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2019: I’ll Do Everything Possible To Ensure Buhari’s Defeat – Obasanjo
Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has said that he would do everything ‘humanly’ possible to protect and safeguard the nation’s nascent democracy current under threat in the hands of the All Progressives Congress-led government.
He spoke yesterday at the public presentation of a book, “Politics As Dashed Hopes in Nigeria” authored by Dr Auwalu Anwar, where he was the chairman of the occasion.
He said while President Muhammadu Buhari and APC should be given the credit for the ouster of the former President Goodluck Jonathan and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led government when Nigerians were disenchanted, noted Buhari has failed in all indices of development.
He noted that President Buhari has failed in almost four years into his administration to provide security, fight corruption and create jobs for teeming Nigerians youth as clearly pointed out by the author in his book.
He congratulated the author for the courage, the discipline and the research work he undertook to write the book.
Obasanjo said he attempted to read the book and saw what he termed the author’s frustration which led to a somewhat melancholic title of the book.
He said even though he was not at the occasion to review the book but to speak on some issues since the book is about Buhari Campaign Organisation (BCO) Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), All Progressives Congress (APC) and Buhari’s political life, up to second years of Buhari’s administration.
He said: “I will touch on three or four points that will be of interest for all of us at this juncture. Dr Anwar pointed out that President Buhari served the purpose of galvanising efforts to get Jonathan and PDP out of office.
“Buhari and APC must get the credit for that have strengthened our democracy. Because democracy without strong opposition is like marriage without the bridegroom to consummate the marriage.
“But on the mid-term scorecard, Dr Anwar pointed out three significant and tangible areas of failure- security, fighting corruption and job. creation. As at today, these three areas are still where they were at mid-term, not yet a success story.
“Dr Anwar also touched on three critical but intangible areas of failure, which includes reciprocal loyalty, exemplary leadership which include character and power for its sake or what I may call power for self-aggrandisement.
“Well, I understand where Dr Anwar is coming from to get the title of his book. But we must replace despair with optimism.
“Only last November at the launching of the Africa Progressive Group (APG), I raised five pillars African development, growth and progress as politics, population, protection, prosperity and partnership.
“Politics which is essentially governance has overarching importance over other four pillars but I am not in despair. And I will ask Dr Anwar and the rest of us not to be in despair because our hope lies in democracy,” he said.
He noted that the hope of the nation lies in a democracy with good governance, which the hallmark is a free, fair, transparent and credible election.
He disclosed that elections would take place in four significant countries in West Africa between now and next year -Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire. In the four cases, the incumbents were in opposition and took over from the ruling parties.
He said that was good for strengthening and deepening of democracy, saying the world was watching how the elections in these countries would cumulatively strength, deepen and stabilise democracy in the four countries.
“As for me, I will do everything humanly possible to safeguard democracy in Nigeria and I believe that is the main purpose of Dr Anwar’s book,” he said.
He warned that there was no need for any Nigerian to stand aloof when evil is perpetrated, saying anybody who cherishes democracy must work hard to safeguard it.
Obasanjo said that the time has come when every Nigerian must have a Nigerian dream where there must be some commonalities, even as he said that in assessing the mid-term government of Buhari, security, fighting corruption and job creation remain where they were when the government started as it was not yet a success story.
According to him, if Nigeria as a country must get it right, especially entrenching good democracy, there must be good governance, free and credible elections.
Speaking, yesterday, at the Public Presentation of a book titled, “Politics As Dashed Hopes In Nigeria”, by Dr. Auwalu Anwar, Obasanjo, however, urged Nigerians to rise and defend the country’s fledgling democracy.
The former President said that he would do everything within him that was humanly possible to safeguard democracy for good governance in Nigeria and for all Nigerians, just as he said that in the next couple of months, four West Africa countries of Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire will be having their elections, adding that one common feature is that the four incumbent presidents were in the opposition and people voted for them.
He said that the world is watching to see how they would strengthen democracy in their respective countries.
Obasanjo, who was the chairman of the book presentation at the Shehu Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, said that democracy without a strong opposition is akin to a marriage without a bridegroom to consummate the marriage.
The book, which is published by Safari Books, is made up of 22 chapters, with 614 pages.
The former President said, “I am not in despair and I would ask the rest of us not to be in despair; our hope lies in democracy with good governance as one of the hallmarks which is free, fair, transparent and credible elections.
