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Garlands for Abiola Ajimobi at 70 | By Festus Adedayo
Published
6 years agoon
Tomorrow (16th December, 2019) is my ex-boss, former Governor Abiola Ajimobi’s 70th birthday. I have written so many things about Ajimobi that another would be a repetition; from the negative to the positive.
Like all human beings, Ajimobi’s life is a binary configuration. His foibles are plenty and his greatness huge but one thing you cannot remove from him as an administrator is his passion for development and knack for excellence.
Ajimobi is extremely finicky, so much that if he enters an environment, he will begin to re-arrange its disarranged chairs. You can see this in the quality of infrastructure that his administration laid its hands upon.
As a critique, his undoing, like most Nigerian leaders, was being surrounded by mostly fair-weather aides. For fear of their daily breads, aides of politically exposed persons scarcely tell them what they don’t want to hear and thus, refrained from telling them the truth. Having studied their psychology, I found out that they love to be placed on what Yoruba call the back of the cockroach-horse.
They like their inadequacies to be wrapped with beautiful cellophanes and their praises sang like that of the Kabiyesi in pre-colonial Africa. Having seen through this foible, their aides effectively place them on the back of the cockroach-horse. They tell some of them that the way they talked was exactly how Obafemi Awolowo, Ahmadu Bello and Nnamdi Azikiwe talked.
This is their bane and they are cloaked in the apparel of Super humans. It is only when they leave office that they see how human they are afterall but by then, the fair-weather aides have taken their flights, leaving their bosses to their fates.
Ajimobi is however blessed with a gift: he may be annoyed if you told him a singeing truth but he will later return to you with thanks. The Ajimobi that I knew could not put up with mediocrity but he put up with so many mediocre, for the sake of politics. One thing you can be sure of is that, Ajimobi will not gravitate towards the mediocre for an assignment of grave import.
That was why the mediocre who thronged him in large numbers have found their course now, leaving the few who love him for who he is.
Being with him in the first four years, I can testify that Ajimobi loved Oyo State with a baffling candour. He bent over backwards to ensure an Oyo that was at par with the best. He spent sleepless nights on the Oyo Project and testimonies abound that he out-performed his predecessors during this period.
I
am however not unmindful of criticisms of his hitting his feet against the stone during the second term. I do not have any defence to those criticisms.
Someday, if opportune to do a biography, I will put the two ex-governors I was lucky to serve on a scale. Ajimobi would not weigh low, and certainly, neither will Chimaroke Nnamani, the man who made me to cross many rivers to a land whose people’s language and customs I understood seldom and who gave me a detribalized embrace that is still fresh in my memory.
This is wishing my oga, Abiola Ajimobi, a happy 70th birthday.
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Iran War Disrupts Oil Supply, Global Loss Hits $50bn
Published
4 days agoon
April 18, 2026By
Mega IconThe global oil market has recorded losses exceeding $50bn following massive supply disruptions triggered by the ongoing Iran war, which has now stretched to nearly 50 days.
Data from energy analytics firm Kpler showed that more than 500 million barrels of crude oil and condensate have been wiped off the global market since the crisis began in late February, making it the largest energy supply disruption in modern history.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araqchi, on Friday said the Strait of Hormuz had been reopened after a ceasefire agreement reached in Lebanon.
However, tensions escalated again on Saturday as Tehran warned it could shut the strategic waterway if the United States sustains its blockade of Iranian ports.
Also, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed optimism that a deal to end the conflict could be reached “soon,” although he did not provide a definite timeline.
Analysts warned that the scale of disruption could have prolonged effects on global energy stability, with shocks expected to linger for months or even years.
Providing context, Principal Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, Iain Mowat, said the 500 million barrels lost is equivalent to grounding global aviation demand for 10 weeks, halting all road transport worldwide for 11 days, or shutting down the entire global oil supply for five days.
Further estimates showed that the lost volume is nearly equal to one month of oil demand in the United States or more than a month’s supply for Europe. It also represents about six years of fuel consumption by the U.S. military and could power global shipping activities for approximately four months.
