Zenith Bank Plc, Nigeria’s leading financial institution, has commenced its “Zenith Beta Life” Promo to reward customers of the Bank with gifts every week starting from 31st July 2020 to 30th July 2021.
During this period, fifty (50) customers will be selected via raffle draw each week and rewarded with gifts worth NGN30,000.
The Promo is open to existing and new Zenith Bank customers with the following raffle qualifying criteria:
– maintain a minimum deposit of NGN5,000 for the period;
– request and collect a Zenith Bank Card; and
– download and register on the Zenith Mobile App or register for *966# EazyBanking.
Zenith Bank Plc is recognised as one of the most customer-focused financial institutions in the country and was voted the most customer-focused bank in Nigeria for the retail and SME segments in the 2018 KPMG Annual Banking Industry Customer Satisfaction Survey (BICSS).
A clear leader in the digital space with several firsts in the deployment of innovative products, solutions and an assortment of alternative channels that ensure convenience, speed and safety of transactions, Zenith Bank has clearly distinguished itself in the Nigerian financial services industry through superior service quality, unique customer experience and sound financial indices.
In recognition of its track record of excellent performance, Zenith Bank was voted as the Best Commercial Bank in Nigeria 2019 by the World Finance and the Best Digital Bank in Nigeria 2019 by Agusto and Co. The Bank was also recognised as Bank of the Year and Best in Retail Banking at the 2019 BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BOFI) Awards.
More recently, the Bank emerged as the Most Valuable Banking Brand in Nigeria, for the third consecutive year, in the Banker Magazine “Top 500 Banking Brands 2020”, number one Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital in the “2020 Top 1000 World Banks” Ranking published by The Banker Magazine, Best Bank in Nigeria 2020 in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards 2020, and Bank of the Decade (People’s Choice) at the ThisDay Awards 2020.
Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki appears to have added a new preference to his unkind character traits and it’s called SADISM. He’s suddenly developed an intentional penchant for delighting in the misfortune of others. And as a political neophyte, spurred only by the irrationality of his infantile choices, his inability to strategically channel his bile, especially for logic-driven results, is quick to expose him and his petty ecstasy.
I suffered a momentary pang of shock recently, when I learnt of the lies being joyfully spread around by the Edo State governor amongst his close-knit allies. The embattled outgoing governor of Edo State has been propounding to his sycophantic cliques, his new theory on why the All Progressives Congress (APC) does not stand a chance in the September 19 governorship election.
According to him, a certain individual from the northern part of the country, who used to assist the ruling party by arranging some dollars from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is no more, and therefore, the party would be unable to muster enough funds for the election, which automatically leaves him in a position of strength as the incumbent.
How more wicked, satanic and insensate can a character be, all in the name of an ambition? His excitement, when others suffer misfortune is both legendary and incomprehensible. This also underscores why all the good people in Edo State today are standing in a camp different from his.
For eight years, Obaseki headed former Governor Adams Oshiomhole’s economic team and managed the state with him, literally taking the decisions from behind the scene. This, understandably, was the reason Oshiomhole, against all odds, deemed it fit to push him forward as his successor, because not only was he with him for that long, he was in charge of the state’s economy.
No sooner had he assumed office than he started seeking the fall of his benefactor as the national chairman of the APC, aligning with Oshiomhole’s traducers in the party to victimise and denigrate him till he was eventually pushed out of his position as the APC chairman.
To get him into office, Oshiomhole did everything within his reach, including projections that were never to be and allusions that were later proven overtime as incorrect. But to pay back, he’s done practically everything, including telling palpable lies and painting Oshiomhole black. It was the ‘cutest thank you’ ever in appreciation of all that Oshiomhole did for him.
But he didn’t stop with Oshiomhole. He’d probably read some puerile laws of power and decided to go after everyone, who contributed to his success, as not just his payback for their good deeds to him, but also to gloat, if misfortune eventually befalls any of them.
This, of course, brings to mind, the speed at which he went after Captain Idahosa Wells Okunbo. Curiously, this started after some people moved to get Okunbo into the governorship race, an overture he expressly turned down.
But on getting this hint, Obaseki went after the retired commercial pilot. Although he did not want Okunbo to run for the position, he never sat with him to solicit his support. Yet, the only time he made a remark about the governorship to Okunbo was at a reception in Lagos, where he derisively addressed him as “Incoming Governor”, to which Okunbo immediately dispelled and reiterated that he wasn’t interested in the office of the governor.
Coincidentally, as Okunbo narrated recently in a lengthy press statement, on the same day that the reception held in Lagos, the story of a move by the Nigeria Ports Authority against Okunbo’s company, the Secured Anchorage Area (SAA), was published in some of the dailies.
