Category: The Nation – Nigeria

The Nigerian Army said bandits terrorising communities in Kwara were given a bloody nose by troops, denying reports that they were overrun.

It said 148 Battalion (Rear) that is conducting clearance operations across Kogi and Kwara States have continued to record significant successes against the criminals.

The clarification comes amid recent reports on social media alleging that bandits overran troops in Kwara and seized weapons and ammunition.

Spokesperson of 2 Division, Nigerian Army, Lt.-Col. Polycarp Okoye, dismissed the report, in a statement on Monday, stating that the reverse was the case.

He said: ‘Contrary to the sensational claims, troops of 148 Battalion (Rear) conducting ongoing clearance operations across Kogi and Kwara States have continued to record significant operational successes.

‘In a recent engagement, the troops mounted a strong blocking position along the Kwara-Ekiti border axis, where they neutralized two armed bandits and recovered two brand new AK-47 rifles.

‘At no time were Army positions overrun, nor was any cache of weapons or ammunition lost to criminal elements, as mischievously reported by the online platform.

‘The publication is a fabrication designed to mislead the public and undermine the morale of gallant troops diligently working to restore peace and stability in the region.’

A military source had revealed to The Nation yesterday how the Nigerian Army in collaboration with sister services and security agencies eliminated a wanted terrorist kingpin, Kachalla Maidawa, and 11 of his foot soldiers, in the ongoing onslaughts against bandits/terrorists in Kogi and Kwara States.

The source revealed that some weapons and ammunition were recovered from the terrorists after the operation, adding that troops continued to pursue the criminals into their enclaves.

Lt.-Col. Okoye reaffirmed the Army’s commitment to deal ‘decisively’ with criminals across the country.

He urged Nigerians to disregard the false report and continue supporting the military with timely and credible information that would aid ongoing operations.

Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has once again earned global recognition for excellence in communication as it received the Golden World Award (GWA) for Impactful PR in Customs Management at the 2025 International Public Relations Association (IPRA) Gala held at the weekend, in Accra, Ghana.

Presented by IPRA President Nataša Pavlovic Bujas during the Golden World Awards Gala Night, the international PR body recognised the Nigeria Customs Service for its Impactful Public Relations in Customs Management.

The winning entry, a publication authored by Image Merchants Promotion Limited, documents the Comptroller-General of Customs’ progressive communication strategies and has since evolved into a strategic framework for public relations scholarship in Nigeria.

According to Philip Sheppard, Secretary-General of IPRA, the publication provides practical strategies for organisations. It showcases real-life applications of PR leadership drawn from the reforms of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, MFR.

Receiving the award on behalf of the Service, the National Public Relations Officer, Assistant Comptroller of Customs (AC) Abdullahi Maiwada, expressed profound appreciation to IPRA for the recognition, stating that it reinforces the Service’s vision for institutional credibility and proactive communication.

‘This award is a validation of the Nigeria Customs Service’s commitment to professionalism, transparency, and stakeholder engagement,’ Maiwada said. ‘Under the leadership of the Comptroller-General, we have repositioned communication as a strategic tool for reform and trust-building.’

It will be recalled that the Service was earlier honoured in 2024 with the prestigious GWA for Crisis Communication at the IPRA Gala in Belgrade, Serbia. This year’s award builds on that feat, highlighting NCS’s consistent innovation in communication and reputation management.

The award ceremony formed part of the Public Relations Knowledge Sharing Conference held from Wednesday, 1st to Friday, 3rd October 2025, at the Accra International Conference Centre.

The conference, themed ‘Global Realities and Innovative Communication,’ was attended by leading communication experts, including Dr Ike Neliaku, President of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR); Nataša Pavlovic Bujas, President of IPRA; Arik Karani, President of the African Public Relations Association (APRA); and Esther Amba Numaba Cobbah, President of the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), Ghana, among other PR professionals across Africa.