The crisis has significantly affected oil-producing nations in the Gulf, with output losses reaching about eight million barrels per day in March—roughly equivalent to the combined production of two of the world’s largest oil companies.
Jet fuel exports from major producers, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman, dropped sharply from 19.6 million barrels in February to just 4.1 million barrels recorded across March and April combined. Analysts said the shortfall could have powered about 20,000 round-trip international flights.
With crude prices averaging around $100 per barrel since the onset of the conflict, the lost volumes translate to an estimated $50bn in revenue. Experts noted that this figure is equivalent to about one per cent of Germany’s annual Gross Domestic Product, or roughly the size of the economies of smaller European countries.
Meanwhile, global onshore crude inventories have declined by about 45 million barrels in April alone, while total production outages have risen to approximately 12 million barrels per day since late March.
Industry experts cautioned that unless a lasting resolution is reached, the disruption could intensify volatility in global oil markets, worsen inflationary pressures, and further strain fragile economies worldwide.
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Oseni Secures Prestigious City People Political Award Nomination
Published
6 days agoon
April 16, 2026By
Mega IconA member of the House of Representatives representing Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency and Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency, Aderemi Oseni, has been nominated for a Special Award in Politics at the 2026 City People Political Awards.
The nomination was conveyed in a letter dated April 13, 2026, signed by the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of City People Magazine, Seye Kehinde.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued by Oseni’s media aide, Idowu Ayodele, and made available to journalists in Ibadan on Thursday.
According to the statement, the lawmaker earned the nomination in recognition of his “outstanding contributions to politics in Oyo State, particularly in Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency.”
The organisers noted that Oseni emerged as a nominee following a comprehensive review of performances across sectors by the award’s selection committee.
Part of the letter read, “Having performed creditably well in your sector last year, the Organising Committee presented you as a nominee in your sector.”
The award ceremony is scheduled to hold on Sunday, May 3, 2026, at Etal Hall, Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos, at 4pm.
The City People Awards is an annual event that recognises individuals who have distinguished themselves in governance, public service and other sectors of national development.
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Kaduna Electric to prosecute, expose attackers of staff
Published
6 days agoon
April 16, 2026By
Mega IconThe Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company has announced a crackdown on individuals who assault its staff, warning that offenders will face prosecution and public exposure.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the company expressed concern over what it described as a “disturbing surge” in attacks on its field workers and third-party partners.
It noted that the affected personnel were mainly engaged in meter installation, revenue collection and maintenance of electricity infrastructure.
According to the firm, the increasing cases of harassment, physical assault and unlawful detention of its workers pose a serious threat to employee safety and the stability of electricity service delivery across its franchise areas.
The Deputy Managing Director, Abubakar Mohammed, said the company would no longer tolerate any form of aggression against its workforce.
“Let this serve as a clear warning to anyone who engages in the assault of our staff. Kaduna Electric will pursue every case to its logical conclusion,” he said.
“We will work closely with security agencies to ensure offenders are brought to justice and face the full weight of the law,” Mohammed added.
He further disclosed that the company would publicly reveal the identities of individuals found culpable.
According to him, names, photographs and other details of offenders would be published on the company’s official platforms as well as in national and local media.
“This measure is intended to ensure accountability and serve as a strong deterrent. Anyone who chooses to attack our personnel should be prepared not only to face prosecution but also public exposure,” he added.
The company stressed that assaults on utility workers attract serious legal and financial consequences, noting that offenders risk criminal charges that may lead to fines or imprisonment.
It added that perpetrators could also face civil liabilities, including compensation for medical treatment, psychological trauma and loss of work hours.
While condemning the attacks, Kaduna Electric urged customers to adopt peaceful and lawful means of resolving disputes.
It advised aggrieved customers to channel complaints through its customer service units or appropriate regulatory bodies.
The management reaffirmed its commitment to protecting its workforce and partners, stressing that a safe working environment is essential for delivering reliable and efficient electricity services.
Although disputes between electricity providers and consumers are often linked to billing issues, metering challenges and service delivery concerns, the company maintained that such matters must be resolved through dialogue, insisting that violence against its staff will no longer be tolerated.
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