The story had insinuated again that Okunbo was interested in the Edo governorship, even when intelligence had reached the Edo-born businessman and philanthropist that Obaseki was the one behind the rumour.
“As God would have it, while in the company of some friends at the governor’s house in Benin, on one occasion, I confronted him that he was the one behind the attack on my company. In a bid to defend himself, he put a call through to someone in Lagos and, perhaps, mistakenly left the phone speaker.
“He asked the person at the other end: ‘Why is the MD of NPA worrying Captain?’ and the man replied: ‘Godwin, I thought you said this man was fighting you. The MD of NPA is fighting your battle for you.’ I quickly told him that I had caught him. On this occasion, I had witnesses and, if further probed, names could be mentioned,” Okunbo narrated.
Okunbo also recalled that, when Obaseki was the chairman of the National Economic Council’s Ad-Hoc Committee on Oil Theft and Pipeline Vandalism, “I got a feeler that a damaging report was going to be written about my company by the Committee.
“I was then given an opportunity to address the Committee on the matter to defend my company and its job. My defence was excellently delivered, but at the end of the day, when the report came out, it was still damaging even when I had complied with my threshold and responsibilities.
“It is sad that Governor Obaseki has been paranoid about me even before he became governor, for reasons best known to him,” he noted, adding that he had since known that the disagreements “between Comrade Oshiomhole and myself, during his eight years administration in Edo State, were orchestrated from the background by Governor Obaseki.”
Need I say more that, Obaseki is irredeemably evil and sadistic and that ingratitude remains his stock-in-trade? How does anyone situate the video of a colleague-governor, Abdulahi Ganduje, conspicuously placed at a roundabout in Benin, just because he is leading his party’s campaign in September? What joy does it give him?
How do you even start to define the character of a governor, who ordered a crackdown on his people in a campaign period? Do I need to say it more expressly that he lacks wisdom, patience and the perseverance required to occupy his current office? He is simply innately wicked hence his going after all the illustrious sons and daughters of the state.
It’s in Obaseki’s interest to stop looking at the rear mirror of bringing back the untruths about Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, because it helped him to win the 2016 election. He should look at the windshield of the future of what Ize-Iyamu has to offer the Edo people in the next four years and if he must look at the rear mirror, then he should tell us all what he too has done for the Edo people in the last four years, definitely not on power-point presentations of things that have never happened.
The general belief is that he actually has nothing to campaign with and his only escape is to attack the character of his opponent and try to discredit them. Obaseki has nothing to offer Edo and when given the chance in the last four years, all he has done is to impoverish them and sold to them projects only on paper with propaganda and nothing to show on the ground. But he has kept his social media rats busy, promoting paper presentations of his achievements and encouraging them to abuse their elders. Is that the 200,000 jobs he promised the youths?
Well, whoever it was that Obaseki claimed was no more but had always provided financial back-up for the APC through the CBN, it is yet to be seen how Obaseki too would survive the post-office financial scandal that is definitely to come on his trail after the September 19 election. Fingers crossed!
Prince Oladega Kehinde Ibrahim has indicated interest to vie for the vacant Kosofe Constituency 2 seat in the Lagos State House of Assembly, which became available following the demise of Honorable Tunde Buraimoh, who was representing the constituency.
Ladega, as he’s popular called made this known through an official statement signed by his publicist, Wole Adepoju.
The All Progressive Congress member , who has since started consultations said it was not his sole decision to put in for the race but a decision unequivocally made by the elders and those whose influence count, at his ancestral home, Agboyi in Agboyi Ketu Local Council Developmental Area (LCDA).
He further revealed the decision of the elders to push him forward to represent them at the Lagos Assembly, was borne out of the fact he’s known to have always striven to seek development for the area.
“ My people have always known and seen my zeal towards ensuring our place is not left out of the development Lagos state has enjoyed under successive governments and as such they believe if I am at a place like the assembly to represent them, their interest will be well represented and protected’ he explained.
Also, Prince Oladega believes that, as a young man who is active, exposed, performance and result oriented, and as well over the years garnered experiences at the feet of late Senator Bayo Osinowo and the minister for interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbosola, he’s eminently qualified as a round peg in a round hole to take over from where late Hon. Buraimoh stopped, to help take Kosofe Constituency 2 and the state at large to the next level.
Youthful Oladega Ibrahim is a mass communication graduate of Lagos State Polytechnic and a long standing member of Ogudu GRA rotary club. He’s plied his trade with Mitv, Radio Lagos and Unique FM, Ilesha. He’s also a gifted and professional Compeer cum voice over expert, who has handled lot of briefs for Lagos and Osun state government, among other high profile clients. He’s happily married.
