Politics
Still On Edo, Bauchi States Assembly Crises
In Political lexicon, especially in the African concept, power is either won or captured whether it is a so-called democratic setting or military rule. Both under democratic and military rule, the desire to win at all costs and maintain that status quo involves not only intrigues but also some level of ruthlessness and intimidation of opponent.
Most times those who lose out in the power game do not just cry foul, but also behave as if they are saints. This behaviour cuts across party lines as there is hardly any and politician in Nigeria who does not exhibit this behaviour.
Prior to the inauguration of the 8th National Assembly, the power play that brought Dr Bukola Saraki and Yakubo Dogara zx Senate President and Speaker House of Representatives respectively is well known as the godfathers who felt that it was their sole right to appoint the senate President or Speaker of the House of Representative lost out. However, the shame they brought to the country was of no consequence as they believed it was only their will that must be done.
Today, the situation is not all that different even at the state level, where individuals still prefer the speaker or Deputy Speaker of a house of Aassembly.
Recently, states like Edo and Bauchi were in the news a lot of house trading, scheming and shouting took place in these legislatures following the emergence of some honourable members as speakers and deputy speakers.
In Edo State, there was a running battle between the governor Mr Godwin Obaseki and the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, on who becomes a principal officer of the Edo State House of Assembly, and at the end of the tussle, the Godwin Obaseki faction emerged victorious with his preferred candidates emerging Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
Here, the Nigerian incumbency factor played a very crucial role as 8 out of the 24 members won outright, indicating that in this country anything is possible as no Governor will allow his opponents to outwit him in the game of thrones and patronage.
This same game of power was just a replica of what happened in 2014, when the house of assembly was ingulfed in crisis over who became the Speaker. over that situation was a bit different as the power equation in the assembly was evenly balanced, between the APC and the PDP. But, sadly in 2019, all the gladiators belong to the APC, yet there was still infighting.
The major question is, why is the APC, which has both the executive and legislative arms in its pocket, still behaving as if they belong to two different political parties? Reacting to the crisis, the immediate past National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, John Odigie-Oyegun, accused his successor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, of trying to undermine the Obaseki’s administration.
However, the 15-member-elect, who were absent during the Monday night inauguration, are still insisting on proper inauguration, arguing that the house was not properly inaugurated and that the government has no right to foster a leadership on them.
This same scenario also played out in Bauchi State where II out of the 33 members elected a speaker and deputy speaker. But the difference here is that the APC has a majority of 22-member-elect but were clearly outwitted by their opponents.
How did we get here? Under the 1999 constitution, section 92 (1), Chapter V, states that there shall be a speaker and a Deputy Speaker of a State House of Assembly, who shall be elected by the members of the House from among themselves.
Section 98 (1 and 2) clearly stipulates that voting must be by a simple majority. The question is, were those guidelines followed? In any power tussle in Nigerian politics, it has always been to outwit the opponent remained outwit your opponents, then let them fight you from the This has always been the case at whatever level of election, as nobody likes losing out in elections.
Here, people do not ask whether there is right or wrong, but who won at the end. If the losing camp had the day, they would have attributed such success to the will of God. So, to whom will they attribute their failure, if not God?
What most people in politics don’t take into cognizance is that in every power play, it is usually ‘dribble your opponent, using every weapon at your disposal. Politics is war, don’t give excuses for your failures’.
Today, Rt Honourable Frank Okiye of Edo State and Abubakar Suleiman are Speakers but the situation can change anytime as no condition is permanent. That is why the utterances of Comrade Oshiomhole should be condemned by all lovers of democracy. Oshiomhole even had the effrontery to give directives to the Inspector-General of Police “Not to provide security to the Houses of Assembly in Bauchi and Edo State”. So it is the great Comrade that is now controlling the Nigerian Police. Tin god syndrome has no place in Nigeria democracy.
Since every State House of Assembly is independent and autonomous, let the members sort themselves out and the least interference in the system the better.
We can always disagree to agree why sometimes people begin to question the quality of representation we get at the legislature. Most executives from the Presidency down to the state level, want absolute loyalty and are afraid of the unknown. That is why they want a rubber stamp legislative arm. That is also why most houses of assembly are not robust in lawmaking.
