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  • [ANALYSIS] SPEAKERSHIP RACE: How religion may play vital role in zoning as ten gladiators gun for Gbajabiamila’s job

    [ANALYSIS] SPEAKERSHIP RACE: How religion may play vital role in zoning as ten gladiators gun for Gbajabiamila’s job

    …more are expected to join
    … APC in dilemma
    …as Reps endlessly wait for APC to zone positions

    … subtle threat of opposition parties to turn the tide

    Expectedly, the speakership race at the House of Representatives has thrown up ten gladiators gunning for the outgoing speaker Femi Gbajabiamila’s coveted office as religion may play a pivotal role on who emerges speaker.

    Religion may finally play an overriding role in who emerges as speaker as both number one and number two citizens are already rested in the presidency wearing the coats of Muslims.

    As for the high number of aspirants, this is not coming as a surprise because in the House it is more aspirants the merrier as the spirit ruling the parliament in Nigeria is simply ‘permanent interest ‘.

    TheNewsGuru.com, (TNG) in this analysis will take a look at 2019 speakership race in retrospect and how zoning, religion and massive war chest will play an overriding role in the 2023 speakership race.

    If finally the 10 contestants get to the final battle line then 10th House has recorded a fresh mileage. In 2011 the anointed candidate of the Goodluck Jonathan administration was Mulikat Akande-Adeola in the final race with Hon Aminu Waziri Tambuwal who eventually clinched the position rubbishing his party’s zoning formula.

    As at April 2019, 17 lawmakers had registered their intentions to take Yakubu Dogara’s job.

    The list then was Femi Gbajabiamila (Lagos) Sulaiman Kawu (Kano), Sulaiman Aminu (Kano), Tahir Monguno (Borno), Abdulrazaq Namdas (Adamawa), Yusuf Buba Yakub (Adamawa), Mohammed Bago (Niger), John Dyegh (Benue), Idris Wase (Plateau), Abubakar Lado (Niger), Nkiruka Onyejeocha (Abia), Chike Okafor (Imo), Olusegun Odebunmi, (Oyo), Jide Olatunbosun, (Oyo) Babangida Ibrahim, (Katsina) and incumbent Speaker and only aspirant from the PDP, Yakubu Dogara (Bauchi) were in the race.

    In the entire list of contestants, only South South geo-political zone had no aspirant as the zone remained a stronghold of the major opposition party in Nigeria.

    Going by the fresh list of contestants in the 2023 speakership race, South South is also visibly missing.

    By first week of May in 2019 the figure dropped to just seven contestants as negotiation as to who gets what had been concluded.

    Hon Abdulrazaq Namdas got the committee on Army to step down, Tahir Monguno became the Chief Whip, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, the only female contestant then became Monguno’s deputy. Wase settled for Deputy Speaker.

    This same scenario is expected to resurface in 2023 as the ten contestants though vastly experienced in legislative business may negotiate with the strongest contender if the ruling party musters enough fireballs to zone the position of speaker to any of the six geo-political zones.

    The strongest contestants for now are: Hon Idris Wase, from North Central zone who is also the outgoing Deputy Speaker, Tajudeen Abass, the legislator with the highest number of sponsored bills, Soli Sada, is from North West, specifically from President Muhammadu Buhari’s home state, Katsina, Benjamin Kalu, South East, Miriam Onuoha, Abdulrahim Olawuyi, Aliyu Betara others are just onlookers.

    HOW RELIGION WILL PLAY A KEY ROLE ON WHO EMERGES SPEAKER:

    In 2019, the ruling APC tested the waters fielding Gbajabiamila and Wase both Muslims and with the aid of a massive war chest succeeded in ensuring both men emerged.

    In 2023, any attempt for the party to try to repeat its 2019 experiment will be resisted and the party may finally wear the toga of an Islamic party.

    The party as presently constituted has a national chairman that’s a Muslim, major occupants of Aso Rock after May 29 are both Muslims.

    In simple terms, number one, two and fourth citizens of the Republic will be Muslims. This may not go down well with Christians and this must be considered if APC must zone the position.

    As it stands majority of those eyeing Gbajabiamila’s job are Muslims particularly those from the Northern axis of the country.

