Former President Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has felicitated with elder statesman Chief Edwin Clark on the occasion of his 96th birthday, wishing him peace and sound health as he continues to work for a united and prosperous Nigeria.
Dr Jonathan described Chief Clark as a great leader who has been consistent in his advocacy for a peaceful, just and prosperous country.
In a goodwill message he personally signed, Dr. Jonathan stated:
“I join your family and friends and other Nigerians to felicitate you on your 96th birthday and to thank God for the gift of long life in good health.
“You are a great leader, who has been consistent in the advocacy for a peaceful, just and united Nigeria.
“As an elder statesman, you have continued to lend your voice on critical national issues as a dogged crusader for justice and role model to millions of youth across the country.
“ I wish you more years of peace and sound health as you celebrate.”
There is simply no nice way to speak about the Buhari era.
Under him, the country became of no consequence in the councils of power and diplomacy and even in Africa – except as a grave source of concern and fear of the fall outs of its quite possible implosion.
It also became of no consequence to many of its people except as a source of pain and affliction.
For a man who was so determined to occupy Aso Rock that he became something of a career presidential candidate, President Muhammadu Buhari’s eagerness to leave the seat of power he occupied for eight years says it all: he was a desperately incompetent failure.
Every which way you look, there is nothing to hold up as a viable achievement. So pathetic is his record that he was left to declaring open major projects like the Dangote refinery and the second Niger Bridge that are in fact uncompleted. Yet he had all of eight years to do so.
Such has been his indifferent, slothful leadership that the past several months left ample room for a thieves carnival with a scramble to award contracts of questionable value – from multibillion naira fire trucks to resuscitating the flying elephant( the unfortunate symbol of the long defunct national airline and our mothballed hopes).
If a wrecking ball had been applied to the national edifice, it couldn’t have done greater damage than what Buhari managed to inflict on Nigeria. All that his one-time admirers touted as his strong suit proved to be hollow shells.
Corruption, nepotism, impunity, indiscipline, callous indifference to pain and suffering, insecurity ran amok under his watch.
Many times in its post-independence history, Nigeria has been on the verge of dissolving in chaos. Under Buhari it came closest such that even those who had long believed in keeping the country together no matter what began to lose faith. Trained professionals- doctors, nurses, bankers, teachers- who are the backbone of any functioning society gave up on the country and joined the exodus to other climes with nary a concern expressed from official quarters.
Appointments were made on the basis of the recipients falling within the rather narrow comfort zone and rather constricted world view of the president even if they were in blatant violation of the constitution and unwritten codes of fairness and equity that helped to keep the country together.
Apart from the economic wasteland that he has bequeathed, the most consequential damage has been the utter devaluation of life such that rising statistics of deaths and kidnapping now barely elicit a shrug.
Nearly every institution has suffered devastation. Procedure, systems,ethics and mores function in the breach. More than ever before Nigeria’s is a case of everyone for himself – and the devil for us all. Apart from policies, programmes and projects being seemingly driven by how they enrich the originators and implementers, individuals seem able to readily procure the services of agents and agencies of government to enforce their private, often nefarious agenda. The epitaph to the tenure of Buhari, a man who his once ardent supporters invested with messianic qualities can well be in the boast of an individual In one reported ongoing case: ” you can get away with anything in Nigeria. It depends on who you know, the language you speak and your sex.”
It was indeed an era of impunity writ large.
The process had been incremental. But why under Buhari did we fall so far so fast and how do we avoid worse to come?
What should be obvious to all is that leadership recruitment based primarily on regional, religious or ethnic considerations often bring all to grief. The whole country has suffered but the devastation of the north has been particularly gruesome. Fortunately, and particularly with the enlightened youth, the repudiation of such proclivities is becoming quite consequential. We saw this flowering with the EndSars protest of 2020 and it again manifested in the undeniable electoral achievement of Peter Obi and his Labour Party in the recent elections.
The next administration has its work cut out. Put an end to the egregious forms of impunity that have ruined the country.
While wholesale probes are probably distracting, no serious administration can move forward without taking stock of the nature and perpetrators of an utterly baleful inheritance. For instance, the borrowing frenzy. The huge Chinese loans that have put us into peonage and ostensibly contracted to modernize our airports and rail system need to be investigated and those who corruptly enriched themselves identified and severely punished with assets confiscation and long prison terms.