At the closing session of the conference earlier on Friday, the President of Ghana, His Excellency John Dramani Mahama, urged public relations professionals to uphold the highest standards of ethics and competence in their practice.

‘As communicators, you hold the power to shape narratives and influence public trust,’ President Mahama said. ‘Our continent needs professionals who communicate with integrity, clarity, and purpose to support national development.’

Also speaking at the Gala night, Ghana’s Vice President, H.E. Jane Nana, congratulated all the awardees, commending their contributions to advancing strategic communication globally.

To crown the night, Esther Amba Numaba Cobbah, President of the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), Ghana, assumed the mantle as the new President of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA), succeeding Nataša Pavlovic Bujas. Her emergence as the first African to lead the 70-year-old global body marks a historic milestone and a moment of pride for the continent’s communication professionals.

The Federal Government has instructed its health research institutes to support and provide financial commitments to ongoing studies into a potential treatment for brain cancer.

The government listed, among others, the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), and the National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT) to take the lead in the initiative

The directive followed reports of a promising compound believed to be effective against several types of cancer, particularly glioblastoma multiforme, one of the most aggressive brain cancers.

The Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Adekunle Salako, issued the directive during a virtual meeting with the leadership of the institutes and the Centre for Advanced Medical Research and Training (CAMRET), a research unit at Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.

The minister described the discovery as a potential game-changer for Nigeria’s health system and a major step towards realising President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s health sector transformation goals.

Salako noted that the development reinforced the need to strengthen Nigeria’s phytomedicine industry as part of efforts to unlock the healthcare value chain.

The minister said a ministerial committee was already in place to bring together researchers, investors, and industry partners to accelerate pharmaceutical innovation.

‘The phytomedicine sector must be prioritised in unlocking Nigeria’s healthcare value chain. A committee has already been established to bring together investors, research institutions, and stakeholders to accelerate development in the pharmaceutical sector,’ he said.

Salako urged the CAMRET team to present a detailed proposal to the ministry by outlining its requirements.

The minister pledged the Federal Government’s support for further research and development.

He lauded the scientists’ dedication, urging them to sustain the momentum until the discovery yielded a product that would benefit Nigerians.

Presenting the research outcome, CAMRET team lead, Dr. Amina Jega, said the active compound was derived from a plant native to the North.

Laboratory tests, she explained, showed that the extract destroyed brain cancer cell lines within 48 hours at a specific dosage.

According to her, the substance is also being tested against other cancers, such as breast, liver, colon, cervical, leukemia, and lung and early results have been encouraging.

Jega stressed that glioblastoma remained one of the most fatal brain cancers, with patients surviving an average of only 15 months due to poor drug response, underscoring the urgency of continued research.

NICRAT’s Director General, Prof. Usman Aliyu, welcomed the minister’s intervention and affirmed the institute’s readiness to collaborate fully, disclosed that NICRAT had already reached out to the researchers and would provide necessary institutional support.

The National Muslim Youth Association (NMYA), an alumni of Muslim Tertiary Students Association, has supported moves to take away the powers to appoint heads of electoral bodies from the executive.

The association said this on Monday at a press conference addressed by its President, Engr. Abdulraham Aliyu along several other members in Abuja.

While aligning with the position of Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah, who forwarded a bill seeking to take away the power of appointing chairmen and members of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and State Independent Electoral Commission (SIECs) from President and Governors respectively, the association maintained that it is necessary to amend the constitution towards establishing a new INEC.

The association called on the National Assembly to consider and pass Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah’s draft Bill for the amendment of the Constitution for the Establishment of the new INEC and thereafter to work with the State Assemblies and the Presidency to bring the proposed amendment to fruition.

The Muslim association argued that Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC results viewing ( IReV) portal would not solve the problem of election rigging in Nigeria without the impartiality and integrity of the electoral body as those two systems are vulnerable to manipulation.

The NMYA stressed that it has become necessary to amend the nation’s constitution towards establishing a new INEC, composed by independently and neutrally appointed commissioners and officers in order to ensure competence, impartiality, integrity and hence, free and fair elections.