In the Second Republic under the late President Shehu Shagari, the quality of representation was very high at both the national and state assemblies. We never heard or read in the papers about midnight or 6am inauguration of the legislative arm or even factional Speakers. Today, even within the same political party there is always fighting, violence and court injunctions.
Nigeria did not vote honourable members to fight among themselves but to render serve to the populace; all those elected as state legislators should start exhibiting some sense of maturity and stop running to Abuja to seek support when they eventually lose out in their ambition to clinch a particular position. After all, in politics in those parts of the world, is either a game of numbers or using every means to outfox your opponent.
Governors Godwin Abaseki and Bala Mohammed will be savouring their victory as Kingmakers. If they had failed in their first task as Chief Executives, their swearing-in, then it would have shown that they did not have clout and that they lack the scheming skills as politicians in Nigeria.
The losers in the this first round should also learn that there is always real power at the hand of the governors, who at all times can grant favour. You just don’t toy with the executive as a legislator and if in doubt, ask Bukola Saraki.
Tonye Ikiroma-Owiye
Amid the seemingly intractable crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Nyesom Wike, has accused Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, of betrayal, accusing the governor of instigating party members against him.
In a statement at the week-end, Chief Wike said the party had been enmeshed in a protracted crisis due to dishonesty and lack of trust amongst key stakeholders, with efforts to address issues and “enthrone fidelity to agreements” for the party’s progress.
“To this end, a meeting of the G5 was held in Lagos. In that meeting, I made it clear to the governor of Oyo State, HE Seyi Makinde, that he was the architect of our problems, pointing out to him that non-adherence to agreements reached was the bane of the party and that he was the chief culprit of this anomaly. At the end of the meeting, we resolved to bury the hatchet and make progress,” Chief Wike said.
The minister referenced an expanded meeting attended by the party’s key stakeholders, where he alleged that Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State was serially reneging on agreements.
“At the end of the meeting, we came to some resolutions, including (a) That Senator Samuel Anyanwu remains the national secretary of the PDP in tandem with the Supreme Court judgment; (b) All legal matters relating to Rivers State must be withdrawn by the national legal adviser; (c) The suit on the state of emergency be withdrawn forthwith; and (d) Nobody should deviate from the agreements so reached,” he said.
Chief Wike claimed he was begged to attend the stakeholders’ meeting at the Bauchi Government Lodge, which led to the formation of the reconciliation committee headed by former Senate President Bukola Saraki.
Alleging the violation of agreements reached before the Saraki-headed committee was constituted, the minister accused Mr Makinde of conniving with Peter Mbah of Enugu State to orchestrate the meeting of South-East leaders to recommend that if Ude Okoye was not adopted as secretary, they would pull out of the PDP.
The former Rivers State governor said, “Again, Seyi Makinde organised some people in the national secretariat to insist that the deputy national secretary should act as national secretary, in violation of the agreement earlier reached. To attempt to give credence to this farce, a letter was written by the deputy national secretary, calling for a meeting of the NEC of the party.
“Furthermore, the letter confirming the candidacy of the governorship candidate of the party in the forthcoming governorship elections in Anambra State, duly signed by the national secretary, Senator Anyanwu and the acting national chairman, was portrayed as rejected by the party through a rebuttal letter signed by the national publicity secretary, acting on the orders of Seyi Makinde and Peter Mbah.”
Chief Wike said a well-publicised and properly attended zonal elective congress of the PDP slated to be held on May 24, 2025, was aborted because the party’s deputy national secretary signed the letter inviting INEC to the congress.
He added, “INEC refused to attend because the proper signatory recognised by law, that is, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, was not a signatory to the invitation notice.”
The minister described the development as provocative and annoying, stating the actions completely violated agreements.
Meanwhile, Chief Wike announced his withdrawal from all the agreements reached earlier and insisted on fighting until justice was served.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Atlas Oranto Petroleum, Chief Arthur Eze, has described President Bola Tinubu as “God’s gift to Nigeria,” commending his leadership style, reform-driven governance, and dedication to national unity.