The gravity of our woes means it can no longer be business as usual and with past wrongs swept under the carpet.
If there is one good eight years of Buhari has done it is to bring us to the realization that we are at a tipping point with our very survival depending on the next step we take.
Sully Abu is of FrontFoot Media Initiative, a non-profit
COMMUNIQUÉ ISSUED AT THE END OF A CRUCIAL MEETING OF THE SOUTHERN AND MIDDLE BELT LEADERS’ FORUM (SMBLF), HELD IN ABUJA, ON WEDNESDAY, 24TH MAY 2023
A crucial meeting of the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders’ Forum (SMBLF) was held on Wednesday, 24th May 2023, in Abuja. The meeting which was chaired by elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, OFR, CON, had in attendance leaders of the component organizations: Afenifere for the South West, Ohanaeze Ndigbo for the South East, Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) for the South-South and the Middle Belt Forum (MBF) for the Middle Belt.
Delegations of the constituent organizations were respectively led by Chief Ayo Adebanjo, Leader of Afenifere (South West); Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, CFR, President-General, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide (South East); Dr. Pogu Bitrus, President, Middle Belt Forum (Middle Belt); as well as Senator Emmanuel Ibok Essien, FNSE, National Chairman, Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF (South-South).
Delegates to the meeting who were drawn from former Governors, Ministers, Federal and State legislators, Community leaders, top politicians and professionals from the Southern and Middle Belt regions, had Oba Oladipo Olaitan – Deputy Leader Afenifere, General Lawrence Onoja rtd., former Military Governor of Plateau and Katsina States, Potter L. Dabup, D.I.G (Rtd.), Chief John Nnia Nwodo, former Minister of Information & former PG Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Ambassador Okey Emuchay, MFR, Secretary-General Ohanaeze Ndigbo, HRM Dr. Eze Ibe Nwosu, Amb. Eddy Onuoha, Chief Dr. Simon Okeke, former Chairman of Police Service Commission, Amb. Dr. God knows Igali, OON, FNAH, Professor G. G. Darah, Chief Barr. Sola Ebiseni – Secretary General, Afenifere, Dr. Akin Fapohunda, Chief Supo Shonibare, Professor Charles Nwekeaku, Dr. Alex Ogbonnia, Dr. Ene Ede, Elder Mac Emakpore, Prince Maikpobi Okareme, Engr. Ben Akaakar, Hon. Jonathan Tsaku, and Dr. Ken Robinson, among others.
The meeting deliberated extensively on the present state of affairs in Nigeria, especially the renewed siege of insecurity around the country, the ongoing post-election judicial process in the various Tribunals and the national economy.
At the end of the discussions, the SMBLF resolves as follows:
On the State of the Nation
Restates its time-tested position that the future of Nigeria can only be sustained on the basis of true federalism and respect for the autonomy of the federating units.
Express shock at the escalation of killings, pogroms, total destruction of entire communities and means of livelihood in several targeted areas in select states since after the 2023 General elections, mainly in Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa, Taraba, Southern Kaduna, Kebbi, and various states of the South East, where hundreds of armless citizens are being slaughtered daily.
Notes with grave concern that the nation’s security agencies have continued to show unwillingness to decisively deal with the perpetrators of these monstrous acts, or rather, deliberately turned a blind eye to the atrocious occurrences, thereby exposing the country to a seeming state of war. It is shameful that non-state actors are allowed to openly tote dangerous weapons about and rampage the country unhindered.
Condemns, in unmistakable terms, the cavalier and totally nonchalant attitudes of the outgoing governors of some states over the collapse of security in certain parts of their states, which has continued to exacerbate the worrisome situation, and hopes their successors will show greater commitment to the welfare of their citizens who are the victims of this sad situation.
Further warns that the continuous abdication of Government’s primary and abiding constitutional responsibility of safeguarding the lives and properties of its citizens is an irresistible signal to Nigerians to exercise their inalienable rights of self-defense, by all means.
Again deplores the inhuman plight of thousands of indigenous people in the Middle Belt states driven out of their homes and have now become Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) for years as well as several other Internally Displaced Persons in different parts of the country, left to live in conditions that impinge on their human rights as citizens of this country. Hence, calls on the Federal Government to, without any further delay, facilitate the return and reintegration of these Nigerians to their Communities.