According to the association: ‘We agree with Senator Obiorah that honest elections are impossible in Nigeria with the President and the Governors continuing to wield the power of appointing the electoral bodies,

since they or their political parties are usually contestants in the same elections.

‘There is no doubt as Senator Obiorah posits, that BVAS and IReV would not solve the problem of election rigging in Nigeria without the impartiality and integrity of the electoral body as those two systems are vulnerable to manipulation.

‘It has therefore become necessary to amend the constitution towards establishing a new INEC, composed by independently and neutrally appointed commissioners and officers in order to ensure competence, impartiality, integrity and hence, free and fair elections.

‘Consequently, we are happy to announce our endorsement of Senator Obiorah’s novel, fresh and bold proposal, to constitute the new INEC with thirteen commissioners, six of whom would be elected by the listed six Nigerian labour and professional organizations, and six commissioners nominated by the United Nations, and one commissioner – observer nominated by Transparency International.

‘What stands out in Senator Obiorah’s proposed new INEC is the fact that it would be more difficult to bribe or intimidate such an internationally composed electoral body.

‘More so, the infusion of international bureaucrats into the new INEC would make for better organized elections in which the secret ballot would indeed be secret therefore defeating vote buying.

‘Nigeria would then also experience elections in which the use of non-manipulated BVAS and IReV would be enthroned, and in which proper organization and the electoral law would make it easy for millions of Nigerians in diaspora to vote.

‘We observed in the course of exchange of views on Senator Ikechukwu Obiorah’s proposal, that some people were asking how could foreigners take part in organizing elections in Nigeria.

‘Our answer to that question is that the foreigners under reference are the same foreigners who have from Nigeria’s independence been managing exclusively, the health care and hospitalisations of Nigeria’s political leaders, all Presidents, Military Heads of Government, Senate Presidents, Speakers, Governors, legislators, senior public officials, senior judicial officers, business elite and so on.

‘Speakers, Governors, legislators, senior public officials, senior judicial officers, business elite and so on.

‘And all because Nigeria does not have good hospitals due to bad governance made possible by rigged elections.

‘We answer further, that it is the same foreigners who have given Nigeria, non-debt aid in the form cash transfer grants of upwards of $65 billion since independence.

‘And that it is the same foreigners in Paris Club who gifted Nigeria over $18 billion dollars in debt forgiveness by which Nigeria wiped out and zeroed out its foreign indebtedness in 2006.’

Thirty-nine Nigerian artisans have departed for the Republic of Belarus under the National Directorate of Employment’s (NDE) International Job Placement Programme, a federal government initiative designed to promote safe and regular migration pathways for skilled workers.

The beneficiaries, all from Benue State, will take up employment opportunities in Belarus’s construction sector as part of the government’s effort to create decent jobs and reduce irregular migration.

Speaking at a pre-departure ceremony in Abuja on Monday, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, hailed the programme as evidence that Nigerian talent is globally competitive and in high demand.

She noted that the initiative, which is a product of collaboration between the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Benue State Government, the NDE, the Benue State Bureau of Entrepreneurship and Wealth Creation, and Enhanced Entrepreneurs Belarus Nig. Co. Ltd., reflects the value of coordinated partnerships in achieving real progress.

Onyejeocha advised the departing workers to honour their contracts, respect their hosts, and let their professionalism and excellence serve as a positive reflection of Nigeria’s resilience and skill.

Onyejeocha said, ‘As a Ministry, our mission under the Renewed Hope Agenda is clear: to ensure every Nigerian can access decent, safe, and sustainable work. The International Job Placement Programme embodies that vision, proving that Nigerian talent is not only capable but globally competitive.

‘But this is just the beginning. The world of work is changing rapidly. To stay ahead, Nigeria must deepen international partnerships that promote knowledge transfer, technology exchange, and exposure to best practices. Programmes like this equip Nigerian professionals with global insights that strengthen our domestic capacity and competitiveness.

