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Parents Now Sell Children To Survive, Ozekhome Blasts Buhari
Eminent and fearless lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, SAN, has lamented the sorry state of affairs in Nigeria which clocked 59 years, yesterday, saying the citizens now live like walking corpses due to poverty and hunger in the land.
He further said parents now sell their children to survive in a country which was once the biggest economy in Africa and the 3rd fastest growing in the world.
According to a statement made available to press, titled, “Tears, Sorrow, Blood, Lamentation for Nigeria at 59,” the lawyer said, “Parents now sell their children to survive and the children do likewise. Husbands kidnap wives and wives kidnap husbands’ for cheap ransom.”
Ozekhome said, “Tears. Sorrow. Blood. Pains. Pangs. Anger. Hunger. Melancholy. Dejection. Hopelessness. Haplessness. Disillusionment. Poverty. Ignorance. Termites and maggots eat up the national edifice.
“Chaos and anarchy reign supreme. Impunity triumphs. Irredentism, cronyism, clannishness and nepotism strut around like a proud peacock. Corruption multiplies geometrically, ravaging the land.
“Nigeria is now the second most corrupt country in West Africa and one of the 148 most corrupt in the world. Rule of law is subsumed, human rights crushed, democracy is vanquished.
“Even basic civil liberties are suppressed and subjugated. Judges are brutalised, humiliated and denigrated, for doing their jobs.
“The Judiciary is weakened, traumatised, pauperised. The legislators haemorrhage the national purse with fantastic and indefensible out-of-the-world pay packets. The Executive acts imperiously, untrammelled, uncontrolled, like Louis X14 of France.
“The cabal holds the nation down by the jugular. Less than 20 people dictate the fate of 200 million Nigerians. There are no checks and balances. Absolutism, dictatorship, fascism, brutality, bestride our democratic space like a colossus. Yet, the people, the civil society, remain docile, complicit, frightened and cowed.
“Mediocrity is enthroned in place of meritocracy. Hypocrisy, lies, revisionism, propaganda are elevated, celebrated and dressed in the false garb of truth and patriotism. Genuine criticism, dissent, opposition, plurality of views, are treated as treason, and at best as treasonable felony. Nigerians now murmur, rather than discuss freely.
“Soliloquy and monologue take the place of robust dialogue. Nigerians now live like walking corpses, like the living dead. The common man and woman languish in abject penury. The middle class diminishes. Industries relocate to neighbouring countries. Massive disinvestment becomes the order of the day.
“Nigeria, once upon a time the biggest economy in Africa and the 3rd fastest growing in the world, is today the poverty capital of the world. Parents now sell their children to survive and the children do likewise. Husbands kidnap wives and wives husbands for cheap ransom.
“Insecurity becomes the order of the day. Boko Haram, herdsmen, kidnappers, armed robbers, hired assassins, control our highways, pathways and forest routes. Nigeria has been turned into a gruesome crimson field of bloodbath.
“There is mass suicide and homicide. Mass unemployment is the order of the day. Retrenchment becomes a norm. Education and certificates are racketeered. Children learn under uncovered roofs in rain, storm and sun, sitting on bare floor.
“Graduates roam the streets without jobs. Our beautiful daughters and sisters are sold into second slavery as sex objects. Young able-bodied men take to kidnapping, armed robbery, internet scams and Otokoto rituals. Money bags are celebrated, no matter the illicit sources of their wealth.
“The church and the mosque are complicit in this societal degeneration. Morals, ethics, values, recede into the abyss of historical oblivion. Prices of food have gone out of the roofs, leaving the poor prostrate and defeated. The tail now wags the dog; the leaders molest the people whose mandate they utilise.
“They laugh the people to scorn, exploit them, beat them, scourge them, impoverish them and misuse them. God, where, when, how and why did we find ourselves in this scandalous state of nadir, doldrums and national calamity? Nigeria at 59!!! A woman still crawling, misused, dehumanised and degraded. There will still be sunshine at the end of the storm. Yes, a silver lining on a dark cloudy sky. God help us.”
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The Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has directed his lawyers to withdraw all ongoing defamation lawsuits against several individuals, saying he was moved by counsel during a New Year Mass.