Outcome of the 2023 General
With regards to the 2023 General elections, SMBLF commends Nigerian youths for their courage and astuteness in expressing their interest in the future of this country and calls on them not to become discouraged by some of the seeming outcomes.
Accordingly, calls on the youths of Nigeria to remain undeterred and emboldened to carry their foresight of building a new Nigeria to fruition, and to note that the STRUGGLE FOR THE NEEDED CHANGE has just begun.
The Judicial Process
SMBLF strongly urges the Nation’s Judiciary to be aware that all Nigerians are watching with very keen interest the ongoing judicial processes at the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal as well as various election tribunals across the country.
Further cautions the judicial arm, at all levels, to be mindful of the fact that the present process is a true test of our effort at building a country based on rule of law and respect for our constitution. It is the expectation of Nigerians that the outcome of the processes will be a reflection of the provisions of the Constitution of the country, which must be sacrosanct, and the rights of all affected parties upheld based on the provisions of the laws of Nigeria.
SMBLF commends the various parties for subjecting themselves to the expected judicial processes in line with the Constitution and the Electoral Laws of the country.
On the Economy
SMBLF notes with serious concern, the continued snowballing level of indebtedness being incurred by the Federal Government, particularly the recent request for $800 million World Bank loan, and calls on the Federal Government to rescind that request.
Decries the rising cost of living in the country and the hyper inflation rate, confining a vast majority of ordinary Nigerians to a dire state of survival. Implores government at all levels to take urgent, practical steps to rejig the economy, check inflation and help improve citizens’ well-being and prospects.
General Issues
The meeting congratulated Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu over his emergence as the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide.
The meeting eulogized its National Leader, Chief Edwin Clark on the occasion of his 96th birthday on Thursday, 25th May 2023.
The meeting observed moments of silence for the memory of the late President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Amb. Prof. George Obiozor, CON; the late leader of the Middle Belt, Commodore Dan Suleiman, and late Senator Inatimi Rufus-Spiff, who was Chairman of the Bayelsa State Chapter of PANDEF.
The meeting was held in an atmosphere of peace and collective commitment to the decisions.
DONE IN ABUJA, THIS 24TH DAY OF MAY 2023.
Signed:
Chief (Dr.) Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, OFR, CON – Leader
Those who are poised to work against the success of the recently proposed Imo Charter of Equity may be doing so at their own peril as the traditional rulers in Imo State have taken the idea to the gods of the land, asking them to deal mercilessly with overt and covert saboteurs.
The monarchs also asked the gods for yet another thing – to support the reelection of Governor Hope Uzodimma with everything within their reach.
Led by the Imo State Chairman, Council of Traditional Rulers, HRM Eze (Dr.) Emmanuel Okeke, the monarchs assembled on Thursday, May 25, 2023 at the Government House Roundabout where they poured libation in support of the Imo State Charter of Equity and the re-election bid of Governor Uzodimma and more importantly, against any person or group of persons, that will go contrary the Charter.
The traditional rulers said Governor Uzodimma has performed above expectations, initiating and completing many Federal and State projects in Imo and therefore deserves to be re-elected.
Eze Okeke told the media that “His Excellency, Senator Hope Uzodimma has performed creditably well to the admiration of the entire State and especially, to the traditional rulers and their spouses.”
He added that the libation and prayers they came to offer were their own way of endorsing the unanimous agreement of Imo State Council of Elders and all stakeholders in the State who support the full implementation of the Charter of Equity.
According to Eze Okeke, it was also an opportunity for them to pass a vote of confidence on Governor Uzodimma “having seen all the good works he has done in the State.”
Eze Okeke was joined by his brother monarchs in charge of the three Zones in Imo State to pour the libation and offer the prayers.
They were HRH Eze Thomas Obiefule (Orlu), HRH Eze Goddy Okeke (Okigwe) and HRH Eze Osuagwu Akujobi (Owerri).
The Zonal monarchs in unison with all their colleagues prayed against any individual or group of persons that would oppose the Imo Charter of Equity or work against the reelection of Governor Uzodinma.
The Chief of Staff to the Governor, Barr. Nnamdi Anyaehie and other top government officials witnessed the occasion.
