone that is still in doubt, on the account of having not experienced it. It is trite that our belief or non-belief doesn’t change a fact.

The responses gladdened the heart and underscored the fact that this discourse is an interactive one. Not the usual one sided parroting of lecture or homily, where the audience has no right of reply.

As a matter of fact, all the inquisitive minds of today should be congratulated for their keen interest for more meaningful existence, unlike most of our forebears who came into the world as babies and returned to the Creator even worse-off than that of babies, by which they arrived into the world. This is the situation with anyone who came unto the world, did so many wonderful things, but without any inkling of his true nature.

Which rational person will not wonder in all generation, in every race and clime that if men were created equally, why do so many suffer deprivations and hardship? Why do virtually all of us have so many ups and downs in life? Why can’t everyone simply be happy from birth to death? In short, why is life so hard to understand and why in such mystery man suffers till he dies?

At the physical level an analogy that portrays the plight of the average man from cradle till he bids the world bye goes as follows;

As a baby, immense pain he suffers, neither he makes a sign, nor a word utters.

He cannot tell what ails him. In pains,he weeps and cries,but parents are at a loss to understand the cause.

He suffers from one disease but he’s treated for another. This adds more to his trouble.Every treatment at this stage of life borders on guesswork. Thus; babyhood passes in distress.

Then he enters into boyhood, parents want to send him to school, but he has desires for play and games. Get daily trashed,nobody saves him,he hates both the teacher and parents. What a great pity,This period is also lived in angst.

Now cometh youth,the age of folly. Lust and passions awake in his mind.Desires driven,he runs after the opposite sex. He marries and brings home his spouse.The company he enjoys,he doesn’t know he is chained, he forgets altogether parents’ obligations.Day and night he dallies with wife,when children appear, love for parents pales and gradually disappears.

Next, worries for livehood come,he runs from door to door,like a dog,he gets rebuffs.From morning till evening of nothing else he thinks but survival. Money is his prayer and possessions become his preoccupation. Wants and worries do increase,these make his life hellish and disease prone.

Maintaining position of pride and caste,all these burdens he takes to heart. What a fool to have loaded his head with the ephemeralities of the material world.

He now gets perplexed and runs about in search of peace, but instead, he gets sorrow and affliction. Sooner he regrets his folly,but to no avail.Misery and distress come like rain. Now is the eclipse when frogs of depression,disease,and death loudly croak on all sides,every now and then. His life snaps and his lifeless body is lowered into the grave for all manners of earthly insects to feast upon. What a purposeless life this depicts!

As grave as this situation portrays, we must not be despondent. There has always been a way out.That is, we can still live a meaningful and Godly life in the midst of the hurly burly of the physical world.

All we need do is to commence our our search with this easy-peasy hypothesis such as; Would the Almighty God permit a spiritually starved seeker to go unfed?

For an answer, the Bible comes handy as we read Christ in Mathew 7:9 – “What man is there of you, who if his son asks for bread, he will give him stone”

The Lord indeed answers all honest seekers after Him provided our search is sincere and not the case of trying to serve God and mammon at the same time.

And for encouragement, we read also in the Bible that;

“If earthly men full of sins and iniquities pay wages to the labourers that work for them, how much more would the Heavenly Father reward those who work in His vine yard”.

The Lord surely rewards us provided we worship Him in the proper manner and place, which is, in His true temple-the human body, fearfully and wonderfully created.

But instead of resolutely seeking the way of worship in Spirit within the Lord’s Temple, we continued to opt for superficial worship and looking for lasting peace in externalities. Yet, all to no avail.

The truth is, the world shall ever remain imperfect and no one can improve it by an inch breath. While there is no one that can remove all the thorns of the world, with strong shoes,we would walk on the thorns unscathed.

That is saying, the problems and challenges of the earthly world will always be there and confronting mankind as they were in the past, are currently and shall be in future.

But assuringly, with True Worship we can rise above the world’s trajectories, in a manner we will become indifferent to pleasure and pains. We will be in the world but not of it. We will be like the lotus flower, whose root however immersed in water,the leaves remain dry.

Those seeking lasting happiness in the world will do well to read what Christ said in Matthew 10 vs 34 -35 to wit;

“Think not that I have come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace,but with a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father,and daughter against her mother,and daughter in law against her mother in law”

This statement of Christ plainly tells us our ideal Shangri-La will ever remain a mirage. Jesus was emphatic; I have not come to turn the world into a place of bliss and happiness. That wasn’t in the Grand Design of HE who has created the world.

The Messiah came to release us from the prison of this world by breaking the chains of our attachment to father, mother,son,daughter, uncle, nieces,associates, friends and other worldly relationships.

Jesus was sent to the souls that were ready to get out of the circle of birth and death. He was very blunt about this, He said; “I pray not for the world but to those allotted to me by the Father” And as a corollary He added; “I know my sheep and my sheep know me”

This is where we got it wrong by confusing the work of Christ and Saints with that of the philanthropists and social reformers.

Many noble souls and kindhearted people have been born again and again in this world and they have tried their best to give relief to the suffering masses.

But the benevolence of Jesus,Saints and Avatars are completely different. Their merchandise is the Word. Nothing else. Through the Word of God, they give succor to the souls pining for the Father, and this is beyond the scope of the worldly reformers. The Messiah and Saints have continued to prompt us to leave the pen house of the Negative Power, where we are all roasting in the fire of our desires.