    This definitely is an acid test for the ruling party that’s known not to be respecter of laid down procedures.

    THE SUBTLE THREAT OF OPPOSITION PARTIES:

    Yes! it could be a subtle threat that majority parties if they can stand united can turn the table in their favour though this is going to be an alien development in this clime as permanent interest plays a vital role in the Nigerian parliament. They have a majority that can only wear the shape of a toothless bull dog.

    The new members-elect are predominantly green horns who do not understand the dynamics of how the parliament operates.

    Once the masters of the game start throwing bread and butter on their paths most of them may not even remember their constituents who worked tirelessly for them.

    Already the grapevine has it that there’s dollar rain and juicy offers being offered to them to sell their conscience for the next four years and sacrifice 2027 for good.

    Let the new members-elect ask their outgoing members what happened in 2019 and how they’re now fairing in 2023. The truth is that most of them are licking their wounds for not doing the right thing in 2019.

    The new breed opposition parties can never speak in one voice as bread and butter politics will always divide them for good.

    THE ENDLESS WAITING GAME FOR APC TO ZONE:

    The APC is in a dilemma over where to zone the speakership position. North West is claiming exclusive right to the position for delivering over 2.9m votes for the party. Nobody can blame them for that because the zone gave the party an edge.

    The north central too is insisting that the House had never produced a speaker while North West had produced three.

    These two zones have a good case but other zones too are laying claims to it giving various reasons. In the list of those who had championed leadership in the House, the north west and south west lead the pack. By default the South West has produced three speakers.

    The south south and the south east are permanently relegated to the position of a deputy speaker.

    If APC decides to zone the position the outcome definitely will not be palatable as north west, north east and north central may get to the finishing line and any of these three zones can conveniently produce the speaker with zoning or no zoning.

    Religion as usual will play a formidable role as the three zones may settle for Christians as their deputies. If APC wants to rock the bottle-Muslim-Muslim ticket can be experimented in 2023.

  • Gbajabiamila urges opposition to accept presidential election results

    Gbajabiamila urges opposition to accept presidential election results

    Speaker of House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has urged Nigerians to accept the result of the just-concluded presidential election.

    Gbajabiamila, who stated this in a statement issued in Abuja on Wednesday, also enjoined the opposition political parties to put the nation first and accept the outcome of the election.

    He congratulated the President-elect, Sen. Bola Tinubu, on his victory at the presidential poll, describing it as a testament to his hard work and tenacity.

    Gbajabiamila said that Tinubu had not only built political bridges across the country, but believed strongly in its unity.

    The speaker described the outcome of the election as victory for democracy and the dawn of new hope for the country.

    ”Tinubu is a courageous, dogged and determined democrat. He weathered the storm and emerged victorious against all odds.

    ”The result of this election is a victory for democracy. We were convinced that Nigerians will vote for him because he has good intentions for the country,” he said.

    He said that Tinubu’s emergence as president would trigger unprecedented development in the country.

    ”I am aware that this victory did not come on a platter. I am sure that Tinubu will be magnanimous in victory.

    ”I urge Nigerians to support him to deliver on his campaign promises,” he said.

  • Naira scarcity: Gbajabiamila regrets not signing warrant to arrest CBN gov, Emefiele

    Naira scarcity: Gbajabiamila regrets not signing warrant to arrest CBN gov, Emefiele

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has expressed regret for not signing a warrant for the arrest of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, Godwin Emefiele.

    Gbajabiamila also said that the House would have no option but to reconvene before this month’s general elections if the CBN failed to address the hardships Nigerians face because of the currency swap policy.

    Speaking during a town hall meeting on Sunday with some ethnic groups in Surulere, Lagos, Gbajabiamila said, “The House of Representatives intervened on several occasions. We summoned the CBN governor the first time and again, but he refused to answer because we had many hard questions for him.

    “It was until I issued the threat of warrant of arrest before he came, and I would have signed that warrant; it would have been the first time in the history of the National Assembly that a CBN governor would be arrested. I would have done it.”

    He added, “Many have argued on the independence of CBN, the autonomy of CBN. That doesn’t make CBN above the law.