Speaking at the Sacred Heart Parish in Uyo, yesterday, Akpabio said he had filed nearly nine lawsuits against individuals he accused of defaming him.
He said, “I had almost nine cases in court against some individuals who defamed me, who lied against me, who slandered my name.
“But I listened to the priest and suddenly realised he was talking to me, so I hereby direct my solicitor to withdraw all lawsuits against them.”
In 2025, Akpabio had filed several high-profile defamation lawsuits, including one against colleague Senator Natasha Akpoti?Uduaghan.
In late 2025, Akpabio filed a N200 billion defamation lawsuit against her over allegations of sexual harassment, which he denied and urged her to substantiate in court.
Earlier in the year, Akpabio’s wife also filed defamation suits against Akpoti?Uduaghan over claims she said had harmed her family’s reputation.
Relations between the two lawmakers soured after Akpoti?Uduaghan accused Akpabio of influencing her suspension from the Senate in March 2025, following her public allegations of misconduct.
The Senator had previously challenged actions taken against her in court, including a N100 billion defamation suit she filed against Akpabio and other defendants over alleged remarks that she said damaged her reputation.
With yesterday’s announcement, Akpabio has formally ended all pending legal disputes arising from defamation claims, signalling closure to the publicised litigations as the year begins.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has declared that the best form of gratitude Rivers people owe President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for protecting the interest of the State is to galvanize massive support for the President in 2027.
Fubara disclosed this last Monday during the commissioning of Permanent Secretaries Quarters built by his administration at Elimgbu in Obio Akpor Local Government Area of the State.
He said that the State has what it takes to deliver the President during the 2027 general elections.
“We’ve taken a decision,our decision is for the good of Rivers State, our decision is to say thank you for the protection we have from Mr President, our decision is to prove that we have what it takes to deliver Mr President.”
Fubara expressed delight over the completion of the project, stating that the initiative was to provide accommodation, a basic need of life for public servants in the state to improve their productivity.
He explained that lack of effective social welfare was at the root of some incriminating actions that undermine the purpose of governance, noting that the commissioning of the newly built Permanent Secretaries Quarters marks a significant milestone in civil service welfare and institutional development.
“Insecurity begins when individuals are uncertain of what the next hour holds. This situation is especially challenging for family men and women, affecting confidence and decision-making,” he observed.
Fubara emphasized the need for proper maintenance of the facility and urged the beneficiaries to protect the project like a personal property, while directing the State Head of Service to appoint a facility manager to ensure long-term maintenance.
In her remarks, the Special Guest of Honour and Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, who unveiled the project, expressed appreciation to the governor and Rivers State for inviting her to commission the project.
She commended Fubara for prioritizing the welfare of Permanent Secretaries who are senior public servants and accounting officers, noting that the project reflects purposeful and visionary leadership, and urged other states to borrow a cue from the Rivers State Governor.
Walson-Jack described the initiative as a strategic investment in staff welfare and institutional continuity which she noted is in line with Renewed Hope Initiative on provision of mass housing and social stability.
“The commissioning of these houses reflect a deliberate commitment to the dignity, welfare, and productivity of senior public servants responsible for policy coordination and service delivery,” she said.
In his goodwill message, the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ajibode Bashiru, who led a high powered delegation on a visit to the governor, congratulated Rivers people for aligning with the Pan Nigerian political party, assuring that the interest of Rivers State will be duly protected in the APC.
He described President Bola Tinubu as a detribalised Nigerian who anchors his leadership on equity, fairness and justice, adding that the APC will provide a level playing ground for all.
The APC chief scribe also commended Fubara for providing good accommodation for public servants, stating that it will address issues of sabotage, compromise and disloyalty on the part of public servants.
Giving the project description, Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Works, Dr. Austin Ezekiel-Hart, said the estate comprises 29 units, including nine standalone duplexes and 20 terrace buildings.
Facilities feature a water treatment plant, synchronized power generators, CCTV and alarm systems, a gym, recreational areas, and green spaces—designed to enhance comfort, performance, and productivity.
Earlier, the Head of the Rivers State Civil Service, Dr Mrs Inyingi Brown, had thanked the governor for his visionary initiative and unwavering commitment to the welfare of Rivers State Civil Servants, and restated the commitment of the State civil servants to the success of Fubara’s administration.
By: Taneh Beemene