Atiku’s US Trip: So much ado about nothing

By Tunde Ajose

For good watchers of the Nigerian politics, one thing has come to stay in our political experiment at getting it right in this country and that is the ability for smart politicians to easily sway the electorates with mundane issues.

The campaigns are no longer issue based but media sensationalism.

Latest of such was the sudden appearance of the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the United States of America! Then one begins to wonder why the opposition would think such is the needed magic wand to win the election.

And the euphoria may not be unconnected with the report that Atiku was barred from entering the States because of his fraudulent nature but the question is, why would any serious opposition believes such action would immediately translate into winning the Aso Rock.

One would have wondered why Atiku has chosen to travel with the current senate president, Dr. Bukola Saraki? Could it be that he actually traveled under the diplomatic immunity of Saraki's  official delegation?

Diplomatic immunity is a form of legal immunity that ensures diplomats are given safe passage and are considered not susceptible to lawsuit or prosecution under the host country's laws, but they can still be expelled.

We need to be circumspect as we move forward as a nation and be more discerning. The current government of Nigeria is focused more than before in ensuring that Nigerians, regardless of the class or status has a befitting country they could fall back to and call a home.

It is quite obvious that while the opposition are playing to the gallery, the presidential campaign organisation of president Mohammad Buhari is busy rolling up its sleeves and getting down to fields where the real electorates are and connecting with them.

This past week especially has been full of activities for the president despite his age. Within a spate of two weeks, Buhari had sat down to two interviews in-between journeying from the length and breadth of the country in getting the message of hope down to the people.

The president does not rely on his privilege as an incumbent, but insisted on talking to his people and ensuring that Nigerians are united as they go to polls come February.

No one is in doubt that his message also resonates well with the citizens as they troop out en masse to welcome and listen to what he has to say. With the multitude of crowd recorded today as he presented the gubernatorial flagbearer of the party to the good people of Delta State and the ovation that greeted it, there is no doubt that Buhari is truly loved.

As we count down to the elections, Nigerians need to bear it in mind that the 2019 election is about building on a new foundation which the present government has been able to achieve in the first four years and giving the solid foundation out to the marauders to destroy along with the better forgotten 16years in power.

If Atiku is in the United States today, there is no way the intelligence agencies of the federal government of Nigeria would not know about it.

Tunde Ajose, a political commentator, writes from Lagos.

Wait! Before you vote Atiku By Musa Mohammed

While the clamour for change in government from president Muhammadu Buhari to Alhaji Atiku Abubakar may have been something that has taken over the national discuss and rightly so as the elections draw near, it may be noteworthy to pause and reflect on the character of the prospected replacement.

The big question on our mind should be can we trust Atiku? What really is the new thing he is coming to offer bearing in mind he was once the number two citizen of this great nation for 8years? If we insist the position of a vice president is not as powerful as the president, haven't the achievements of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo knocked out such narrative?

The Nigerian vice president has proven times without number that he is as useful as the president of Nigeria and records are there to show for it. Where are the achievements of Mr. Atiku?

If you ask Nigerians, most of what they would remember about his days in office would be the national assets he sold to his colleagues and the long running battle he had with his principal, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

Aside from the fact that there should be no vacancy in Aso Rock, Osinbajo is more presidential than Atiku. Don't take my words for it, below were some of the things his then boss said and wrote about him chronologically.

2003 "I regret picking Atiku Abubakar as my vice".

2004 "I can no longer work with Atiku, his integrity is in question ".

2005 "Atiku cannot be trusted ".

2006 "Atiku cannot escape justice over corruption cases "

2007 "Do not vote Atiku he is corrupt".

2008 "Atiku is a corrupt leader".

2009 "Nigerians can never forgive Atiku".

2010 "Atiku is not an option to leadership in Nigeria ".

2011 "I have never seen a leader as greedy as Atiku ".

2012 "Nigerians should pray for leaders imbued with integrity not Atiku ".

2013 "Atiku should apologize to Nigerians over his political sins".

2014 No political party with the aspiration to assume leadership should think of Atiku".

2015 "Nigeria has grown beyond a corrupt leader like Atiku".

2016 "I will never reconcile with Atiku ".

2017 "I never knew Atiku was this corrupt " "I can never be on the same page with Atiku. God forbid!".

2018 January to August "God will not forgive me if I support Atiku ".

2018 August "Atiku has the capacity to save Nigeria's economy from collapse".

If such verdicts could come from Obasanjo who was his direct boss, what doubts should Nigerians have in rejecting such bad market and move on to the next level with the present administration bearing mind that Obasanjo once said, "As an engineer, I know a point I can use tractor to hit and a storey building would come down within few minutes, but it would take years to erect such."