We will raise this discourse from next week to explaining how MAN has been fearfully and wonderfully created-the understanding being a pre-condition for True Worship.

Ramadan Kareem to the Muslim Faithfuls.

To the general populace, coronavirus is REAL. The antidote is hygiene supported with prayers.

Prayer is simply submitting our hopelessness to a higher Being. Before we do however, we must do our bit. Our bit is compulsory wearing of mask, constant washing of hands,and strictly observing social distancing.

Thereafter, we could expect the Lord to crown our efforts. But please note; God loves and crowns our efforts.No effort, Nothing for the Lord to crown.

Aare Kola Oyefeso, a businessman, writes from Lagos

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Tinubu Presents N47.9trn 2025 Appropriation Bill to NASS

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President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, presented the proposed 2025 federal budget to a joint session of the National Assembly.

The N47.9 trillion budget saw a whopping N3.5 trillion allocated to the education sector.

Other sectors that got higher allocations include defence and security – N4.91tn, infrastructure – N4.06tn and health – N2.4tn.

“It is with great pleasure that I lay before this distinguished joint session of the National Assembly, the 2025 Budget of the National Assembly of Nigeria titled, ‘The Restoration Budget’ security peace, building prosperity,” Tinubu said as he concluded his 30-minute presentation at 1:10pm.

This budget highlights the government’s focus on improving education, healthcare, and infrastructure, in line with its ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ aimed at boosting the economy and addressing key national priorities.

The live broadcast of the budget presentation today revealed the government’s plans for the next fiscal year. With a strong emphasis on human capital development, the president highlighted the budget’s commitment to improving the nation’s economic foundation.

Education sector receives major funding 

A significant portion of the 2025 budget is dedicated to education, with N3.5 trillion allocated to the sector. President Tinubu stated that part of this funding would be directed toward infrastructure development, including support for Universal Basic Education (UBEC) and the establishment of nine new higher educational institutions.

We have made provision for N826.90 billion for infrastructural development in the education sector,” Tinubu said.

This allocation aims to improve educational facilities and support ongoing efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s educational system.

Focus on human capital development 

During the presentation, the president emphasized the importance of investing in Nigeria’s human capital. “Human capital development, our people are our greatest resource. That is why we are breaking record investment in education, healthcare, our social services,” he remarked.

Tinubu also pointed to the N34 billion already disbursed through the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) to assist over 300,000 students.

The budget includes continued investments in healthcare and social services as part of the broader goal of enhancing the quality of life for Nigerians.

Strengthening the economy and national security 

Tinubu highlighted that the 2025 budget is designed to build a robust economy while addressing critical sectors necessary for growth and security.

“This budget reflects the huge commitment to strengthening the foundation of a robust economy, while addressing the critical sectors essential for the growth and development we envision; and secure our nation,” he said.

The budget aims to tackle key challenges and foster long-term economic stability by prioritizing infrastructure and development in key sectors.

Healthcare and social services allocations 

In addition to education, Tinubu focused on the allocation for healthcare and social services. The government plans to increase investments in healthcare infrastructure and services to ensure broader access to essential healthcare for Nigerians.

These investments are part of the administration’s strategy to improve overall living conditions and enhance public health across the country.

President Tinubu’s proposed 2025 budget is said to reflect the administration’s commitment to achieving its development objectives, with a focus on economic growth, human capital development, and infrastructure improvement.

As the National Assembly reviews the budget, the president reiterated his administration’s resolve to address the nation’s most pressing needs.

Source: Nairametrics

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Ghana’s President-elect Mahama Visits Tinubu in Abuja

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Ghana’s President-Elect, Dr. John Dramani Mahama, a courtesy visit to President Bola Tinubu at his residence, Presidential Villa, State House on Monday.

Mahama

Mahama won 56 percent of the votes in this month’s presidential election, compared to the ruling party candidate and Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia, who secured 41 percent.

Mahama

The landslide comeback for former president Mahama ended eight years in power for the New Patriotic Party (NPP) under President Nana Akufo-Addo, whose last term was marked by Ghana’s worst economic turmoil in years, an IMF bailout and a debt default.

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I Stand by What I Said, Kemi Badenoch Replies VP Shettima

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The leader of the United Kingdom’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has lashed back at Vice President Kashim Shettima over the latter’s reaction to her comments about Nigeria.

Badenoch was born in the UK in 1980 to Nigerian Yoruba parents.

Badenoch, who attained age 16 in Nigeria before departing the country for the UK where she was elected Conservative Party’s leader, described Nigeria as a nation brimming with thieving politicians and insecurity.

However, Shettima, while speaking at the 10th Annual Migration Dialogue at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Monday, December 9, 2024, accused Badenoch of “denigrating her country of origin” with her remarks.

The vice-president listed influential people whose families had migrated to other countries, commending former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a “brilliant young man who never denigrated his nation of ancestry.”

Reacting on Wednesday, Badenoch lashed back at Shettima, saying she doesn’t do “PR for Nigeria”.

Her spokesperson, as the Tory leader, according to UK Express, said: “Kemi is not interested in doing Nigeria’s PR; she is the Leader of the Opposition in the UK.

“She tells the truth; she tells it like it is; she isn’t going to couch her words. She stands by what she said.”

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