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Akintola’s Daughter : ‘Our family is not begging for honours’
DR. ABIMBOLA AKINTOLA, daughter of the 13th Aare Ona Kankanfo of Yorubaland and the last Premier of defunct Western Region, Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola, in a chat with Mega Icon Magazine shortly after the 2018 edition of Ladoke Akintola memorial anniversary lecture in Ibadan, the Oyo state capital stated emphatically that the family was not begging for honours.
She, also recalled how her father was martyred by the military.
Excerpts:
Can we know the importance of what we are doing today?
I have been very pleased and I thank God for today because it’s a day I have dreamt about, I have thought about but it has not happened. I was not in Nigeria when my father was martyred. I was in Dublin, Ireland reading medicine and I have two years more to go when the incident happened.
At that time, the papers in Europe were writing that there wasn’t a soul left in the house, everybody there was killed. So, you can imagine how I felt then. And it was only myself, and my late brother, Victor Ladipo Akintola who was at that time sitting for his exams to become a chattered accountant which by God’s grace he became and lived to use it for sometimes before he passed on.
We used to think and say to ourselves then in Dublin, that Ladi, it could be you and I that are only left as the papers reported in Dublin. Because my brother, Akintola, who is late too and the first Africa to go to Hilton College, he too was in the house with my father, my brother Abayomi Akintola was in the house before my father went out and he was shot by the Military people.
But, we thank God uncountable times for seeing today, for seeing that my father can be appreciated again, for seeing that people can realise that he did something for this country, for people seeing and noting that he was a nationalist, a man who did not care weather you are Yoruba, Igbo or Hausa. All he cares to know is, if you are human being and he was his brothers’ keeper.
Political observers are not happy with the way the family is projecting Akintola. As one of the foremost nationalists, they expect he should be ranked with the likes of late sage, Awolowo. What is the family doing to upgrade his status?
I am a Christian, a sound Catholist. I tell you, we don’t expect begging for honours. Give honour to whom honour is due. Today is one of it, it starts somewhere. We now realised that he was the one who moved motion for the independence. Before, it was attributed to Enahoro. If you leave everything to God , in the end you will get what you want, that’s what the family is doing. We are not going to cajole anybody, we are not going to beg anybody. A lot of things are there that should be done for him that was never done.
You are trying to put a finishing touch to the country home in Ogbomoso, what exactly informed this decision?
You see, the country home, as people came and went no one was interested in it. But suddenly we said to ourselves we have to do something about it and we started renovating it. We intend to put a library, a museum, put his clothes , his books and my mother’s things. All the things that would bring memories, reactivate people’s memories that’s what we are doing there.
Today, a lot of dignitaries paid glowing tributes to the late Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola, how do you feel?
I am somebody who believes in the truth. So, I believe that all those who spoke glowing about him know what he has done for this country and we are very proud of him and they are also proud of him.
Why is Akintola’s children shying away from politics?
Don’t say that! My brother, Abayomi Akintola was and still in politics. I am not in politics but I was given a political appointment by Alhaji Sheu Sagari. What I would want to see now are the younger ones. I am not a spring chicken anymore, I want to see the younger ones getting good positions, the younger ones being made ministers, the younger ones being made administrators, so that we can look at them in the future and they have somebody to look back at and say yes, we are going to emulate you .
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The Kano State House of Assembly has initiated impeachment proceedings against Deputy Governor Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo over allegations of gross misconduct, abuse of office, and breach of public trust.
The notice was presented yesterday during plenary by the Majority Leader, Lawan Hussaini Dala, who said the action follows Section 188 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Dala said the allegations stem from Abdussalam’s tenure as Commissioner for Local Government (2023–2024) and his current role as deputy governor. He accused the deputy governor of diverting funds meant for the 44 local government councils.
According to the majority leader, Abdussalam allegedly received N1.5 million monthly from each council between June 2023 and January 2024, totaling N462 million. Between February and July 2024, he allegedly collected N3.255 million monthly from each council under the guise of special assignments, amounting to N726 million.
Dala also accused the deputy governor of abuse of office, claiming he facilitated payments of N10 million from each council to NovoMed Pharmaceuticals Limited, totaling N440 million, in violation of state procurement laws.
“The misuse of official capacity to confer undue advantage constitutes abuse of power and undermines public trust,” Dala told lawmakers, adding that the allegations amount to gross misconduct under the Constitution.