‘By engaging globally, we exchange innovation and standards that uplift our workforce and position Nigeria as a trusted player in the global labour economy. To our departing artisans, you carry the pride of our nation. Let your professionalism and integrity speak loudly. Honour your contracts, respect your hosts, and let your excellence tell the Nigerian story of resilience and skill. Remember, success abroad must translate into growth at home.’

The Director – General of NDE, Silas Agara, commended the Benue State Government for its confidence on NDE and its partners, both within and outside Nigeria, in ensuring that qualified Nigerians access decent jobs abroad with dignity.

He said: ‘We are collectively declaring here today that young Nigerians no longer need to undertake the dangerous journeys across the Sahara Desert or risk drowning in the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe.

‘All they need now are skills, competency, and the support of any subnational government to benefit from the International Job Placement Programme.’

Agara explained that beyond its role in creating mass employment for the unskilled and unemployed, the NDE also has a statutory mandate to facilitate job linkages.

He said that the collaboration between NDE and Enhanced Entrepreneurs Belarus Nig. Co. Ltd., which began in 2019, has successfully secured employment opportunities for Nigerian artisans in various construction fields in Belarus.

‘We reached out to all State Governments to partner with EBNC in exploring opportunities in the booming construction sector in the Republic of Belarus for the benefit of our skilled artisans.

‘Beyond the immediate advantage of decent jobs, this programme offers Nigeria an open door to the smooth transfer of skills and technology, as the participants will be exposed to world-class standards in construction skills and practices which they can transfer to Nigeria eventually,’ he said.

Agara expressed confidence that the artisans, who are the pioneer beneficiaries of the initiative, would uphold their contractual obligations and serve as worthy ambassadors of both Benue State and Nigeria.

‘I cannot overemphasize the need for them to show themselves as worthy ambassadors of Benue State and the Nigerian Nation in the diligent discharge of their duties and general conduct in Belarus,’ he stated.

Kwara State Government has trained at least 200 school children from across the State on how to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to think, create. and solve real-world problems.

Tagged: ‘Future Minds Independence AI Bootcamp’, the training was organised in partnership with Digital Equity Africa between October 1-5, 2025.

Participants cut across the public and private primary and junior secondary schools, following their ‘seamless’ selection process.

Speaking at the grand finale in Ilorin on Sunday, Managing Director, Ilorin Innovation Hub, Temi Kolawole, said the sponsorship of 200 participants underscores the government’s commitment to digital inclusion among young people.

Kolawole said he was impressed with the manner the pupils exhibited their creative works and expressed optimism that their future is bright.

‘It is very impressive to see young kids under the age of 10 presenting the websites they built, presenting a story book they have written and even music they requested AI to compose. If they can do this at this stage, we can imagine what they will do in the next 5 to 10 years,’ he said.

Such exposure improves their curiosity, innovation, and creativity, he added.

CEO Digital Equity Africa, Mrs Justina Nnam Oha, said the session was not just about teaching technology but also about shaping mindset, nurturing innovation, and helping young people to see themselves as creators of the digital future, not just consumers of it.

She commended the government and the Ilorin Innovation Hub for the partnership and their commitment to digital literacy and inclusion in Kwara.

‘Over the past few days, your children have explored the fascinating world of Artificial Intelligence, learning how machines think, create, and solve real-world problems. They have collaborated, built, and imagined boldly – proving that the future truly belongs to those who are curious, courageous, and creative,’ she told reporters on the sideline of the event.

‘We are deeply grateful. This partnership by the government is commendable in ensuring that every child, regardless of their background, has access to the opportunities of tomorrow.

‘To you, the parents-thank you for believing in your children and in this vision. The best investment you can make is in their minds. What you witnessed today are not just projects, but seeds of transformation.’

Participants such as Abdulkareem Khadijat, Ahmed Imam Ayodeji and Aminat Akanbi, among others, appreciated the state government and Digital Equity Africa for providing them a platform to learn digital skills and be AI-compliant.