Governor Samuel Ortom has just carried out his final, and most irresponsible action as the Governor of Benue State. He called a confirmed, executed, Coupist a hero. He did not stop at that. He proceeded to immortalize him. He praised him for his good works. He praised him for being a leader in one of the most bloody coup d’etats in the Country. He regretted the failure of the Coup. Ortom wished the Coup had succeeded.
In that aborted Coup, 42 officers and men were executed. A part of the Country was excised from Nigeria, just like that. And Governor Ortom, in one mad moment of abuse of power, called the man who read the Coup speech a hero, a great son of Benue State. He clapped for the man. But who is clapping for Ortom?
For months, nobody has clapped for this Governor. For that long, he has done nothing for anybody to be proud of. For this long, Ortom’s value has been reduced to a nuisance value. For that long, he did nothing for the State and its people. All he did was to tag along his fellow Governor, Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, younger than him in age, like an Orderly, and went wherever Wike went. It is one of the reasons Ortom is where he is where he is today. Confused. Looking for where to perch.
Ortom belongs to the group of Governors who became popular, no, I take that back, who became known by playing to the gallery. By being talkative. And garrulous. And not surprisingly, on May 29, 2023, Ortom will go out of the Government House, Makurdi, empty handed. He will leave, clothed in failure. Nothing cheery to remember him by. But he has a consolation.
His wealth did not diminish.
A very wealthy man, by his account, before he became a Governor, Ortom did not come out of Government House, Makurdi, poorer than he was, financially. My guess is he came out richer – what with free food, free everything, not to talk of security votes. But aside from that, and his CV to which he would add “former Governor”, what else did Ortom gain politically?
On all fronts, Ortom lost.
He was unable to install his successor as Governor. The very sellable Presidential Candidate, Peter Obi, who he claimed he backed in the Presidential election, lost in his State because Ortom neither had the muscle, nor the popularity to push votes his way. He pushed his Party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to its most disastrous outing in the State. And the worst: Ortom was roundly defeated in his bid to become a Senator and represent his people at the National Assembly. When a Governor fails to even win in his Senatorial Zone, in an election to represent his own people at the Senate, the conclusion can only be that the Governor was a no-no in both governance and human relations. That’s Ortom.
I first marked Ortom as a no-no over his choice of words when he dumped the PDP, for the All Progressives Congress, APC in 2015. Before then, I was full of admiration for him. I liked his grass to grace story – a story he told a number of times. He talked of his struggles to find a place under the sun. He was a motor boy, he said. He was a motor park tout, he added. Unlike a number of people, including some of his colleagues, he was not ashamed of his background. He made no false claims to being born with a silver spoon. Not even with a wooden spoon. So, I admired him.
When there were doubts and jabs over the Dr. he prefixes his name with, I defended him robustly. And, why not? Isn’t it that which many illiterates, many money-miss-road prefix their names with? And, in his case, he said he earned it!
But I digress.
So, I was full of admiration for this Governor. But Ortom lost it by the irresponsible statement he made when he dumped the PDP. A National Officer of the Party at the time who aspired, but failed to pick the Governorship ticket of PDP Benue State, Ortom said, on dumping the Party to pick the APC ticket, that “I know how they (PDP) win elections, the method they use.” Obviously referring to rigging, Ortom meant that he was a participant in the unwholesome business, and kept quiet till he fell out with the Party. A lucky guy, perhaps, using same method which he had mastered, he won the Governorship election under the APC.
But Ortom soon fell out with the APC and his political godfather who gave him the APC ticket, former Governor George Akume, former Senator, and outgoing Minister for Special Duties.
Ortom claimed his problem with them was because of President Muhammadu Buhari’s silence over the gruesome killings of his people by, alleged, Fulani herdsmen.
On that, Ortom had my full sympathy and tears. But he spoilt it by his constant threats of war. He abandoned governance for the threats of war. Most times, I felt he spoke unstatesmanly. I felt he was caused more tension than he looked for the solution. I felt, atimes, that he was playing to the gallery. Yes, his people were being killed, still sadly being killed, but he was so fixated on those he suspected were the culprits that most times, his choice of words rankled, and put even Security Agencies off. And atimes, too, he held a couple of innocent people responsible for the heinous crime, even Security Agents, some of whom lost their lives in the condemnable, blood cuddling murders.