    “So, we’re watching, and we’re monitoring very closely. If need be, we’ll reconvene the House, even though we have all been away for our elections. I’ll call the House back if need be.”

  • Gbajabiamila mourns CEO of AMAA Anyiam-Osigwe, says Africa lost a rare gem

    Gbajabiamila mourns CEO of AMAA Anyiam-Osigwe, says Africa lost a rare gem

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila has described as shocking, the death of the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Africa Movie Academy Award (AMAA), Peace Anyiam-Osigwe.

    The Speaker said the Nigerian and indeed the African movie industries have lost one of its finest and committed members.

    Gbajabiamila recalled that the late Anyiam-Osigwe touched many lives positively during her lifetime, using her network of friends and associates across the continent.

    In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, the Speaker said the late AMAA founder would be remembered for her humanitarian services and positive impact on the industry.

    Gbajabiamila prayed to the Almighty God to grant her eternal rest and give her family and many associates the fortitude to bear the loss.

  • ASUU, House of Reps bicker over lecturers’ salary backlog

    ASUU, House of Reps bicker over lecturers’ salary backlog

    The House of Representatives on Wednesday attacked Professor Emmanuel Osodeke, the president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, (ASUU) over his comments that its speaker Femi Gbajabiamila deceived them into calling off their eight-month strike embarked upon in February 2022.

    However, in a statement issued on Wednesday, the chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Benjamin Kalu, noted that there was never a time the speaker assured ASUU that government would pay salary arrears for eight months.

    In the statement titled ‘House of Representatives response to Osodeke’s allegations of deception against Mr. Speaker,’ Kalu pointed out that the Federal Government legitimately withheld the salaries for the period universities were shut down.

    Meanwhile,  Osodeke, in an interview with pressmen, said that the body called off the strike on the 14th of October, 2022 due to a letter signed by the speaker, Gbajabiamila stating that the lecturers would get an eight month salary.

    A copy of the letter and  duly signed by the speaker was presented to pressmen and it reads partly: “After exhaustive deliberations, which necessitated several visits by Mr Speaker to the President, and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), the Honourable Speaker called for another meeting with officials of ASUU, on Monday, October 10, 2022.

    “The meeting came to the following resolutions: the no-work-no-pay policy of the government remains a subsisting policy for all industrial actions, but the government will on the special ground concede ASUU to pay a part of its salaries during the strike period.”

    Continuing, Osodeke revealed that the government agreed with the union to pay parts of the backlog of salaries.

    He added, “When Gbajabiamila wrote to us, he said the government would pay part of the money and it was based on the information that we called off the strike. And we have called off the strike for over two months now, yet, we have not received anything.

    “How do you want our members to feel after we told them and showed them evidence that the Speaker promised to pay partly?’’

    However, defending the speaker, Kalu faulted some of the claims made by the ASUU president in his recent media interview.

    The statement read, “For the record, at no point did the Speaker of the House of Representatives commit to offset the arrears of salaries owed to union members for the time they were on strike.

    “The House of Representatives helped resolve the strike by making commitments to improve the welfare package of university lecturers and revitalization funds to improve the infrastructure and operations of federal universities.

    “These commitments are reflected in the 2023 Appropriation Bill, which includes N170,000,000,000.00) to provide a level of increment in the welfare package of university lecturers and an additional N300,000,000,000.00 in revitalization funds.”

    However, the effect of the eight months industrial action embarked upon by university lecturers have had negative effect on the University students.

    Many universities are still conducting exams for students in the yuletide period while many others are still studying for their exams meant to start soon.

  • 2023: Tinubu will care for the Igbos – Gbajabiamila

    2023: Tinubu will care for the Igbos – Gbajabiamila

    Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep Femi Gbajabiamila says the presidential candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu will serve the interests of all parts of Nigeria if elected in 2023.

    Gbajabiamila made the statement on Saturday in Lagos, while speaking at the Surulere Constituency 2 APC Town Hall meeting.

    He said the APC presidential candidate was passionate about the development of Nigeria, adding he would care for all the people of the country if elected.

    “One thing I can assure all Nigerians is that when Asiwaju Bola Tinubu becomes the president of this country, he will be president for all.