A Peep into Prince Oladega Ibrahim’s Profile
Former President, National Association of Lagos State Students (NULASS) LASPOTECH Chapter.
15 Years as Host of a Radio Program [LERE, Radio Lagos]
Award Winning Broadcaster [Indigenous Broadcast Producer 2014, 2017]
Producer of the Award Winning HIV AIDS Television Campaign on the Orphans And Vulnerable Children, General Control and Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission [PMTCT], for State Of Osun.
Former Personal Assistant to the G.M, UNIC FM, Ilesha, Osun State.
Media Aide to Late Senator Bayo Osinowo [Lagos East Senatorial District].
Member Media Committee Babajide Sanwoolu Campaign Organization.
Special Assistant to former Hon. Commissioner for Information, State of Osun.
Member Media Committee, President Buhari NEXT LEVEL CAMPAIGN
Deputy Director, Lagos East Senatorial District Campaign Committee
Member, Rotary Club of Ogudu
Facilitator of many educational development initiatives, and an Advocate of infrastructural and human capital development of the people of Agboyi-Ketu
The deepening division between England and Scotland in the United Kingdom shows yet another one of TB Joshua’s 2020 prophecies manifesting.
On 28th December 2019, Prophet TB Joshua released his prophetic message for the year 2020 which he aptly termed ‘The Year Of Humility’.
In prophecy number eleven specifically directed towards UK, Joshua declared, “There will be agitation from a section that wants to leave; that will become an issue.”
Recent reports in UK revealed the government handling of the coronavirus pandemic has further intensified division within England and Scotland, with the support for Scottish independence reaching its highest level.
Poll guru Sir John Curtice revealed that for the first time in Scottish history, the ‘Yes’ side is the favourite to win should Scotland host a second independence referendum, with a new poll revealing 54 per cent of Scots now back independence, a five-point surge since March.
When British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited Scotland earlier this week, he received a markedly frosty reception.
Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland, tweeted upon his arrival: “I welcome the PM to Scotland today. One of the key arguments for independence is the ability of Scotland to take our own decisions, rather than having our future decided by politicians we didn’t vote for, taking us down a path we haven’t chosen. His presence highlights that.”
In his 2020 prophecy, Joshua equally spoke of division among the British Royal Family, confirmed in January when Prince Harry took the controversial decision to officially resign from royal duties.
A new book titled ‘Finding Freedom’ shortly to be released detailing ‘behind-the-scenes’ details of Harry’s departure from the Royal Family is set to widen existing tensions with unsavoury details of internal royal rows set to be made public.
In his prophecy for America, the cleric disclosed that “approach to the security issue will affect the candidates and swing voters in the next election”.
With the election approaching in November, ongoing security challenges facing USA in the wake of the death of George Floyd have seen polls show voters support swing steadily towards Democrat Joe Biden.
In his declaration concerning those in ministry, Joshua revealed in the prophecy: “People will be getting tired this year because the work of God is not by power and might; because of so many challenges, tribulations and burdens they will not be able to bear.”
Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the September 19 gubernatorial election in Edo State, is currently leading Governor Godwin Obaseki, the flagbearer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in an online poll conducted by Ripples Nigeria.
According to John Mayaki, the Chairman of the Edo state APC Media Campaign Council, the poll was sponsored by Governor Godwin Obaseki to test his might.
The online poll with the headline ‘Who would you vote in the Edo Guber election: Obaseki or Ize-Iyamu has 4,292 votes as at 7:14pm on Wednesday July 22.
In the result, 48 percent of respondents said they will vote for Ize-Iyamu while 46 per cent picked Obaseki. Five percent of the respondents picked other candidates aside the two main challengers.
Crusoe Osagie, Media Aide to Governor Obaseki, could not be reached for his reaction.
Chairman of Ocean Marine Solution (OMS), Captain Idahosa Wells Okunbo (Capt, Hosa), has served notice on the Edo State Government of his intention to proceed against it in court for libelous and defamatory publications against him by the State Government.
In a letter by his Counsel, Dr Oladapo Olanipekun (SAN), dated July 20, 2020 and referenced EM/OAG/02/2020, addressed to the Edo State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Professor Yinka Omorogbe, Capt. Hosa demanded a retraction of the said publications.
He also demanded that the State Government and/or its representatives should cease and desist from making any further libelous and defamatory publications against him.
Not done, the billionaire businessman demanded the sum of N2 billion for the “embarrassment, inconvenience, losses and damages done to his person, character and interests” as a result of the “mischievous, malicious and misleading publications.”