At a point, not a few people thought Ortom was beginning to play politics with the sad situation, especially, just before he got his second term under the PDP where he shamelessly went back to. Each time he spoke, he presented himself as the only messiah of the people. The only person who could willingly die for his people. Not true. Many felt his eyes were on his re-election bid. But, perhaps, not, because, on winning, Ortom became more aggressive than ever in his attacks on everybody, almost.
He saw wolves everywhere. The drama over the alleged assassination attempt on him in his farm stood out. It was surprising that nobody was injured; that Ortom’s Security personnel were so “useless”, they arrested nobody; they shot at nobody; and till date, nobody has been arrested. Ortom said he did an Usain Bolt, along with his many Security Aides. He cursed the APC-led Federal Government no end.
But soon, Ortom turned against his Party, the one returned to – the PDP. In connivance with four of his Governor- colleagues – Nyesom Wike, Rivers State, Okezie Ikpeazu, Abia, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Enugu, Seyi Makinde, Oyo – the PDP was destroyed. Aside from Wike, Ortom was the most talkative, the most vocal, the most garrulous of the G5 Governors. He is, reportedly, the leader of the Group. Not Wike. Wike was, according to reports, financier and Spokesperson. With Ortom as the leader, it is no wonder the Group scattered so easily after the General Elections, where three of them – Ortom, Ikpeazu, Ugwuanyi – were disgraced by their people. They performed badly, and lost their Senatorial bids. With a leader like Ortom, it is no wonder the Group was not able to agree on a particular Presidential Candidate, and it became to “Your Tents O Israel.” It is no wonder the Group lost relevance thereafter.
Ortom, inspite of his gra-,gra and foul mouthedness, was not able to safeguard his people. In his Senatorial Zone in particular, Ortom will be remembered for his role in the removal of his kinsman, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, as the National Chairman of the PDP.
Benue people refused to clap for him for that inexplicable action. But Ortom has now upped the ante of his bad behavior.
A few days to the end of his tenure as Governor, Ortom decided to shock his people and other Nigerians. He did the unbelievable. In the name of Benue State, Ortom declared a coupist a hero, Benue State’s hero
Late Major Gideon Orkar is the guy after Ortom’s heart. He is, according to Ortom, Benue State’s hero.
Governor Samuel Ortom
For the records, Orkar was the guy who siezed Radio Nigeria in Lagos, and announced a Coup plot. On that April 22, 1990, Orkar sauntered into the Studios of Radio Nigeria, held staff hostage, traumatized them, and announced a Coup plot to overthrow the Military Regime of General Ibrahim Babangida. He also excised some parts of Nigeria from Nigeria.
That aborted Coup went down in the history of Coups in Nigeria as one of the most bloody. 42 Officers and men, including Orkar, who was arrested two days after the Coup, were executed, perhaps some, innocently.
What pushed Ortom to proclaim Major Orkar a hero? What did he want to gain? What point did he want make? Many think he was hitting at the Fulani, those Orkar excised from Nigeria in his Coup speech, whose herders Ortom holds responsible for the rivers of blood in his State. Perhaps.
But by calling Orkar a hero, and naming a-9.7 km Road after him, Governor Ortom has not solved the problem. Instead, he has endorsed violent Coup d’etats. He has peed on the graves of those who died innocently in that Coup. And he did it at the wrong time.
With a Country so tensed up one could cut the tension with a knife, Ortom is telling the youths that it is okay to behave like Orkar. Who is clapping for Ortom?
My opinion is that Ortom just wanted to be relevant, the relevance he has since lost. He lost it when he was not able to install his successor in office. He lost it when his Senatorial Zone rejected his representation at the Senate.
On Wednesday, 14th May, 2023, Ortom, in a bid to look for some relevance, tried to curry the favour of President-elect, Bola Tinubu. On a national television, he announced that he would work for Tinubu’s success. How? When did that begin? In case he has forgotten, Tinubu is now the authentic National leader of the APC, a Party he thrashed with his tongue for over five years. What will Ortom bring to the table?
And look at this: On the one hand, Ortom is calling a Coupist a hero. On the other hand, he wants to participate in a Civilian regime. How contradictory can one be?
