National Issues
Nothing to bequeath to my children after office as president – Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari has told his immediate family, particularly, his children that he is not leaving anything for them to inherit.
Buhari, who is expected to bow out of office as President in May 2023, insisted that the only legacy he hopes to bequeath to them is proper education.
The President, who was speaking on the importance of effective education, implored parents to inculcate right values in children, including deep fear of God, respect for constituted authorities and living a purposeful life through continuous education.
His comment comes amidst the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and other sister unions.
While the President recently told ASUU that enough was enough regarding their prolonged strike, the leadership of the Union replied him, “describing the charge from the presidency as mere ranting without understanding the grasp of the issues that necessitated the strike”.
The unions have locked horns with the government for over five months over agreements associated with a unified payment platform and other sundry issues on emoluments.
But, Buhari in his admonition, charged the youth to seek education, not for government jobs which are unavailable but to arm themselves with skill and ability to fight poverty and to meet the needs of the 21st Century.
He said this on Wednesday, at the Emir of Daura’s Palace where he went to pay Sallah homage.
According to him, more time should be given to the coaching of the future leaders, with basic knowledge of moral values, as the fast changing world, driven by new technology, would be more competitive and demanding.
“I was locked up for more than three years, after leading the country. At that point, I realised and I told my children that your net worth is what is in your head, not what you have acquired in life.
“My focus has always been on training the children to be relevant wherever they find themselves. I told my children, particularly the girls, that they can only get married after getting a first degree.
“They already know that I am not leaving anything for anyone to inherit. My greatest legacy to the children is to ensure they are properly educated,” he said.
The President noted that the younger children should be guided and taught history, as they would find it hard to be patriotic, responsible and respectful, without a thorough understanding of their backgrounds.
“Whoever does not have a good sense of history will easily make mistakes.
“We should ensure the children get proper education. The knowledge they acquire should not be towards getting government jobs. We don’t have jobs in government anymore. With technology, governments are becoming smaller, nimble and efficient.
“Emphasis should now be on skills acquisition and competence in creation and deployment of technology. During the Covid-19, we asked all level 12 downward to stay at home, and surprisingly the systems worked effectively,” the President noted.
President Buhari told the Emir of Daura, Dr Faruk Umar Faruk, that he will be more regular in visits, preparatory to the handing over in May, 2023, adding that the prolonged absence was due to the demands of his office.
“This is the longest I have been away from home. In fact, the Emir took to the court of public opinion at the prayer ground, when he openly told everyone that I had not visited Daura for close to a year,” he added.
President Buhari said all Nigerians must make sacrifices to move the country forward, especially the public servants, calling for more selflessness and inclusion.
“In the end, it is only God that can reward your efforts, not man,” he said.
In his remarks, Governor Aminu Bello Masari listed the achievements of the President to include social security, which was created to cater for the poor, and ensure that they receive some money at the end of every month.
“No government in the history of this country has done more to reduce poverty like President Buhari’s administration. He asked religious and community leaders to bring enlightenment to bear on successful government programs such as the Social Investment Program, SIP through which 120,000 poor citizens in 12 Local Government Areas of the state receive a monthly payment of N5,000 and this is happening in all the states.
“Today, we have over 863,000 children in the state being fed under the school feeding program. This has created 10,000 jobs for women cooks, 14,000 young men and women enrolled in N-Power.
“We have food vendors who are engaged and earning their livelihood. All the foolish talk on social media is by those who only think of themselves. Our elites are never happy or appreciative until something gets to their pockets,” he said.
The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed a total sum of ₦1.578 trillion to the Federal Government, state and local governments for the month of March 2025, underscoring ongoing efforts to sustain intergovernmental financing and fiscal responsibility across all tiers of government.
This development was contained in a communiqué issued after the FAAC meeting, and made public by Mr Bawa Mokwa, Director of Press and Public Relations in the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, on Saturday.
According to the communiqué, the total distributable revenue of ₦1.578 trillion was made up of ₦931.325 billion from statutory revenue, ₦593.750 billion from Value Added Tax (VAT), ₦24.971 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and ₦28.711 billion from exchange difference earnings.
FAAC revealed that the total gross revenue available in March stood at ₦2.411 trillion, signalling a strong revenue performance. From this amount, ₦85.376 billion was deducted for the cost of collection, while transfers, interventions and refunds accounted for ₦747.180 billion.
Further breakdown of the report indicates that the gross statutory revenue of ₦1.718 trillion received in March represented an increase of ₦65.422 billion when compared to the ₦1.653 trillion recorded in February.
The disbursement reflects the continued dedication of public financial managers and revenue-generating agencies who are working relentlessly under challenging economic conditions to ensure that government at all levels is adequately funded to meet the needs of the populace.
Observers and analysts view this steady growth in revenue as a positive trajectory, albeit with the understanding that transparency, accountability and prudent utilisation of public funds remain key to achieving lasting socio-economic impact.
National Issues
Gbenga Daniel Seeks End to Immunity for Governors, Calls for Constitutional Amendment
Senator Gbenga Daniel, representing Ogun East Senatorial District, has raised concerns over the misuse of constitutional immunity by state governors and their deputies, calling for an urgent amendment to the relevant section of Nigeria’s constitution.