Entertainer and socialite Idowu Adeyemi, popularly known as Yhemo Lee, has promised to throw a club party in honour of Imisi, the winner of Big Brother Naija Season 10.

Imisi clinched the show’s grand prize during Sunday’s finale, defeating fellow contestants Dede, Koyin, Sultana, Kola, Jason Jae, Mensan, Kaybobo, and Isabella.

Following her victory, a fan took to Snapchat to hail Yhemo Lee for accurately predicting Imisi’s win, calling him a ‘prophet’ and asking him to speak blessings into his life.

The fan wrote, ‘Be like you go be prophet o, you said Imisi is your winner and she won BBN 10/10. Say good things about my life, too.’

In response, Yhemo Lee revealed his plans to celebrate Imisi’s success, writing on Snapchat: ‘I’m going to host her go club once she’s home. Imisi money.’

His post has since gone viral, with fans applauding his excitement and support for the newly crowned BBNaija champion.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will be hosting all-important Council of State meeting at the State House, Abuja, on Thursday.

This followed the invitation extended by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, to members of the Council of State and the Police Council to a high-level strategic meeting scheduled for Thursday, October 9, 2025.

The notice of the invitation was contained in a statement by the Director Information and Public Relations in the office of the SGF, Segun Imohiosen, on Tuesday.

According to the statement , the Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr. Emanso Okop Umobong, said the hybrid meeting will deliberate on matters of national importance, with a particular focus on national security and policing challenges across the country.

The meetings are slated to hold at the Council Chambers, Aso Villa, Abuja.

The Council of State is expected to meet at 1:00 p.m while the Police Council will convene at 2:00 p.m. Members have been requested to attend either physically or virtually.

The SGF, in extending the invitation, underscored the importance of the sessions in aligning national leadership on key policy and security priorities.

The statement added that the high-level engagement reflects President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s continued commitment to addressing pressing national issues and ensuring the safety and security of Nigerians.

‘The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. George Akume, CON, has extended an invitation to members of the Council of State and Police Council to a hybrid strategic meeting scheduled for Thursday, October 9, 2025.

‘According to the Permanent Secretary, Cabinet Affairs Office, Dr. Emanso Okop Umobong, the meeting aims to discuss matters of national importance and key issues affecting national security and policing.

‘This high-level meeting underscores President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s commitment to addressing pressing national issues and ensuring the safety and security of citizens’, the statement said.

This will be Tinubu’s second Council of State meeting, having convened his first on August 13, 2024, which attracted former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari with Governors and other members.

The council passed a vote of confidence in Tinubu’s administration and discussed key national issues.

The simmering crisis within the minority caucus of the House of Representatives has boiled over ahead of tomorrow’s resumption of plenary.

Minority Leader, Kingsley Chinda (PDP, Rivers), under threat of removal from a section of minority members, obtained an injunction stopping the leadership of the House and the Minority Caucus from removing him.

He is targeted for removal because of his affiliation with Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Nyesom Wike, it was learnt.

Today, members of the caucus have slated a ‘crucial meeting’ to decide Chinda’s fate.

The meeting, billed for one of the conference rooms in the House of Representatives wing of the National Assembly, is expected to be attended by all caucus members.

The notice of the meeting was signed by leaders of four of the minority parties.

These are: Frederick Agbedi (PDP), Afam Victor Ogene (LP), Muktar Umar-Zakari (NNPP) and Peter Nzokwe (YPP).

But supporters of Chinda are not relenting. They are fighting back under the ‘Active Minority’ group, which claims to have the majority of members.

They have, in fact, prepared for a showdown with the anti-Chinda group.

Defendants in Chinda’s suit are the National Assembly, the Clerk to the National Assembly, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Clerk to the House of Representatives, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Labour Party (LP), All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Social Democratic Party (SDP), Africa Democratic Congress (ADC) and Young Progressive Party (YPP).

Justice J.O. Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja issued an interim injunction asking all parties to maintain the status quo pending the determination of the suit.