In a statement over the weekend, the Special Adviser to the President, Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, said Chief Eze praised Tinubu in an upcoming State House documentary commemorating President Tinubu’s second anniversary in office.
Chief Eze noted that President Tinubu represents the bold, God-ordained leadership Nigeria requires at this critical juncture in its history.
“God doesn’t make mistakes. That man, Tinubu, was created for a purpose. God gave him the power to change lives.
“Tinubu has no enemies. He is a unifier. He speaks with humility and honesty; that’s why we admire him”, he said.
Drawing from his experiences during the Nigerian civil war and his strong ties to the south-east, Chief Eze said President Tinubu has shown unparalleled dedication to inclusivity and development in the region.
“What Tinubu has done for the Southeast, nobody else has. He gave us the Minister of Works, the Minister of Science and Technology, and the Southeast Development Commission. This is an opportunity for the Igbo to unite with the rest of Nigeria,” he said.
Commenting on the Renewed Hope Agenda, the business leader expressed confidence that President Tinubu has honoured his commitments.
He emphasised that the president assumed office during a period of economic fragility and political uncertainty but has displayed the wisdom and determination needed to guide the nation toward progress.
“God has given him the wisdom to change Nigeria for the good of the present and future generations,” Chief Eze said.
The Atlas Oranto CEO called on Nigerians to support the president in fostering stability, growth, and future prosperity.
“He’s not a man of division — whether Christian or Muslim, he respects all. All he asks is that we pray to God and work together,” he said.
Additionally, Eze prayed that “may God guide Nigeria and President Tinubu,” adding that “he gave him this power and will help him complete the job”.
A civil society organisation, Kimpact Developmental Initiative (KDI), has briefed the national leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) on various initiatives it (KDI) has undertaken to engage critical stakeholders such as the National Assembly members with regard to the implementation of the much needed electoral reforms for the advancement of the democratisation process in the country.
The Programme Director of KDI, Sannom Sarki, accompanied by the Senior Programme Officer, Gbemisola Adebowale, said this when the National Democratic Institute of the United States and the KDI paid a courtesy visit to the National Secretariat of the NUJ in Abuja, recently.
Lady Sannom explained that KDI has been collating feedbacks from its engagements across the six geopolitical zones, part of which included a national survey of over 4,000 youths across the country that focused on the youths evaluation and assessments of key aspects of the country’s electoral processes which has the ultimate goal of promoting electoral reform and effective governance.
She solicited the support and collaboration of the NUJ in achieving these objectives, emphasising the importance of enhanced relationship between the two organisations.
According to the leaders of the NDI Nigeria and the KDI, Mr Bem Aga and Sannom Sarki, the visit was aimed at strengthening the existing collaborative relationship between their organisations and the NUJ, and to explore ways of discovering new frontiers, especially in the area of electoral reforms.
Mr Aga, Programmes Director of the NDI Nigeria, who led the delegation, expressed his organisation’s readiness to work closely with the Alhassan- led administration of the NUJ to achieve shared collective goals.
He also emphasised the importance of the mutual relationship between the NDI and the NUJ and stressed the need to further strengthen the partnership to achieve greater shared objectives.
Mr Aga also underscored the significance of the developmental initiatives being undertaken through its partnership with KDI which is aimed at orientating Nigerian youths towards participating actively in the democratic governance of the country.
In his response, the NUJ National President, Comrade Alhassan Yahya, who warmly welcomed the KDI and DNI delegations, pledged to work closely with the two organisations.
Comrade Yahya gave the assurance that NUJ would do all it could to fully collaborate with the NDI and the KDI, leveraging on the Union’s structures across the 36 States of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.
Comrade Yahya also extended an invitation to the NDI and KDI to the upcoming National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the Union for the purpose of making a presentation.
It is hoped that this successful visit will mark the beginning of a renewed partnership between the NUJ, NDI, and KDI. It is expected that the renewed collaboration will yield positive outcomes, particularly in the areas of governance, youth development, and robust media engagements.
The highpoints of the occasion included presentation of mobilisation materials and group photographs.