“What should be our take home; yes things may be gloomy, things may not be what they should be, yes leadership may be underperforming, we must not lose hope, that is the first thing.
“The second is that I believe we must have some commonalities that we will all hang on to. One our common nationality, Nigeria; this is the time when we must have a Nigerian dream, what is Nigerian dream, what can I hang on to? Yes, I am a Nigerian and because I am a Nigerian I expect this.
“And I believe if we all see ourselves first as Nigerians and then we enunciate for ourselves the Nigerian dream, a land flowing with milk and honey, a land of opportunity, a land that gives you a stake in all that it is, I think, we will have a country that we can all be proud of.
Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have foiled attempts by drug trafficking syndicates to smuggle illicit substances concealed in carton walls, winter jackets, and body cream containers through Murtala Muhammed International Airport and a Lagos-based courier firm.
The agency said two consignments bound for Italy were intercepted at the Lagos airport, leading to the arrest of suspects linked to the shipments.
In a statement released yesterday, the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi, said one of the suspects, 37-year-old Friday Ehianuka, was intercepted on Friday, March 20, 2026, while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight to Rome, Italy.
The statement partly read, “Two of the consignments heading to Italy were to be moved through the Lagos airport where two suspects linked to the shipments were promptly arrested.
“One of them, 37-year-old Friday Ehianuka, was going to Rome, Italy on Friday, March 20, 2026, when he was intercepted while attempting to board an Ethiopian Airlines flight with 2,698 pills of tramadol 225mg concealed in containers of skin-lightening body cream, all packed in the suspect’s luggage.
“In his statement, Ehianuka, who is a resident of Milan, confirmed that he was to be paid a negotiated fee in Euros if he had succeeded in trafficking the consignment to Italy.”
In another operation on Wednesday, March 18, Babafemi said NDLEA officers at the departure hall intercepted another passenger, Christian Agbonhese, attempting to board a Lufthansa flight to Milan.
A search of his luggage uncovered 23,150 pills of tramadol 225mg, 4,000 tablets of tapentadol 250mg, and 1,320 pills of tramadol 100mg concealed in two large winter jackets.
“No fewer than 23,150 pills of tramadol 225mg; 4,000 tablets of tapentadol 250mg; and 1,320 pills of tramadol 100mg, all concealed in two large winter jackets, bringing the total number of opioids recovered from him to 28,470 pills. The 38-year-old Agbonhese is also a resident of Milan,” the statement added.
In a separate operation at a courier firm in Lagos, Babafemi said NDLEA officers on Monday, March 16, intercepted two parcels of Loud, a strong strain of cannabis weighing 1kg, hidden in a carton shipped from the United States.
“Also thwarted was an attempt to export 158 grams of methamphetamine concealed in the walls of a carton to New Zealand,” he said.
In Kano State, operatives arrested Abdulkadir Mamuda, 35, with 102.5kg of skunk at Dan-Tsalle, while another suspect, Uche Johnson Festus, 47, was nabbed at Naibawa Gabas with 95.5kg of the same substance.
Babafemi said the agency also recovered 21,737 bottles of codeine-based syrup during a raid at Otto, Ijora area of Lagos on Wednesday, March 18, adding that two suspects, Chidiebere Anigbogu and Paul Nwagbara, were arrested the same day on the Third Mainland Bridge while conveying 8,380 bottles of the syrup.
In Edo State, operatives recovered 97.5kg of skunk from the residence of Akeem Idde, 37, in Ojah, Akoko-Edo Local Government Area on March 16.
In the FCT, officers intercepted a commercial bus along the Gwagwalada Expressway on March 18, recovering 91,840 pills of tramadol hidden in body compartments of the vehicle. The driver, Aminu Ali, 27, was arrested.
In Oyo State, a suspect, Bankole Bari, was on Tuesday, March 17, arrested at Oke-Oyan, Ibarapa LGA, with 71.2kg of skunk, which he smuggled into Nigeria from Benin Republic through the Oyan River.
In a similar development, “Not less than 586,000 pills of tramadol and Exol-5 were recovered by NDLEA operatives from Lawal Anas, 28, along Kaduna-Zaria Highway, Kaduna, on Tuesday, March 17, while 7,290 tablets of tramadol 225mg were seized from Musa Shuaibu, 22, at the same location on Friday, March 20,” Babafemi said.