In the four-page letter, Olanipekun said that “On Monday, 20 July, 2020, publications captioned “Okunbo, Oshiomhole making plans to disrupt Edo governorship elections”, appeared on pages 26 of The Punch and 53 of THISDAY.
“The said publications bear the insignia/mark of the Edo State Government and was signed by Crusoe Osagie, designated as Special Adviser, Media and Communication Strategy (to the Governor), Edo State Government.
“The thrust of the captions and publications referred to above is expressed and reflected in some of the abstracts/excerpts below:
“…a Benin billionaire, Captain Hosa Okunbo, held a meeting on July 19, 2020, where they perfected plans to recruit thugs to disrupt the forthcoming September 19 governorship election in the State, having discovered that they cannot win the election in a fair contest.
“…they met with these thugs, gave them targets and paid them in advance to cause trouble and undermine the will of the people during the election.
“…Okunbo is a key figure in the gang-up to take Edo backward. He is actively supporting and sponsoring warlords, thugs and ill-intentioned politicians that are scheming to dislodge Governor Obaseki so they can have free access to the State’s treasury.
“We are therefore calling on security agencies to quickly intervene, investigate and rein in Okunbo in his quest to set the State ablaze.”
Olanipekun said that “arising from the foregoing, the captions and publications are most unfortunate, inaccurate, misleading, malicious, unfair, defamatory, libelous and incriminating.”
According to him, “You are aware that our client is one of the most prominent citizens of Edo State and, indeed, a foremost Nigerian. He is an accomplished businessman, whose interests and achievements, transcend Edo State and Nigeria.
“Through hard work, excellence and the rare business acumen, our client has built and nurtured a diverse and vast business conglomerate, spanning different spheres of the Nigerian economy.
“Edo State is one of the primary beneficiaries of our client’s industry. He invests significantly in the welfare of the State and he employs several hundreds of Edo indigenes in his many businesses.
“Our client has been meticulous in building his career with the hallmarks of diligence and integrity. His peace-loving nature has received global acclaim. Hence, he was recognized with a global peace award in 2019 by the Chairman of the Order of Lafayette awards in Geneva, Switzerland.
“We could refer to an endless list of numerous awards and achievements certifying our client as a man of integrity, industry, means and peace. It is instructive that some of these awards were conferred on our client by institutions based in Edo State. He is a respected Nigerian and philanthropist, who is held in high esteem within and beyond the shores of Nigeria.”
He stated further; “As a remote and direct result of the false, inaccurate, misleading and libelous publications, our client has been inundated with several inquiries from different parts of the world by concerned associates, clients, investors, friends and family members, demanding explanation and clarification about the criminal insinuations of the publications.
“This has caused serious embarrassment to our client’s reputation and businesses. It has also caused our client undue apprehension, with implications to his health. Our client is not unmindful that these publications are calculated to instigate public antagonism against his person, family and business interests.”
Olanipekun added: “The publications have caused considerable distress to our client, putting his distinguished and illustrious reputation at risk. In particular, you are aware that as with most businesses, our client’s businesses thrive on goodwill.
“The negative impact of the publications makes it more tarnishing and grievous. Rather than establish the truth of the publications, they ere published without taking any steps that would have revealed their inaccuracy.
“Our client notes with concern that the resources and insignia of the Edo State Government have been lent to this unworthy cause, which appears to serve no other purpose than to witch-hunt, malign and settle personal scores for incomprehensible reasons.
“Our client has been projected as a criminal conspirator, who sponsors thugs and takes pleasure in unleashing mayhem and anarchy. He has also been portrayed as an undemocratic and anti-democratic Nigerian, with a dishonest and criminal source of income.
“Clearly, the publications have lowered the estimation/perception of our client in the view of right-thinking and reasonable members of the society.”
Olanipekun continued: “Premised on the foregoing, we have further instruction of our client to demand a retraction of the publication and an unreserved apology.
“The said retraction and apology, apart from being in writing to our client in person, should be published in the same newspapers and given the same prominence as the defamatory caption/publications.
“We also demand that the Edo State Government and or its representatives cease(s) and desist(s) from making any further libelous and defamatory publications in respect of our client.
“Finally, our client demands the sum of N2,000,000,000 (two billion naira) for the embarrassment, inconvenience, losses and damages done to his person, character and interests.
“In the event that the Edo State Government fails to meet these legitimate demands of our client within a period of 3 (three) days from receipt of this letter, our firm instruction is to proceed with other legal means of seeking redress for our client.”