The notice for the meeting reads: ‘You are hereby invited to an emergency meeting to discuss recent developments in the minority leadership, particularly to review the lawsuit instituted by Minority Leader, Hon. Kingsley Chinda, against all members of minority parties in the 10th House of Representatives.’

The items on the agenda are to prepare a ‘response to the lawsuit instituted by Chinda, against all minority parties and any other business (AOB).’

In an order of interim injunction, the court ordered all parties in the suit filed on behalf of Chinda by Dr. J.Y. Musa (SAN) to maintain the status quo, pending the determination of the suit.

Chinda is seeking ‘an order restraining the defendants, their servants, privies, officers, agents, members, howsoever described, from removing him as Minority Leader of the House of Representatives without compliance with the due process of the law or accepting/recognising any exercise by any person(s) purportedly removing him from his position as the Minority Leader.’

Justice Abdulmalik ruled: ‘It is my considered firm opinion that in order to ensure all the parties listed in these processes have equal playing ground by virtue of their constitutional rights enshrined in Section 36 (1) of the 1999 Constitution (as Amended), as well as the need to protect the res sought in the application, I hereby order as follows: ‘THAT the applicant shall forthwith serve on all the defendants/respondents the Motion on Notice with Suit No:- FHC/ABJ/CS/1936/2025 filed on 16th September 2025, along with all relevant processes filed in this matter, so as not to foist a fait accompli on the outcome of the reliefs sought in this application, which are also exact same reliefs prayed in the Motion on Notice with Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1936/2025.

‘That the hearing of the Motion on Notice with Suit No:- FHC/ABJ/CS/1936/2025 filed on 16th September 2025, shall pursuant to Section 6 (6) (b) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) be expediently resolved on its merit by this Honourable Court for the attainment of Justice in this matter.

‘THAT all the concerned parties listed in this application shall maintain status quo in respect of the res prayed on the face of the Motion Ex-Parte pending the hearing and determination on its MERIT of the Motion on Notice with Suit No:- FHC/ABJ/CS/1936/2025 filed on 16th September 2025.

‘THAT all the Defendants/Respondents SHALL be served with Hearing Notices in respect of this matter.’

Preparing for a showdown

Pro-Chinda members of the minority caucus under the aegis of ‘Active Minority’ are set for a showdown with their colleagues over the removal plot.

No fewer than 89 members have thrown their weight behind Chinda, vowing to resist any attempt to remove him.

A member of the Active Minority, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were prepared to counter the moves by certain interests in the PDP and the ADC bent on replacing Chinda because of his affiliation with Wike.

He said: ‘We have stumbled on a plot by certain leaders in the PDP and ADC to replace Chinda. His only sin is the allegations that he is close to Wike.

‘But I can assure you, we are ready for those sponsored to come to the floor and execute this insidious plan.

‘Our group, the Active Minority, is prepared to resist this because Chinda has discharged his responsibilities as an opposition leader very well.

‘As I speak with you, the Active Minority has a membership strength of 89 members and more members are identifying with us.

‘All opposition lawmakers are about 140, and we have an overwhelming majority to counter any undemocratic move.’

When asked to unveil the identities of the Active Minority, the lawmaker said: ‘We are keeping our identities under wraps until the House resumes. We don’t want to let the cat out of the bag now. Our strategy is also within us until we meet on the battlefield.’

On why they chose to support the minority leader, the lawmaker said: ‘Chinda’s unwavering commitment to upholding democratic principles and advocating the rights of the Nigerians has set him apart as a beacon of hope in times of uncertainty.

‘Chinda has since 2023 vehemently stood against the defection of opposition lawmakers to the APC.

‘One of Chinda’s notable contributions lies in his staunch opposition to members of the opposition defecting to the ruling party, citing violations of constitutional provisions and electoral laws.’