In Taraba State, officers intercepted Aliyu Adamu, 26, along the Takum-Jalingo Highway with 77,660 capsules of tramadol, while in Adamawa State, six suspects were arrested in connection with the seizure of 82.8kg of tramadol in a truck in Yola.
The suspects include Ramatu Aliyu, Jungudo Abdullahi, Najid Abdullahi, Musa Mohammed, Usman Abdulrahim, and Musa Mohammed.
The agency said its commands across the country also intensified War Against Drug Abuse sensitisation campaigns in schools, worship centres, and communities during the week.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd.), commended officers of the MMIA, DOGI, Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Edo, Oyo, FCT, Taraba, and Adamawa commands for the arrests and seizures, urging them to sustain the balanced approach to drug control efforts.
News
RSG Applauds FRSC, NDLEA For Enhancing Security In Rivers …As NDLEA Pushes For Drug Tests In Schools, NYSC Camps
The Rivers State Government has commended the dedication and collaboration of federal government agencies in sustaining security in the State.
Speaking during a courtesy visit by the State Commander of the Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), CN Bature Dawa, in Port Harcourt, last week, the Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Dagogo Wokoma, said Governor Siminalayi Fubara appreciates the strong synergy between the agencies in promoting his administration’s vision of peace, prosperity and progress in the State.
Wokoma urged residents to remain law-abiding, noting that respect for the law is essential for good governance and sustainable development in all parts of the state.
He stated that the governor has remained committed to initiatives that promote peace and social order, stressing that the administration will continue to support programmes of federal agencies aimed at strengthening security and public safety.
“Our governor is committed to peace, progress and prosperity in Rivers State. I therefore encourage all residents, especially young people who are often targeted by those involved in drug abuse, to stay away from drugs, crime and reckless driving,” he said.
In his remarks, the State NDLEA boss, Dawa, disclosed that the agency has arrested 39 suspects in the state from December 2025 to date, including 16 new cases currently under investigation.
He explained that the NDLEA, through its Drug Demand Reduction and Drug Supply Control Units, has intensified efforts to curb the spread of illicit drugs and ensure offenders are brought to justice.
Dawa also called on parents and guardians to closely monitor their children, while urging hotel owners and managers to remain vigilant and prevent their facilities from being used for drug-related activities.
He further advocated the introduction of drug integrity tests in schools and within the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme as part of measures to discourage drug abuse among young people.
In a related development, Dr Wokoma received the Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), CC Inyang Umoh, during a courtesy visit, and urged residents to abide by road safety laws and drive in consideration of other road users.
In his remarks, the FRSC boss expressed appreciation to Governor Fubara for the continuous support to the Corps.
Muslims in Rivers State have commended Governor Siminialayi Fubara for his dedication and commitment to the development of the state.
They also lauded the governor for promoting peaceful co-existence among various religious groups in the state.
Vice President General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs ,Alhaji Nasil Awhelegbe Uhor, gave the commendation last Friday during the Eid-el Fitri prayer to mark the end of Ramadan fasting period, at the Port Harcourt Central Mosque, Niger Street, Port Harcourt.
Speaking to newsmen shortly after the prayer, Alhaji Uhor said Governor Fubara has shown exemplary leadership in the affairs of the state.
Uhor who is the leader of the South South Muslim Ummah of Nigeria, called on Muslims to remain committed to the ideal of peace and fear of the Almighty Allah.
According to the Rivers State Islamic leader, the message is for Muslims to imbibe and allow the lessons of Ramadan to sink into their lives and shape their ways of doing things.
He urged Muslims to imbibe the culture of love and respect for one another.
“My message is that all Muslims should imbibe and allow the lessons of Ramadan to sink with them,” he advised.
Uhor stressed the need for Muslims and all Nigerians to remain patriotic, while avoiding all forms of anti-social behaviours.
He also called on the political leaders to put the country first, stressing that there is no need for Nigerians to continue to wallow in abject poverty when the country is so rich with natural resources.
Also speaking, the Chief Imam of Rivers State, Alhaji Ibrahim S Yalo, urged Muslims to fear God, and speak the truth always.
According to him, time has come for Nigerians to cultivate the habit of peaceful coexistence, speak the truth and be each others keeper.
“Nigerians own a duty to ensure peace, live together in fear of God and speak the truth always,” he said.
By: John Bibor
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