    “He will care for the Yoruba people, he will care for South South , he will care for the Igbos, he will care for the Nupes and the northerners.

    “He is the only candidate that has proven himself well.He has the capacity and will deliver”, Gbajabiamila said.

    The Speaker particularly appealed to Igbos to invest their votes in Tinubu to take the country to greater heights .

    He said it was unfair not to vote for Tinubu, simply because he is not from the South East or any other region apart from his.

    Gbajabiamila said Tinubu had done well for the Igbos and urged people from the region to give him all the support to lead the country.

    “To our brothers and sisters from the South East, has Asiwaju done anything to offend anybody in the South East? Has he done anything wrong?

    “Tell me one state in Nigeria where you have a non -indigene in the cabinet. I can tell you ,the only state where that happens is Lagos state.

    “The Director-General of Budget Office in Nigeria, one of the highest positions in Nigeria, what is his name? Ben Akabueze. Is he from from Lagos? No ,he is from the South East and Asiwaju put him there.

    ” He determines the budget.Whatever any money any agency or department is looking for, it must come Akabueze’s table.He determines whether to give or not to give.That is a man from the South East, put there by Asiwaju Tinubu.

    “And I can give you many more names. So, why will a man that has done much for the Igbos now come to you for votes ,and you tell him he has not done bad ,he has done well ,but because he is not from the South East ,we have somebody from the South East to vote for. I think that is not the way to go,” he said .

    Gbajabiamila said the 2023 election was about the progress of the country, and urged Nigerians to vote for competence rather than tribe or religion .

  • Stamp Duties Controversy: Reps Speaker meets Buhari, says Kazaure ‘on his own’

    Stamp Duties Controversy: Reps Speaker meets Buhari, says Kazaure ‘on his own’

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday met behind closed door with the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    Speaking to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting, the speaker said he discussed various national issues with the president, including next year’s general elections, associated rising violence and the controversies trailing recently introduced cashless policy.

    Gbajabiamila, who also reacted to the Gudaji Kazaure/Stamp Duties funds controversy, said the matter the member was involved in had nothing to do with the National Assembly.

    Kazaure, a member of the House of Representatives from Jigawa, in a viral video, had allegedly accused Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, of attempts to cover-up facts surrounding the collection of the controversial stamp duty funds.

    He also alleged that he was deliberately being denied access to present preliminary Report of a committee set up by Buhari to look into the alleged stamp duty funds being withheld by the CBN.

    Also in the viral video, the Kazaure urged the president to either allow him to present his Report to him or immediately order thorough investigation of the alleged stamp duty funds.

    Gbajabiamila also ruled out an intervention from the House of Representatives, saying that would only happen if it becomes necessary, saying the matter had nothing to do with the legislature.

    He said: “Kazaure, from my understanding, is working with whoever he’s working with. If it necessitates the House coming in, we will come in.

    ”If he has an official function, he should go ahead and do his work, but this has nothing to do with National Assembly. Not that I know of.

    “It was not based on a resolution of the National Assembly. It was not based on a motion from the National Assembly.

    ”I believe he said he had executive authority to do what he’s doing. If that be the case, then it’s got nothing to do with the National Assembly.”

    Gbajabiamila said that the House can only call Kazaure to order if he was impugning on the integrity of the House, individuals or leadership of the House that have nothing to do with what he was doing.

    He said: ”I think it’s important to separate the two. If he has a mandate to do something, that’s on him.

    “When it came up, we have asked members of the executive, they said they were not aware of any mandate, or such mandate has been withdrawn.

    ”I don’t want to get into it, except to the extent that he attempts to impugn on the integrity of members of the House and that’s a no no. We have nothing to do with this.”

    The presidency had on Dec. 11 dismissed as fake and untrue that Emefiele, could not account for about N89.1trillion the CBN allegedly collected as Stamp Duty charges.

    On his meeting with the president, Gbajabiamila said his visit was routine, adding that they had discussions on critical national issues.

    They included issues around the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recent cashless policy and the issue of political violence in different parts of the country.

    Gbajabiamila said: “We discussed things that came up in the last few weeks, things come up every day in Nigeria, every day and in the last few days, some things have come up.