The impeachment notice was reportedly endorsed by 38 lawmakers, meeting the constitutional threshold to proceed. The Speaker has acknowledged receipt, and the House is expected to serve the allegations on the deputy governor.
If approved, a panel may be constituted by the state Chief Judge to investigate the claims.
As of filing, Abdussalam had yet to respond publicly to the allegations.
The Senator representing Bayelsa West, Seriake Dickson, on Thursday announced his resignation from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), declaring that he had joined the newly registered Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).
Dickson, a former governor of Bayelsa State, made the announcement during a media briefing in Abuja, attributing his decision to what he described as irreconcilable differences within the PDP.
The lawmaker said the emergence of the NDC would strengthen Nigeria’s democratic system by providing a credible opposition platform.
According to him, the party recently received its certificate of registration from the Independent National Electoral Commission.
He said, “Last week INEC issued a certificate of registration and we now have the newest party in Nigeria known as the Nigeria Democratic Congress and our symbol is victory, the victory sign.
“So, my dear Nigerians, you now have a credible alternative opposition party known as the Nigeria Democratic Congress.”
Dickson noted that although the party’s registration took longer than expected, its eventual approval was a welcome development for the country’s democratic landscape.
“Yes, it is coming at this time. We would have wished it started some years or months back. We don’t control INEC and their processes; they delayed. We don’t also control the judiciary, but thank God it has finally arrived,” he said.
The senator also stressed that Nigeria’s democracy must not slide into a one-party system, insisting that political diversity remained vital for national stability.
“This nation cannot be a one-party state. Nigeria cannot be a one-party state. Nigeria is not designed to be a one-party state.
“We are a very diverse nation culturally, religiously and politically and that is the beauty of our country.
“So anyone or any party promoting one-party rule in Nigeria is mistaken. We build political parties and get involved in movements to access power for the good of the people, not for our personal benefit,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission recently announced the registration of two new political parties.
The parties are the Democratic Leadership Alliance and the Nigeria Democratic Congress, bringing the total number of registered political parties in Nigeria to 21.
The announcement was made by the INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, during the commission’s first quarterly consultative meeting with political party stakeholders for 2026.
According to him, the Democratic Leadership Alliance completed the required verification process, while the Nigeria Democratic Congress was registered in compliance with a Federal High Court order.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 58-year-old alleged drug lord, Uzoma Valentine Ilomuanya, who had reportedly been on the agency’s wanted list and that of British authorities for over 15 years.
Ilomuanya was apprehended in Lagos on Monday, February 23, 2026, following what the agency described as a high-level, coordinated operation by officers of its Special Operations Unit.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Director of Media and Advocacy of the agency, Femi Babafemi.
Babafemi said the suspect’s arrest ended a prolonged manhunt linked to his alleged involvement in drug trafficking activities across Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
According to the statement, Ilomuanya was first arrested in February 2003 in the United Kingdom and convicted for drug trafficking.
He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment but was released after serving two years following a successful appeal.
Babafemi added that the suspect was again arrested in the UK in July 2011 over drug-related offences.
He said, “He was granted administrative bail but jumped jurisdiction and fled to Nigeria.
“Typical of a recidivist, Ilomuanya was in November 2018 arrested in Nigeria by NDLEA operatives following the discovery of two clandestine methamphetamine laboratories in his Obinugwu, Orlu Local Government Area country home in Imo State and at his No. 3 Barrister Declan Uzoma Close, Lagos residence where officers recovered 77.960 kilograms of methamphetamine and extensive production equipment.
“He was subsequently charged before a Federal High Court in Lagos, after which he jumped court bail and has been on the run since then.”
Reacting to the development, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), described the arrest as a major breakthrough in the agency’s ongoing war against drug trafficking networks.
Marwa said the operation demonstrated the agency’s resolve to track down criminal elements regardless of how long they evade the law.
He said, “This arrest serves as a stern warning to those who think they can hide behind borders to escape justice.
“Whether you jump bail in London or set up clandestine labs in your village, the long arm of the NDLEA will eventually catch up with those who choose to undermine the health, security, and future of our nation.
“We remain committed to our international collaborations to ensure that Nigeria is not used as a sanctuary for global drug lords.”
Marwa also commended officers of the Special Operations Unit for their professionalism and persistence in tracking down the suspect.
He added that the agency would continue to strengthen intelligence-driven operations and international cooperation to dismantle drug trafficking networks operating within and beyond Nigeria.
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