Speaking on Political Paradigm, a Channels Television programme aired on Tuesday, the former governor of Ogun State (2003–2011) argued that Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution, which shields sitting governors and their deputies from both civil and criminal prosecution, has been widely abused.
Section 308 of the Nigerian Constitution grants immunity to the President, Vice President, governors, and deputy governors while in office, effectively barring legal proceedings against them throughout their tenure. However, Daniel insisted that this provision has been misused to avoid scrutiny and justice.
The senator’s remarks have stirred renewed debate about constitutional reform and accountability in public office, especially at a time when governance and transparency remain major concerns in Nigeria’s democratic journey.
Daniel’s call adds to the voices of other stakeholders who have advocated for a more accountable leadership structure and a constitution that upholds justice irrespective of office held.
As of press time, there has been no official response from the Nigerian Governors’ Forum regarding Senator Daniel’s comments.
TEXT OF THE BROADCAST BY PRESIDENT BOLA AHMED TINUBU, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMED FORCES, DECLARING STATE OF EMERGENCY IN RIVERS STATE ON TUESDAY 18 MARCH 2025
Fellow Nigerians, I feel greatly disturbed at the turn we have come to regarding the political crisis in Rivers State. Like many of you, I have watched with concern the development with the hope that the parties involved would allow good sense to prevail at the soonest, but all that hope burned out without any solution to the crisis.
With the crisis persisting, there is no way democratic governance, which we have all fought and worked for over the years, can thrive in a way that will redound to the benefit of the good people of the state. The state has been at a standstill since the crisis started, with the good people of the state not being able to have access to the dividends of democracy.
Also, it is public knowledge that the Governor of Rivers State for unjustifiable reasons, demolished the House of Assembly of the state as far back as 13th December 2023 and has, up until now, fourteen (14) months after, not rebuilt same. I have made personal interventions between the contending parties for a peaceful resolution of the crisis, but my efforts have been largely ignored by the parties to the crisis. I am also aware that many well-meaning Nigerians, Leaders of thought and Patriotic groups have also intervened at various times with the best of intentions to resolve the matter, but all their efforts were also to no avail. Still, I thank them.
On February 28, 2025, the supreme court, in a judgment in respect of about eight consolidated appeals concerning the political crisis in Rivers State, based on several grave unconstitutional acts and disregard of rule of law that have been committed by the Governor of Rivers State as shown by the evidence before it pronounced in very clear terms:
“a government cannot be said to exist without one of the three arms that make up the government of a state under the 1999 Constitution as amended. In this case the head of the executive arm of the government has chosen to collapse the legislature to enable him to govern without the legislature as a despot. As it is there is no government in Rivers State.”
The above pronouncement came after a catalogue of judicial findings of constitutional breaches against the Governor Siminalayi Fubara.
Going Forward in their judgment, and having found and held that 27 members of the House who had allegedly defected
“are still valid members of Rivers State House of Assembly and cannot be prevented from participating in the proceedings of that House by the 8th Respondent (that is, the Governor) in cohorts with four members”
The Supreme Court then made some orders to restore the state to immediate constitutional democracy. These orders include the immediate passing of an Appropriation Bill by the Rivers State House of Assembly which up till now has not been facilitated.
Some militants had threatened fire and brimstone against their perceived enemy of the governor who has up till now NOT disowned them.
Apart from that both the House and the governor have not been able to work together.
Both of them do not realise that they are in office to work together for the peace and good governance of the state.
The latest security reports made available to me show that between yesterday and today there have been disturbing incidents of vandalization of pipelines by some militant without the governor taking any action to curtail them. I have, of course given stern order to the security agencies to ensure safety of lives of the good people of Rivers State and the oil pipelines.
With all these and many more, no good and responsible President will standby and allow the grave situation to continue without taking remedial steps prescribed by the Constitution to address the situation in the state, which no doubt requires extraordinary measures to restore good governance, peace, order and security.
In the circumstance, having soberly reflected on and evaluated the political situation in Rivers State and the Governor and Deputy Governor of Rivers State having failed to make a request to me as President to issue this proclamation as required by section 305(5) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, it has become inevitably compelling for me to invoke the provision of section 305 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended, to declare a state of emergency in Rivers State with effect from today, 18th March, 2025 and I so do.
By this declaration, the Governor of Rivers State, Mr Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu and all elected members of the House of Assembly of Rivers State are hereby suspended for an initial period of six months.
In the meantime, I hereby nominate Vice Admiral Ibokette Ibas (Rtd) as Administrator to take charge of the affairs of the state in the interest of the good people of Rivers State. For the avoidance of doubt, this declaration does not affect the judicial arm of Rivers State, which shall continue to function in accordance with their constitutional mandate.
The Administrator will not make any new laws. He will, however, be free to formulate regulations as may be found necessary to do his job, but such regulations will need to be considered and approved by the Federal Executive Council and promulgated by the President for the state.
This declaration has been published in the Federal Gazette, a copy of which has been forwarded to the National Assembly in accordance with the Constitution. It is my fervent hope that this inevitable intervention will help to restore peace and order in Rivers State by awakening all the contenders to the constitutional imperatives binding on all political players in Rivers State in particular and Nigeria as a whole.
Long live a united, peaceful, secure and democratic Rivers State in particular and the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a whole.
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