    ”I’m sure you know some of these things, and I just wanted to get his perspective on them and give him mine and that of the National Assembly’s perspective and position on those matters. We had a fruitful discussion.”

  • Gbajabiamila expresses doubts over conclusion of constitutional amendment

    Gbajabiamila expresses doubts over conclusion of constitutional amendment

    Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker of the House of Representatives on Monday expressed doubt over the conclusion of constitutional amendment before the expiration of the ninth assembly in June 2023.

    He made this known at the second edition of the Distinguished Parliamentarians Lecture organized by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) in Abuja.

    The speaker said the national assembly had passed a draft of amendment to the constitution and advanced it to the states as required, adding that the process now seemed to have stalled in the state assemblies.

    “As it is today, it is doubtful that the current constitutional amendment effort will be concluded before the expiration of this legislative arms,” Gbajabiamila said.

    He said despite broad national agreement on the need for reform, the potential for achievements could rise or fall based on differences in expectations of the context, peace, and direction of the specific proposal.

    The speaker said the conclusion of the amendment was necessary to enable it to advance the course of the nation’s democracy and put it together for the good of the country.

    Gbajabiamila said one of the effective tools the ninth assembly had adopted was the Public Policy Dialogue, adding that the dialogues were structured engagement between the stakeholders.

    This, he said, was designed to build a shared understanding of issues and advance policy recommendations that addressed issues in a manner the parties could agree with.

    “These dialogues have helped us to advance national security legislation that may otherwise have proved difficult to scale.”

    Prof. Abubakar Suleiman, the Director General of NILDS said: “Today’s occasion attests to the robust nature of symbiotic roles of the executive and legislative.”

    He said this had brought to bear on democratic practices in Africa, where Nigeria had taken the lead.

    Suleiman said if the symbiotic relationship between the two arms of government, was strengthened, it would portend a leeway for democracy and impactful good governance to thrive.

    This according to him, does not, however, preclude the two arms having to occasionally diverge, even seriously on issues that have a direct bearing on the lives of constituents.

  • Gbajabiamila clarifies ASUU half salary payment

    Gbajabiamila clarifies ASUU half salary payment

    The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has clarified the reason why lecturers may not get fully paid for the eight months the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) was on strike.

    Gbajabiamila, in a statement on Monday, said the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari for the proposal of “partial” payment was being awaited.

    Titled ‘Statement by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila on the resolution of outstanding issues between the Academic Staff Union of Universities and the Federal Government of Nigeria,’ the statement reads: “When the Academic Staff Union of Universities called off their industrial action three weeks ago, it meant that academic activities could resume in our nation’s public universities, and students could return to their academic pursuits after the prolonged interruption. This decision was rightly heralded nationwide as the correct decision.

    “Since then, the Executive and the House of Representatives have worked to address the issues that led to the strike. We are currently working on the 2023 Appropriations Bill, which includes the sum of N170,000,000,000 to provide a level of increment in the welfare package of university lecturers. The bill also includes additional N300,000,000,000 in revitalisation funds to improve the infrastructure and operations of federal universities.

    “Furthermore, the House of Representatives has convened the Accountant General of the Federation, the Academic Staff Union of Universities and other stakeholders to facilitate the adoption of elements of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution into the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System. This effort is being supervised by the Chairman of the House Committee on Tertiary Education, Rep. Aminu Suleiman.

    “The Executive position that it is not obligated to pay salaries to adoption of elements of the University Transparency and Accountability Solution into the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System. This effort is being supervised by the Chairman of the House Committee on Tertiary Education, Rep. Aminu Suleiman.

    “The Executive position that it is not obligated to pay salaries to lecturers for the time spent on strike is premised on the law and the government’s legitimate interest in preventing moral hazard and discouraging disruptive industrial actions. Nonetheless, interventions have been made to explore the possibility of partial payments to the lecturers. We look forward to a favourable consideration by His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, who has manifested his desire to what is prudent and necessary to resolve all outstanding issues.