Nigeria is undergoing transformation. The administration of president Muhammadu Buhari has used his first term to lay a good foundation for him to start building on in 2019 and it only make sense to key in.

God bless Nigeria.

Otunba Rusewe Eulogises Lagos State Over Tourism

Spurred by the increased momentum in the Lagos State tourism sector last year, thanks to the unrelenting efforts the minister of Tourism and Culture, Steve Ayorinde, with full support of the state government, the Director-General National Council for Arts and Culture, Otunba Segun Runsewe has singled out the state and expressed his readiness to tour the centre of excellence as a form of encouragement for creating a window for organised local and integrational visits across Nigeria in 2018.

Other states equally penned down for such honour by the NCAC DG are Rivers, Cross-River, Kaduna, Plateau and Edo States.

Runsewe whose office organised some of the most notable cultural festivals in Nigeria last year such as National Festival of Arts and Culture (NAFEST) and International Arts and Crafts Exposition (INAC), noted that the upbeats in culture activities from all states in the country would help to sustain an all year and season holiday culture in Nigeria and also anchors certified cultural festivals as tourism products to help local and international tour operators in marketing Nigeria to the world.

According to Nigeria’s chief cultural officer and President, World Crafts Council, Africa region, what took place around the country last year is a revolution which would place Nigeria in its rightful place in global tourism community.

The NCAC DG noted that the 50 billion naira spending by holiday makers in Lagos is a huge eye opener to what can tickle down  to operators of businesses and the service industry, adding that what is needed now is to see that the industry is well organized and turned up to create jobs for Nigerians. He said Lagos state government is doing well in tourism and prays that the state will continue to provide the leadership in strategic tourism activities more than ever before.

To Cross-River, Runsewe commended the governor for making carnival Calabar to take new shape last year through an authentic African Theme which calls for top mind awareness and revival of African culture to help open the continent to visits and collaboration. Indeed, the 26 foreign nations that visited and actually participated in the Calabar carnival, Runsewe observed, has taken the cultural carnival to another level.

As Nigeria’s chief marketing officer, Runsewe explained that the cultural intervention in Rivers state during NAFEST, presented Nigeria culture to the world in an uncommon way and adding that he would remain grateful to Governor Nyeson Wike of River State.

The Durbar in Kaduna and the refocused attention to rewrite and reposition tourism in Plateau by Governor El-Rufai and Simon Lalong respectively added up to give Nigeria the desired rebound that the world is expecting from Africa’s biggest black nations, Runsewe noted.

Not left out in Runsewe’s ranking is also Edo State which came to town last year with its Edo Fest, targeting Edo people and their friends outside Nigeria. The strategic attention, to which that festival gave the repatriation of Edo relics and Artifacts in foreign museums, marks it out as a holiday event to watch in Nigeria. Significantly, Edo is the host ground for NAFEST 2019, thereby expected to be in the forefront cultural discussion throughout the year, NCAC DG further explained.

Group demands professional involvement in elections

A group named Nigeria First Professionals has joined the fray of the country's political landscape, lending it's voice to the 2019 campaigns.

According to a member of the group, Sola Fajobi, it has become imperative for true professionals to take active part in determining how their country is run, and move away from the docile disposition of the past.

Fajobi further said it will be incumbent on Nigerians to take a critical look at the resources available to politicians and public officials, and what they've either done with it, or what they're able to do with it.

He added that the Nigeria First Professionals group will assess the issues on ground, consider results, and establish the yearning of Nigerians in order to determine which candidates can best deliver them, and then help the electorate make informed decisions.

According to Mr. Andy Akporugo, another member of the group, the need to facilitate Good Governance should be very dear to every discerning professional, especially as Nigeria was overdue for being counted amongst the world's most remarkable countries.

Nigeria First Professionals is made up of top Executives and professionals from major walks of life, including Media, Medicine, Law, Aviation, Engineering, etc.

Wale Faniyi, Bite Lounge's Boss, to celebrate birthday Jan 15

A Lagos big boy, Wale Faniyi, popularly known as Mr. Bite, the cerebral owner of the popular night club, Bite Lounge, is set to celebrate his birthday on January 15, 2019 at the club.

The event tagged 'Wale Bite Birthday Celebration' would play host to the trending Ye crooner, Burna Boy, who has promised to shut down Adeniyi Jones on the day of the event.

Other celebrities marked down to add colour and get guests dancing all night with unlimited free supply of Remi Martins from the tap during the birthday celebration of Bite Lounge's boss are the ever dependable DJ Neptune and Shody D TurnUpKing.

Wale is the humble brain behind Bite Lounge, which boasts of an architectural delight, parading immaculate surrounding which makes it an ideal place for pleasure and business.