Ortom should be kept at arms length by any Government. He should go back to his house and bemoan his fate, a fate he brought upon himself.
Finally, the incoming Governor of Benue State, a Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia, should reverse Ortom’s mortalization of Orkar. It is a sacrilege, almost. Orkar should be allowed to sort himself out before God. And, since Ortom is so enamored with him, the Governor is free to name his own personal house in Makurdi, or Abuja, after Orkar. Nobody will worry. Or ask questions. It will be his business, entirely.
The minister of works and housing, Babatunde Fashola has revealed that persistent pressure by minister of state for transportation, Ademola Adegoroye on federal government led to the award of contract for dualization of Akure/Ado Ekiti Road.
Contract for the project was awarded at the cost of N90 billion and is expected to be completed in 24 months.
Speaking on Thursday at the flag off of the project in Akure, Fashola commended the Minister of State (Transport), Ademola Adegoroye, for his unrelenting efforts in ensuring the road is awarded, saying he has done well, even more than those who spent four or eight years as a minister.
According to Fashola, “Barely under a year, I know how many memoranda he (Adegoroye) had presented. He chases me with telephone every day on this road.
“He told me he would not be able to return home (to Ondo State) after the expiration of tenure if the road is not awarded and reconstructed.”
Adegoroye was appointed less than 10 months ago by President Muhammadu Buhari on the recommendation of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu.
On the delay in awarding the contract, the minister explained that when the issue of the road came up, some people suggested that the road be rehabilitated and re ashphalted, but I said it would be dualized
“It took this long because we have to do the redesigning of the road and other necessary documentation.”
Fashola disclosed that the award and flag-off of the road took so long because of the necessary process required by the new procurement law.
The former governor of Lagos State assured that the financing of the project has been taken care of by NNPC and construction work would not stop till completion.
He apologized to the people of Ondo and Ekiti states for the delay in reconstructing the road, assuring that every necessary payment had been made to the contractor handling it in order to complete it within 24 months.
Minister of State for Transportation, Ademola Adegoroye said he fulfilled that he achieved his vision of seeing to the reconstruction of Akure-Ado Ekiti road for economic prosperity of the two states.
“Each week I go to his office and he briefed me every week with development. /Akure/Ado road is so important to us. A lot of people live in Ado and work in Akure and vice versa.
“Our governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu sent me to Abuja. He asked me to do something about Akure/Ado road and get the Ondo Port Approval. I am fulfilled today that I have delivered.”
Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu represented by the Commissioner for Infrastructure, Lands and Housing, Engr Raimi Aminu and a message by Governor Biodun Oyebanji, expressed delight that the project when completed would reduce suffering of residents of the two state and boost economic activities between them.
After weeks of being at daggers drawn over the results of the last general elections and with only days to the inauguration of a new government on May 29, one of Nigeria’s three biggest pastimes – food – appears to be bringing people together again.
On a good day, the country swoons over football or music. In the last two weeks, however, Nigerians up and down the food chain have been flocking to the pot of 27-year-old Hilda Bassey Effiong, fondly called Hilda Baci, who is on the verge of confirmation as the new holder of the Guinness World Records for the longest cooking time.
Nigeria’s president-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the two other leading contestants – former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP); and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) – who have not seen eye-to-eye since the February 25 presidential poll, all lined up nicely behind Hilda’s kitchen from May 11 to 15, invoking the national can-do spirit on social media. For a moment, they buried the hatchet.
Also, celebrities riven by partisan politics, friends and family, and ordinary folks, defied at least two nights of heavy downpour in Lagos to cheer Hilda. A country deeply divided by the outcome of the elections appears to have found a common ground in Hilda’s recipe.
After four days of dicing, marinating, boiling, frying, baking and grilling, Hilda toppled the 87 hours 45 minutes individual cooking record set by Indian chef, Lata Tandon, three years ago. The Nigerian set a new record of 100 cooking hours, with 55 recipes and more than 100 meals.
Yet, when Hilda first announced she was going to challenge the record it sounded like a joke, even to her. “I’ve been obsessed about the Guinness Book of Records,” she told TVC, a Nigerian TV station. “It was out of obsession that I randomly asked my brother about five years ago who the holder of the world’s longest cooking record was.”