The New Nigeria Collective (NNC) group has asked the leadership of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) to tread with circumspection in the way it is handling its engagement with the Ocean Marine Solution Limited (OMSL), the company supporting the Nigerian Navy to provide security at the Secure Anchorage Area (SAA) of the Lagos delineation of the nation’s waters.
The group, in a statement by its National Chairman, Mr. Adeola Adewunmi, was reacting to a statement recently credited to the NPA leadership and published in a national daily, where it threatened the arrest of any vessel at the SAA, adding that any ship found there would be sanction also.
NNC observed that the inexplicable rivalry orchestrated by the NPA was gradually becoming a threat to national security, given the sensitivity of the assignment that the OMSL is handling for the country, in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy at SAA.
According to the group, the fact that OMSL has no business with the NPA in the matter presupposes that the government agency has been overreaching itself over time even after the Nigerian Senate intervened and asked the NPA to steer clear of the SAA, because the contract is between OMSL and the Navy and not directly with the NPA.
It is even the more disturbing that after Senate’s recommendation, which gave OMSL a clean bill and urged it to continue with its otherwise patriotic assignment, the NPA leadership was still headstrong and went ahead to disrespect the Nigerian senate – an institution of note. Isn’t it also ridiculous that the NPA is now asking the Navy to arrest the vessels they are protecting or do we call this a clear case of incompetence on the part of the NPA leadership?
“Unfortunately, as it stands today, the NPA doesn’t have a security Architecture in place in the Lagos area, not to mention the Port Harcourt area, where pirates’ attacks are uncontrollable and cost of shipping to Port Harcourt has become astronomical, because ships refuse to go there. But the Lagos that seems to be working, because of SAA is about to be destroyed out of sheer vendetta and lack of patriotism.
“Instead of encouraging the security solutions that have brought sanity to the Lagos area, all the efforts of the NPA leadership have been to destroy it and bring the Lagos area to the days that ships had to go to neighboring countries to berth and the country lost a lot of revenue and what is even more worrisome is that this service is at no cost to the federal government, so, what is NPA’s problem?” the group asked.
The NNC said it was embarrassed to learn that despite all the interventions that legitimately stifled the NPA from harassing the OMSL, it has continued to act as though it was not answerable to anyone, adding that the silent treatment being meted out to it by the OMSL can only explain why the matter has not needlessly escalated.
“The truth of the matter is that the NPA does not even have the power to arrest or announce the arrest of anyone. In the very worst case scenario, if there are infractions at SAA, all that the NPA needs to do is report such to the Navy, which will in turn address the matter.
“But, having followed closely the operations of the OMSL at the SAA, it does not take much to see how the company has been providing the much needed logistics for the navy to function and be on top of their assignment. But this is the kind of support that the NPA has refused to give, even when it was approached.
“We are inclined to believe, therefore, that there are some persons within the NPA, who for reasons best known to them alone, want the OMSL messed up and as a result, been concocting all sorts of lies and manipulation to justify their premeditated plans,” he said.
The group maintained that the NPA must be immediately called to order to stop distracting the OMSL from doing the job, for which it has been globally acknowledged as outstanding in securing the nation’s waterways and instead, partner them for a productive collaboration in larger interest.
New Nigeria Collective has expressed concern over the rising cases of coronavirus in the country.
NNC, in a statement, warned Nigerians to take personal responsibility and observe all the safety protocols.
Part of the statement read, “We, as a concerned entity in Nigeria, have taken judicial notice of the unceasing rise in the number of new cases of COVID-19 and we have come to the realisation that the growing development, apart from being a confirmation of the fact that the country might have entered the second wave of the pandemic attack, it also speaks largely to the failure of people to consciously taking personal responsibility.
“There’s no debating the fact that the country could not be locked down for good, it is thus expected that at some point in the attempt to tame the spread of the virus, there would be a systematic easing up of the lockdowns from country to country, a manifestation of which is currently assuming shape in the country.
“Expectedly, however, such a decision must have been taken by the leadership with the mindset that as citizens, people would take personal responsibility and ensure their safety as well as the safety of those around them, knowing full well that the fight against COVID-19 is collective and total.”
The group urged Nigerians to support the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.
It added, “Unfortunately, the climbing numbers of new cases significantly point to one thing and it is the fact that as citizens, a majority of the people had not been taking personal responsibility by observing the safety protocols as advised by medical experts.
“Although it suffices to acknowledge that the ramped-up testing, which had grown from about two centres to almost 40 now is yet another factor that cannot be glossed over. Even at that, if people had been taking personal responsibility as they should nothing says many of the results would not have been turning out negative.