    “Implementing meaningful change takes time, especially when appropriations and modifications to systems such as IPPIS are required. Therefore, I urge all parties to be patient and grant each other the presumption of goodwill to the extent necessary to achieve our shared objectives. This is not a time for political brinkmanship. There is no more pressing objective than to preclude the possibility of further disruptions to the academic calendar of the universities. We must prevent this possibility by all means, as these disruptions risk the promise and potential of our nation’s youth.”

  • Netizens slam Gbajabiamila for flaunting Harvard photographs

    Netizens slam Gbajabiamila for flaunting Harvard photographs

     

    …Twitter users describe him as insensitive

    Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila has come under heavy fire from Netizens following a post he made on Twitter announcing that he was participating in a leadership course at the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, United States.

    The speaker had on Tuesday posted photos of himself receiving lectures at the prestigious university, saying he had gone back to school even at old age.

     

    “Back to class. In a leadership course at

    @Harvard

    @Kennedy_School
    . Forget the number of grey hairs one is never too old to learn, broaden or sharpen your skills,” he tweeted and splashed photographs of himself at the programme.

    The show-off came same day the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) had declared mass protests across Nigeria over a protracted strike of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) that entered its sixth month this week

    As soon as Gbajabiamila announced his presence at Harvard on his twitter handle, angry Nigerian Twitter users responded with a lot of venom, describing him as insensitive, wicked, shameless.

    One of the respondents, Philemon Oswald condemned the decision of Gbajabiamila to seek further education abroad at a time ASUU has been on strike for several months and the Federal Government has been unable to resolve the issue.

    Another Twitter user, Whitedust @Raw14Real also took to his handle and wrote thus: “There has never been a doubt that those elected to serve the people serve only themselves. On a day the entire country is grounded by solidarity protests with ASUU, you are here posting pictures about educating yourself because you are at Harvard.”

    Greatex @ Abigor_Gr8t lamented that Nigerian leaders don’t believe in Nigeria, hence, according to him, “they are busy securing their future abroad,” while telling the poor gullible Nigerians to be patriotic.

    Segun Israel @I’m -Segun Israel had this to say:
    “Nigerians are responsible for the current leadership problems. This kind of experience won’t stop until we start doing background checks on whoever desires to run for a public office. We should be the ones selecting our representatives, not the other way round.”

    Similarly, Kanma Samuel @Musingmusite wrote thus: “These shameless people think having something to do with the educational system outside makes them better than others in this country. So even fools that should work to make the country’s education system better go there to show off shamelessly.”

    Ubong Anang @obonguby wrote the following: “Its the level of how insensitive and contempt and lack of regards by our opportunist rulers. Criminals everywhere – young or old, from LG to federal level. Commander of BH occupying Aso Rock as President is not bothered provided his islamization and Fulanization plot is achieved.”

    OB@ obekpa-SA also expressed anger at the development. He wrote: “It’s simply a lack of Emotional Intelligence. That, coupled with apathy & an ‘i-don’t-care attitude over the plight of Nigerian students. Just one instance of our Leaders clearly showing they don’t give a damn & there is nothing anyone can do about it.”

    In a separate post, Lion of Zingh, another Twitter user observed that Nigerian political leaders often “go to Harvard to boost their resume and ego but fail miserably where common sense is needed,” while
    Mr Bond attributed the Speaker’s action as a demonstration of the insensitivity of the APC government in Nigeria.

    John Ukagwu @JohnUkagwu simply wrote:
    “They don’t have shame at all. You all closed down schools in Nigeria but run abroad to study. If they were on strike like you misfits here in Nigeria, I wonder where you will go to pose for pictures.”

    According to Napoli @isholanomic, Gbajabiamila was at Harvard “simply to mock Nigerian students that they re in a failed, bad lands” and described him as a clog to Nigeria’s wheel of progress.

    Yahaya Monday @AgidiJnr
    Your number 3 man in government hierarchy goes to the Harvard to take a leadership course amidst ASUU strike. That verifies the scary fact that the elites don’t care about you. If they and their children could access quality education in Europe, education in Nigeria can decay!”

    Lanre Joda also wrote :
    “These guys are illiterate! No truly educated person would do what they do! They lack emotional intelligence! I wonder how they engage Havard lecturers etc in academic conversations! The ability to speak gud grammar isn’t education.”