In a country where four in ten are poor, attempting a record in most fields is a long shot. Hilda had seen misery upfront, especially during COVID 19 when she supported less privileged communities in Lagos with 3000 meals at her own expense and came down with the virus. She certainly does not belong in the class once controversially described by President Muhammadu Buhari as “lazy youths.”
Her mother, Lynda Ndukwe, eked out a living from selling food in open space before she later started “Calabar Pot”, a makeshift eatery in Abuja’s middle-class working area.
Mrs. Ndukwe struggled to put her children through school and by the time they finished, she had barely enough left in the tank. All she could offer any adventurous child at this time were her prayers and best wishes, though once when Hilda competed for a beauty pageant, her mother parcelled traditional costumes to her over hundreds of miles.
Though Hilda had tried to make a career as supporting actor, TV presenter, restaurateur, and Big Brother Africa left-out, if she was ever going to get a shot at her dream of toppling Tandon, the cook-a-thon record holder, she needed to be in form, a far cry from where she was two years ago.
She was having weight problems and had undergone liposuction, a process which she later described as one of the darkest periods of her life. To come through that period and announce a plan to challenge the world’s record holder, a task that would test even the very fit seemed like a bridge too far.
Yet, Hilda was willing to try. Before her surgery that year, she competed in the continent’s hottest culinary warfare – that triangular title race among Senegal, Ghana and Nigeria over a dish of long-grain rice mixed with spicy stew aptly named the Jollof Face-off Competition.
Hilda, representing Nigeria, beat Ghana’s Leslie Kumordzie to win the prize money of $5,000, which seeded her dream for a modest online restaurant service, “@Myfoodbyhilda”, with the tagline, “Made with love”.
But love alone won’t pay bills. Or make dreams happen. Hilda took her fate in her own hands and left Abuja, her comfort zone where she had been with her mother, on a journey to the unknown.
“Moving to Lagos was definitely a turning point for me,” she told The Nation newspaper in an interview shortly before she announced her cook-a-thon date. “The challenges I faced pretty much prepared me for this point. I did a nine-to-five and worked two jobs at a point. I worked as a cook. When I quit, I started my own show on DSTV. It was called ‘Dine on a Budget.’”
Lagos, Nigeria’s hustle capital described in local folklore as the teaching place of the laggard and slothful, taught Hilda more than how to dream big. It instilled in her the appetite to pursue her dream and also opened her up to a wider network.
After operating from a tiny restaurant in the first two years, using mainly home delivery service, she opened her first big spot in 2022 with four staff and kept her fire burning by offering online culinary lessons. She even awarded cash prizes to the best performing students.
By March this year when Hilda officially announced her intention to challenge Tandon’s record, she had amassed both a culinary army of supporters and some experience for the task. She also spent hours in mental and physical drills. But as she would find when the cook-a-thon started, the taste of a marathon is in the grind.
“I almost gave up six hours after I started,” Hilda told LEADERSHIP. “I was tired and couldn’t go on. But I was encouraged by my mother who stood by me for 14 hours and gave me strength.”
Her mother and the country were rooting for her. In five days, her Instagram followers grew from 50k to 1.2m. In the days after she reached the 100 hours mark, the accolades and offers of endorsement have not stopped coming.
“One of my biggest goals is that I want Nigerian recipes to be propagated across the world,” she said. “I want it to be a normal thing to make Egusi (melon) soup in an American environment, to walk into any random supermarket and find Nigerian ingredients. I also want to inspire young people, especially girls.”
Yet, even before her dish is cold or her record is confirmed by Guinness World Records, which sometimes takes up to 12 weeks, competitors are snapping at her heels.
Two chefs – Liberian WonyeanAloycious Gaye, and Kenyan chef Maliha Mohammed (who twice broke the cooking marathon record), have signalled they would challenge Hilda, drawing Nigerian trolls who are angry that competitors can’t wait to rain on Hilda’s parade.
The culinary queen is obviously offering her cheerleaders what is absent in the menu of politicians. And they’re not in a hurry to leave her table.
President elect, Bola Tinubu has assured Nigerians that he is fully prepared for the task ahead not minding its enormousness.
He spoke after his investiture of the highest national honour and his vice, Shettima, second highest in Abuja on Thursday by President Mohammadu Buhari.