“This is why it remains a disturbing slant to the whole mix, the entrenched disbelief in some quarters that the virus is not real, the reason many have discountenanced the culture of personal responsibility and flagrantly flouting all the Covid-19 protocols, thereby putting many others in danger.”
Poet and social activist, Valentine Okolo, speaks in this interview to Godwin Iheancho about his thought provoking poetry book, ‘I Will Be Silent’.
Excerpt…
Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
I got it from the title of a poem I wrote called “I Will Be Silent.” This was a poem I wrote concerning the genocide which happened in Darfur, Sudan, many years ago. I wrote it in response to the then international media blackout that occurred during that period and how men and young male children were systematically slaughtered by government supported Janjaweed militia. And how women were also gang raped, and impregnated by their oppressors, and sometimes mutilated.
In genocides rape is most times weaponized by the aggressive side, and the suffering sides to such wickedness are women, old and young. Such actions tear at my core and reveal mankind’s depravity at its worst. That poem and a few others similar to it form the back bone of the book.
Genocides, sex slavery, rape and a few other indignities suffered by many women in improvished regions of the world continue still. Boko Haram, and it’s aftermath, the Fulani Herdsmen follow in the footsteps of the Janjaweed militia in Sudan which commited those attrocities with government blessings.
In Nigeria, it is apparent that the government is in accord with Boko Haram and the Fulani Herdsmen as it has repeatedly played to the gallery whenever it is called to question regarding the poor equipments deployed and the improvishment of military troops sent to the effected regions to combat the insurgency. Rather, they result in the use of euphemisms by calling the terrorists “Bandits” and the deployment of mass media propaganda to negate the seriousness of the insurgency.
The entire idea of the book is centred around the themes of pain, and perseverance that these people, and may more like them in different regions of the world, face and have to endure constantly.
I Will Be Silent is not just a book to me. It is more than that. It is a call to witness. It is a series of poems which proceed not from the heart but from the gut of tribulation and endurance. It is a book which bears witness to the collected voices who cannot speak for themselves because they have been silenced.
How do you get inspired to write?
Most times I feel the emotions of others when I write. In those moments I become that which I write about. I see with their eyes, I hear with their ears, I feel with their skin. In those moments I cease to be myself, and become someone else. I become her, they, it. I become someone’s dreams. And relive, sometimes, their nightmares.
I write from a place of suffering. From a place of joy. I explore the two extremes in my poetry.
In my book I Will Be Silent I wrote many poems which grew from those two extremes. Or should I say, some poems made me write them inspired by these extremes of human existence.
I most times don’t plan a poem in advance. Some poems, if I may use the expression, fall at my feet, almost fully formed. They are a few poems, however, that I do make plans to write in advance. And in order to write them I have to enter into a period of poetic gestation. A period in which I allow the idea of the poem to take root and grow within me until it is ready to be birthed. Sometimes the gestation period may take a few days. Sometimes it can take months or even years.
I like writing organically. So I don’t force anything out. I allow myself to be. I allow myself to feel. I allow the words to come to me like the wind. And I try to catch whatever message that is whispered in the breeze.
What’s your advice for aspiring writers?
First, they should close their eyes and feel. And then write what they felt. Some of the notable works of literature (which includes fiction, non fiction, poetry, science fiction and so on) were written from an abundance of feelings. If you don’t feel what you have written, don’t expect someone else to feel it too. (Unless, you want to be too intellectual and write drab college textbooks.)
Your writing has to move you first before you expect it to move someone else. Write what you feel first. Then put it away for awhile, and then look at it again with the eyes of a stranger. If you read what you had written earlier with the stranger’s eyes and say to yourself: “Wow! Did I write this?” Then someone else will also be wowed by it as well.
Words convey emotions. Be successful in conveying your emotions in your lines.
Next is style.
If expressing your emotions is fuel for your writing, see style as your technique for progress.
See writing as you would a dance in progress. A dancer may have the necessary energy to prance about. But this prancing alone without an arranged motion may not result in anything beautiful to behold. A dancer uses learned dancing techniques and translates those techniques and that energy into beautiful motions (insert here any dance style of your choice: ballet, foxtrot, salsa, tango, hip-hop, contemporary, and so on). When done properly these motions of choreography capture your attention. For a writer, style is like those beautiful motions. Some you can learn from the writings of someone else. Some you can teach yourself.
If you can afford it, enrol into a good writing class with a teacher that you respect his or her style of writing. Such a person will help ground you in the proper techniques of sentence constructions, and the proper use of words, characterizations and lots more.
What’s the best thing about being a writer?
