“Upon assumption of office, our administration ended the corrupt fuel subsidy regime…

Our armed forces and security agencies are working tirelessly against terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping. Boko Haram/ISWAP in the North in the North-East IPOB/ESN in the South-East, in the North-West are being degraded. We salute the gallantry and sacrifices of our security operatives” – President Tinubu, October 1, 2025.

President Tinubu, in his address to the nation, touched on two issues that affect the lives of most Nigerians – corruption and insecurity. He dwelt only on the pervasive corruption associated with fuel subsidy – which his government ended on the assumption of office in 2023. Even his worst critics must concede that he deserves a great deal of credit for having the courage to do what should have been done three decades ago. Naturally, he failed to mention that he and others fought against fuel subsidy removal when President Jonathan first proposed it in 2012.

Only God knows how much Nigeria would have saved if his political party had not opposed what former Governor Fayemi of Ekiti admitted was in the national interest. Obviously, they allowed massive corruption to be perpetrated for eleven years! Still, he deserves commendation for taking action; even if he was ill-prepared to follow-up the measure by preempting most of the hardships suffered by Fellow Nigerians or Compatriots as he called us. He however failed to address the other aspects of pervasive corruption which is holding back the nation.

Like his predecessors, Tinubu had vowed to eradicate corruption; he was even quoted as saying corruption has been eliminated by his government. Only people in his government would believe that. 

The easiest proof of the failure to curb corruption can be found in the manner they are going about investigating how $2.7 billion was spent on two refineries, to reactivate them, without any fuel to show for it. In a country where a poor person caught stealing a yam tuber can be sentenced to five years by a heartless Magistrate, nobody has been taken to court to account for the colossal amounts mis-managed by the rich and powerful and well-connected. 

“Fish rots from the head.” 

For example, it is curious how only the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, is being prosecuted by the Federal Government for alleged fraudulent activities when even a bright 15 years old child should know that, in such a large organization, nobody can single-handedly commit many crimes without support from a few people in the place. Till today, the results of the inquiry into the activities of the CBN, submitted in March 2024 by the Special Investigator, Jim Obaze, to President Tinubu has not been published.

“Law is injustice codified; it protects the idle rich against the exploited poor” – Essay by the Noble Writer c1750.

All the nation’s agencies established to fight corruption have cases piled up before them. Invariably they involve top government officials or corporate giants. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the courts exemplify the age-long tendency to allow the rich and powerful to be protected by law enforcement agencies. There has been no single month in which the EFCC does not announce the successful prosecution of Yahoo Boys and Girls.

Meanwhile cases involving former Governors and Senators have been languishing for years. The courts have been complicit in treating mega-robbers as special and untouchable. This has been the pattern since 1960 – unless the accused are political opponents. Senator Adams Oshiomhole once openly invited politicians to join the ruling party and their sins would be forgiven. The two Presidents elected under the APC platform have not repudiated what amounts to encouragement of corruption with impunity. Obviously, that has become official government policy. And, with that, we can declare the war against corruption as lost indefinitely. This government has raised the flag of surrender to corruption.

“2, 583 Nigerians killed, 2, 164 abducted in three months” – Daily Trust, April 23, 2024.

What about insecurity? That is an ongoing war; and there is division over whether the nation is winning or losing. I need to update my files in order to determine whether or not President Tinubu is correct about the hoodlums and bandits being degraded. Recent reports about people being killed while praying in some states, as well as, the audacity of bandits attacking army camps in Borno State would cast doubts on that claim. At any rate, Nigerians have been told about Boko Haram being degraded by former governments; only for the bandits to launch a vicious attack on the military and civilians.

Yet, without a real and convincing victory over the hoodlums, long-term economic recovery will remain elusive.

DO YOU REALLY WANT TO LIVE TO 100? – 2.

0803-307-8940

“Sir, good evening, U didn’t mention d worst part of living too long. One gets to bury one’s kids & their own grand kids; feel guilty having a good burial party!”

That message came from a reader, who must have had the most common experience of those who live very long in any society. I didn’t mention it in the first part, not because I am not aware of it; but because I wanted to pause and allow the first part to be quietly digested by everybody concerned – including me. I will turn to it now.

“What is the worst of woes that wait on age…To view each loved one blotted from life’s page” – Lord Byron,1788-1824, VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS,  P6. 

I had collected what seemed like the best quotes on age for my book; when two real life stories came to my attention. Two old women died, 92 and 95, one of them was my relative in the Agbe-Davies Family of Lagos. The two old women had one thing in common. They had seven children each. By the time the one who was 95 died, all her children had been buried – in addition to four grandchildren. My auntie died the same year at 92. By the time she passed away, six of her kids had passed away. Everybody in the extended family prayed that Kola, her remaining son, would not die before his mother. No person’s death was received with more joy than that of Iya Epe – as we called her.

Born in Lagos, and having returned to my roots, I am now the Head of Family for various families. Byron’s lamentation, at the time very personal to the great man, is very universal. There are very few people known to me, over 80, who had not buried at least a child or grandchild. Only a great miracle can save anybody from grieving over a young sibling, child or grandchild. My own experience occurred on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway. My daughter and her husband were going for a Christian retreat. The couple sat in front; the baby and house girl sat at the back. All was well until a fuel-laden truck exploded and started throwing flames randomly. Eventually, six fuel trucks caught fire. There was pandemonium on the highway. My son-in-law was still trying to find out what was happening when a flame-bearing object landed squarely on their car. He stopped the car and the parents jumped out; expecting the house-girl to follow with the baby. No such luck. The security lock on the back doors had been activated to prevent the house-girl from opening the door at will. Within seconds, the entire car was engulfed with no firemen in sight. In the end, the bodies of the two persons were indistinguishable from the ashes of other parts.

Since then, I have been paying attention to the recurring experiences of very old people. It is quite possible that there is nobody alive and over 90 who had not been visited with the sorrow of losing younger members of the family – daughters, sons and grandchildren. The pain of their departure is felt more keenly if the deceased is the breadwinner for the family and especially the old members. When that occurs, usually unsuccessful efforts are made to keep the news from the old parents. It never works; because there is nobody else to step into his shoes. At any rate, a loving daughter, who never failed to come at month end; bringing money and food stuff, cannot stop coming for two months before someone has to break the news to the old father or mother.

The number of friends dwindles inexorably. A fellow who was ever present at the funeral of his classmates at St Peter Faji Primary School in Lagos Island attended the last burial when he was the only one left standing. He joined them about eleven months after that. Secondary school sets in some schools start to meet regularly for conviviality; and for years there might be no death at an early age. Suddenly, the wheels of fortune turn against them; four, five classmates pass on. The question eventually is: Who is next?

A BURDEN AT LAST

Love never lasts if you ever become bed-ridden and helpless. Sympathy for the irreversible invalid seldom lasts beyond the first year. Thereafter, the patient becomes a burden. Because custom and upbringing forbids people to speak ill of those knocked down by life, all the grumbling is done behind her/his back. That is why when he finally goes, the common statement is: “he/she has gone to rest.” Relief at last.

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