On the occasion, the president elect was also presented the transition document, describing it as impressive and noteworthy scorecard.
He stated that “You have made history and no one can take your contribution to our nation’s development.Your devotion to progressive and democratic good governance is unassailable.
“As such, I stand here renewed not only in hope but also in dedication to our national purpose and destiny. I also feel full of pride but this pride I feel is not for myself. It is for what this moment represents.
“This stately occasion is living evidence that Nigeria is a vibrant and true democracy. All of us here bear witness to this inspiring proceeding where one leader bestows personal honor on his successor.
“Also, that leader does his utmost to exchange the baton of government by ensuring that his successor is as well-prepared as possible for the task at hand.
“This hall is permeated with a sense of reverence for our democracy and the confident belief that this reverence shall be enshrined for generations to come.
“Today is more than ceremony. It confirms that our path is right and that nothing will deter us from adhering to it.
“Our way shall not always be smooth. Yet we are imbued with faith in our purpose and a firm belief in our collective ability to overcome the challenges that confront us.
“President Buhari, you have shown courage in taking tough decisions others avoided. One such decision was to recognize the injustice of the annulment of the 1993 election, to designate June 12 as Democracy Day, and to bestow the nation’s highest honor on the late MKO Abiola.
“The people have put their trust in us. You have done your part Mr. President. Now, that great duty descends on me. I understand the meaning of the honor given to me today and of the task that awaits.
“I must run this race and must do it well. On security, the economy, agriculture, jobs, education, health and power and in all other sectors we must make headway. The people deserve no less. In this, I shall disappoint neither them nor you, Mr. President.”
Guinness World Record has announced a 17- year-old student of Oyemekun Grammar School, Akure, Ondo State, Philip Solomon, as its record holder for most skips on one foot in 30 seconds.
On January 24, Solomon officially recorded 153 skips on one foot in 30 seconds to outdo former record holder Rasel Islam of Bangladesh whose record was 145.
His record was officially confirmed by the Guinness World Record on Tuesday, four months after his attempt.
Guinness World Record stated in its website that “Solomon was inspired by the previous holder of this record title Rasel Islam after seeing a video of his record attempt.
“He has been training to achieve the record and was honoured to attend a skipping world championship.”
Solomon has joined his Ijapo High school, Akure counterpart, Gbenga Ezekiel, who was in February declared the world record holder for most skips on one leg in one minute with 265 skips, to increase Nigeria’s rope skipping Guinness World Records to two.
The senior secondary school three students also said he was inspired by the feat of Gbenga Ezekiel earlier this year.
The Flying Eagles of Nigeria has booked a place in the Round of 16, the Knockout phase of the ongoing FIFA Under-20 World Cup Championship in Argentina.
Two second half goals from Salim Fago Lawal and Sunday Jude gave the Coach Ladan Bosso-team a 2-0 victory over the Gli Azzurrini of Italy.
With the victory, the Flying Eagles are top of the Group C log with Six Points courtesy of its 2-1 victory over Dominican Republic and the 2-0 win over Italy.
The victories automatically qualify Nigeria for the knockout phase of the tournament irrespective of the outcome of the other matches in the Group.
Brazil is second on the log courtesy of its 6-0 annihilation of the North America nation after its 3-2 loss to Italy in the opening match.
The last Group match between Nigeria and Brazil is, however, mere formality, but the Brazilians would be gunning for a victory to top the log.
The victory against Italy has been celebrated by soccer loving Nigerians both at home and in diaspora.
Following the victory of the Flying Eagles and their qualification to the next round of the competition, a stakeholder of Nigeria Football, Alhaji Aliyu Oroje Wammako, has pledged in Mendoza, Argentina, that if the Flying Eagles wins the coveted trophy they would be rewarded with a piece of land individually.
Wammako, who is the President of Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria, made this known on when he visited the team’s camp at Hyatt Park Hotel in Mendoza. He further charged the players to be focused ahead of the upcoming games, and implored them to play as a unit.
“I urge you to keep focus in this tournament and I pledge to give five-metre square plot of land in the Federal Capital, Abuja to each and every player if the team emerges as winners of the FIFA U20 World Cup. In the absence of triumph, I will still support the team with an amount of money that will go round everyone including the officials.
“Nigerians are hoping and praying for you and we all believe you can do it.”