It allows me to state what I feel. It allows me to display on a blank page the potency of my thoughts. I am a poet. And I write poetry. And to me words are not just a means of communication. To me words are life. Words carry with them a strong creative force. A force that makes things happen. The first thing that happened in the creation of this planet was the issue of a command. From God Almighty Himself. As documented in the Bible book of Genesis where it was written that there was darkness every where and the Earth was void and without form and the Spirit of God was hovering over the deep. And God Himself uttered the immortal words that started the beginning of life in this world. He said: “Let there be light.” And lo, light came to be. And illuminated the perpetual darkness.
Jesus Christ Himself used words to heal. It was written in the Gospels that He issued words of command and the blind were made to see, the lame walk, and the diseased were made clean. Even to the point of raising the dead. The words: “Lazarus, come forth!” are perhaps one of the most unforgettable lines I have ever read in any form of literature. Because they were more than just words. A mummified man who was dead for four days heard them from beyond the grave and rose to life!
How do you deal with writer’s block?
I empty my mind. And do something else that is not related to what I am writing about. Sometimes I take long walks, and focus on being in the present. As I walk, I take note of the rise and fall of the land, the diverse faces of people, the roaming animals, and the sounds coming from cars and motorcycles. Most times when I do this ideas flow to me freely, clearing my imaginative inhibitors.
Mohammed Bello Adoke, former attorney-general of the federation, has described as “evil and despicable” claims by Italian prosecutors, led by Fabio De Pasquale (pictured), that he benefited N200 million “in kind” from the OPL 245/Malabu deal of 2011.
Sergio Spadaro, the Italian deputy prosecutor, had told a Milan court on Thursday that Adoke bought a property worth N500 million for only N300 million with a mortgage — and alleged that the N200 million difference was a “gift” to the former minister from the OPL 245 deal.
Adoke has always maintained that the N300 million traced to his account was a mortgage from Unity Bank and the Italian deputy prosecutor confirmed that to the court.
This would appear to contradict the position of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) — even though the Italians are working with the Nigerian anti-graft agency in the Milan trial.
In Nigeria, EFCC has charged Adoke to court over allegations of N300 million money laundering in the OPL 245 case — but the Italians are now saying it was, indeed, a mortgage.
However, they are also saying Adoke benefitted “in kind” to the tune of N200 million based on the “value” of the property.
In a statement released on Monday on Adoke’s behalf, his lawyer, Femi Oboro of UK-based Gromyko Amedu Solicitors, noted that after initially alleging that the former AGF collected $801 million from the OPL 245 deal, the prosecutors have reduced it to N200 million.
“Our client is thankful to the Italians for their gradual backhanded exoneration of his name which they have been maligning globally since 2015. They first said he collected $801 million as bribe in the OPL 245 transaction. They later reduced it to N300 million which they said was the bribe paid into his account by Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar,” he wrote.
“Now they have said he actually took a N300 million mortgage from Unity Bank but that the N200 million ‘difference’ in the price of the property was a gift to him. Our client is very certain that they will finally arrive at the truth: that he did not take one kobo from the OPL 245 transaction. But to reduce $801 million to N200 million is a major shift in the allegations.”
The solicitors also said the Italians hid a material fact from the court when they said the property in question belongs to Adoke.
They said the property was sold by the developer to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2013 when Adoke could not pay up his own equity contribution of N200 million to complete the N500 million purchase price.
The lawyers said the documentary evidence with the Italians has proved the following:
The said property was offered to Adoke for N500 million
Unity Bank gave him a mortgage of N300 million towards it
He couldn’t make his equity contribution of N200 million
The property was then sold to the CBN by the developer
The N300 million mortgage was returned to Unity Bank by the developer
Adoke never took possession of the property.
“It is our client’s instruction that we serve notice to the Italian prosecutors that he will meet them in court at some point because he will not allow these despicable and evil lies go unchallenged,” they said.
THE FULL STATEMENT
The Many of Lies of the Milan Prosecutor
We are Solicitors to Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke, SAN, former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Federal Republic of Nigeria (hereafter called “Our Client”) and we issue this statement on his firm instructions. Our client’s attention has been drawn to the cocktail of lies dished out to a Milan court on Thursday, the 2nd of July, 2020, by Dr Sergio Spadaro, the Deputy Milan Prosecutor, in the ongoing criminal trial of Shell and ENI over their acquisition of OPL 245, originally granted to Malabu Oil and Gas Limited. Although, our client is not on trial in Italy, it would appear the Italian prosecutors, in their bid to get Shell and ENI convicted, no longer have any regard for the truth and are ready to destroy anyone just to achieve their aim. Unfortunately, they have picked the wrong victim in him.