Sir: So, Goodluck Jonathan is said to be eyeing a return to Aso Rock – again. The man who presided over one of the most rudderless, corrupt, and visionless administrations in Nigeria’s democratic history now thinks he deserves a second bite of the apple. It’s almost comical, if it weren’t tragic.

Let’s be clear: there was a reason Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was booted out of office in 2015. He didn’t lose because Nigerians suddenly fell in love with Muhammadu Buhari. He lost because his government had become a byword for chaos, corruption, and crippling indecision. His reign was a tragic experiment in what happens when a man with neither backbone nor boldness is handed the keys to a volatile, complex nation like Nigeria.

Jonathan governed like a man afraid of his own shadow. He was perpetually ‘consulting,’ constantly ‘studying the situation,’ and forever ‘setting up committees.’ Meanwhile, Nigeria burned. Under his watch, Boko Haram morphed from a ragtag group of extremists into a full-blown terrorist army, capturing territories, overrunning military bases, and hoisting their black flags over Nigerian towns.

The Chibok incident occurred under Jonathan, and his initial reaction was one of denial, dithering, and deafening silence. While young girls were being kidnapped and the world screamed #BringBackOurGirls, Jonathan and his kitchen cabinet were busy politicking and accusing opposition voices of exaggeration. Leadership failure doesn’t come more glaringly.

But it wasn’t just security. The Jonathan years were a festival of corruption. Billions of dollars vanished into thin air – oil revenue unaccounted for, subsidy scams that would make Hollywood blush, and a central bank governor (Sanusi Lamido Sanusi) who blew the whistle and got the boot for daring to speak the truth. The fuel subsidy racket under Jonathan was legendary – a gravy train for cronies and cartels who laughed all the way to foreign banks while ordinary Nigerians queued for petrol.

The 2012 fuel subsidy fiasco, which triggered mass protests across the country, was a symbol of everything wrong with Jonathan’s government – tone-deaf policy, confused communication, and total detachment from the realities of ordinary Nigerians. And when the dust settled, the same subsidy regime he sought to reform became even fatter, darker, and leakier.

And who can forget the farce of the Transformation Agenda? It was all slogans, no substance. Ministers and special advisers and assistants turned their portfolios into private estates. Contracts were inflated, accountability evaporated, and governance was reduced to a ‘share-the-money’ circus. It was chop-I-chop governance, pure and simple – a cash-and-carry carnival masquerading as democracy. The barn door was wide open, and the hyenas had a feast.

The Jonathan era was the golden age of impunity. Everyone dipped their hands into the till – from fuel marketers to politically connected businessmen, from civil servants to security chiefs. When whistle-blowers tried to raise an alarm, they were hounded, suspended, or smeared. Under Jonathan, corruption wasn’t an aberration – it was the operating system.

Jonathan’s biggest sin, however, wasn’t just corruption – it was weakness. He wasn’t in charge. Everyone knew it. His ministers ran rings around him. His political godfathers pulled the strings. The cabals called the shots. Jonathan wasn’t leading Nigeria; he was watching from the side-lines. A president who cannot say ‘No’ to his friends will always say ‘Sorry’ to his people. And Jonathan’s Nigeria was one long apology – a helpless shrug from a man clearly overwhelmed by the magnitude of the office he held.

But perhaps Jonathan’s most glaring flaw was his chronic lack of judgment – his inability to read the room or recognize when the tide has turned. If he truly believes that Nigeria in 2025 is the same as Nigeria in 2015, then he has learned nothing. The political landscape has shifted dramatically. The era of the ‘Otuoke boy with no shoe’ playing the role of accidental messiah is over. Today’s Nigerians are not seduced by humble origins but by honest governance.

We need leaders with vision, courage, and clarity – not those who float through office like startled tourists, clutching prayer books while their lieutenants loot the treasury. Jonathan had his chance. He squandered it. History gave him the opportunity to be great, but he chose to settle for comfort instead.

Goodluck Jonathan’s presidency was a cautionary tale – a lesson in what happens when luck replaces leadership. Nigeria must not make the same mistake twice.