In his submissions to the court, Spadaro said, among several misrepresentations and mischief, that a property valued at N700 million was sold to our client by Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar, owner of Carlin International Nigeria Ltd, for N500 million. He also said our client paid only N300 million with a mortgage from Unity Bank for the property. He said the difference of N200 million was a gift to our client, suggesting that it was a proceed of crime. It is our client’s contention that these allegations are completely false. The facts have been twisted and material facts have been hidden from the court in the most unprofessional manner.
In the first place, the property in question, which is located at No. 271, Cadastral Zone A06 Maitama, Abuja, does not belong to our client. It is true that he was offered the property for N500 million by Alhaji Abubakar in 2012 when he was Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice. It is also true that our client took a N300 million mortgage from Unity Bank, as Spadaro told the Milan court, but it is absolutely false to say our client bought the property for that amount. As all the documents in the possession of the Italian prosecutors show, our client was to make an equity contribution of N200 million to complete the N500 million before he could take possession of the property.
However, as the Italian prosecutors also discovered in their forensic investigation, our client could not come up with the N200 million equity contribution to Carlin International Nigeria Ltd. Indeed, he had to pay interests and penalties on the mortgage because it was not performing. With our client’s inability to pay, Carlin International Nigeria Ltd sold the property to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and refunded the N300 million mortgage to Unity Bank. Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar then retrieved the Certificate of Occupancy from Unity Bank and our client’s mortgage account was closed. Most of the facts were confirmed by the prosecution witness, Mr Ferri Alessandro, in the Milan court.
To our client’s surprise, the Italian prosecutors, led by Dr Fabio De Pasquale, continue to create the false impression that the property belongs to him, thereby concealing the material fact that he never took possession of the house. This lie has now been repeated by Spadaro. This is very unprofessional. Our Client has instructed us as his lawyers to report them to the Italian bar for professional misconduct. Our client also informs us that they have been working hand-in-glove with one Olanrewaju Siraj, who purports to be a human rights activist and anti-corruption campaigner in Nigeria, but who is not better than Abu Lahab in the Holy Quran. Our client thus believes that Siraj will surely face a similar judgment for all his evil deeds against him in the last five years.
Our client further informs us that another despicable lie Spadaro told the court was that the property in question was worth N700 million but was offered to him for N500 million. This is mischief at its peak. In fact, the property offered to our client for N500 million by Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar was just a portion of the larger property that one of his companies bought for N700 million. Ironically, the Italian prosecutors have all the documents and facts in their possession but have chosen to conceal the truth from the court in the most unprofessional manner just to achieve their evil agenda.
Our client’s consolation in all this mischief by the Italian prosecutors is that they at least agreed that he took N300 million mortgage from Unity Bank and that the money was eventually returned to the bank. This fact is very important because the impression that mischief makers have been creating about him is that the N300 million was a kickback in the OPL 245 deal. The Italian prosecutors have now documented with the Milan court that, indeed, the N300 million was a mortgage from Unity Bank. They have also acknowledged that he paid interest on the mortgage. They have further acknowledged that the N300 million was returned to the bank. To prove ownership of the property in question is not difficult. The CBN, the owner, is a government institution.
In all these, our client is thankful to the Italians for their gradual backhanded exoneration of his name which they have been maligning globally since 2015. They first said he collected $801 million as bribe in the OPL 245 transaction. They later reduced it to N300 million which they said was the bribe paid into his account by Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar. Now they have said he actually took a N300 million mortgage from Unity Bank but that the N200 million “difference” in the price of the property was a gift to him. Our client is very certain that they will finally arrive at the truth: that he did not take one kobo from the OPL 245 transaction. But to reduce $801 million to N200 million is a major shift in the allegations.
It is our client’s position that to the glory of God, nobody has traced any private jet or Phantom to him. No property, home or abroad, has been traced to him. No bank account has been frozen. The Italians have searched everywhere and they cannot find anything incriminating. That is why they keep making up stories. Money trail is the easiest thing to uncover in the world. You cannot collect $801 million bribe and hide it. You cannot hide N300 million. If indeed he was involved in money laundering, they will have stumbled on the evidence in the last five years when this persecution started.
The documentary evidence with the Italians clearly shows these facts: (1) the property was offered to our client for N500 million (2) Unity Bank gave him a mortgage of N300 million towards it (3) He couldn’t make his equity contribution of N200 million (4) The property was then sold to the CBN as far back as 2013 (5) The N300 million mortgage was returned to Unity Bank by Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar in 2013 (6) He never took possession of the property. All these are indisputable facts. By this press statement, it is our client’s instruction that we serve notice to the Italian prosecutors that he will meet them in court at some point because he will not allow these despicable and evil lies go unchallenged.
