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Tinubu drinks garri and epa for lunch, I live better than him – Shettima
Many critics, who depict President Bola Tinubu as living a life of obscene opulence and lavishness are far off the mark as the direct opposite is the case, Vice President Kashim Shettima, said on Thursday, suggesting that many Nigerians actually live better than the former Governor of Lagos State.
Shettima, a guest at the launch of a book, titled: Navigating the Politics of Universal Education Policies in Nigeria, by former Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Modupe Adelabu, showcased the President as man not enamoured of luxury but whose character spoke of simple and austere lifestyle, including drinking garri and epa (groundnuts) for lunch.
Using the occasion to plead Nigeria’s full support for the President, whose policies, he insisted, though tough, would begin to bear positive fruits very soon, he said the people must now focus on the future of the country rather than lamenting the challenges of the past, adding that Tinubu, must be allowed to fix the ills of the past leaders in the country.
Hear him: “In President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, we have a leader that we can invest our trust in. I’m not playing politics; I’m speaking from the heart. I have seen the soul of Bola Tinubu, and he has a good soul. He means well for the nation. He wants to live in a place of glory. He is not in power to engage in primitive capital accumulation; no. He is in power to leave landmarks in the sands of time. He is the most demonised politician in Nigeria.
“The first time I went to his house at Bourdillon, I was looking forward to seeing a mansion comparable to Buckingham Palace – with gardens, swimming pools, with leaves – but it was an anticlimax. When I went to the house on the Bourdillon, where the Lord of the Bourdillon holds court, I saw a derelict colonial structure struggling to wear the looks of modernity. There was nothing special about that house. My house in Maiduguri is better than the house in Bourdillon.
“At the formative stage of the All Progressives Congress (APC), we held a meeting in his house. They served us a variety of meals, but he opted to take gari with groundnut for lunch. Is this the monster that they were making him out to be? No. Since I have known him, he has been using only one wristwatch and, in fact, I dress better than him. He doesn’t even care. He has overcome all those odds to dress well.
“So, we need to rally around this poor man. He has taken some bold steps. The economy that we met was in a huge mess. But it wasn’t for us. We were part of the (Muhammadu) Buhari administration; we cannot deny that. We belong to the (same) political family. It’s not about apportioning blame, but it’s about finding solutions to our nation’s needs. We knew there are challenges.
“Forget about the politics being played by the Atiku Abubakar, the Obidient crowds. They all said they were going to withdraw the fuel subsidy. The President had the courage, the political courage, and the willpower to take far-reaching decisions, and it always comes at a price.
“When a woman is about to give birth, it’s a very painful process. But after the child has come forth, it’s a cause for celebration. I believe that posterity will be very kind to this poor man. He has taken far-reaching decisions. On the economy, we have crossed the river. The economy is now on a path to sustain growth. We are now exporting about 1.7 million barrels of oil per day; the naira is stabilising against the dollar.
“On the food security crisis that is confronting us, we cannot divorce ourselves from the realities in the global space. It’s not a localised phenomenon, but ours was further compounded by the security challenges in the traditional food basket of the country, the Northcentral, and the Northwest. But the security issues will be addressed. Rest assured that in the coming months, Nigerians will see a sea of change in their fortunes. I want to ask all of us to rally around this poor man.”
“The suspect offered ₦500 million to the SPU commander in an attempt to make the team stand down and allow him to contact his associates to move the consignment elsewhere. The offer was rejected immediately and properly documented for further investigation.”
These were the exact words of Olohundare Jimoh Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), with which he detailed how operatives of the Zone 2 Command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) scoffed at a N500million bribe to turn their eyes off the importation of a huge consignment of drugs imported into the country.
This was part of the details of a major breakthrough by the operatives after bursting a major drug trafficking syndicate in Lagos, which led to the seizure of suspected illicit drugs estimated at ₦7.8 billion and arresting several suspects, including the alleged kingpin.
In the operation, reportedly carried out by officers of the Special Protection Unit (SPU) in collaboration with divisional police detectives, the operatives, were said to have stormed a house in Mende, Maryland area of Lagos, following months of surveillance and intelligence gathering coordinated by the Zone 2 Headquarters.
The recovered drugs consisted of hundreds of bags of suspected Canadian Loud, allegedly stored in the residence of the prime suspect, Jimoh, said disclosing that the suspect was apprehended on May 19 after weeks of strategic monitoring by operatives.
Offering further details, he said the operation was executed with technical support and guidance from the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, alongside coordinated efforts between the SPU and divisional police teams.
Jimoh revealed that during the operation, the suspect allegedly attempted to bribe the SPU commander with ₦500 million to compromise the mission and allow the movement of the drug consignment.
The AIG described the development as a reflection of the renewed professionalism and operational discipline being entrenched in the Force under the current policing strategy.
He noted that the success of the operation underscored the importance of deploying specialized police units alongside conventional divisional teams in tackling organized crime.
According to him, the operation demonstrated the effectiveness of rapid containment strategies, intelligence-led policing, and professional conduct among the operatives involved in the raid.
“Rapid containment was achieved as the Special Protection Unit worked with divisional teams to secure the perimeter and prevent escape or interference with evidence.
“The operation was intelligence-driven, following months of surveillance and technical monitoring before the raid was carried out.
“The immediate rejection and documentation of the bribe attempt also reflect the standard expected from redeployed personnel at the divisional level,” Jimoh added.
Reacting to the development, the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, commended the operatives for their professionalism, saying the success of the operation validated the ongoing redeployment of personnel to divisions and units across Lagos and Ogun states.
The IGP noted: “Policing must be close to the people, and our specialized units must work side by side with divisional teams on the ground.
“The professionalism shown by the SPU commander in rejecting a ₦500 million bribe and following due procedure is the standard we expect. It shows that when you put your best foot forward at the grassroots, you get results and restore public trust.”
Disu further assured that the Force leadership would continue to reward integrity while holding officers accountable to the highest ethical standards.
Police authorities said exhibits recovered during the operation have been properly documented and will be tendered in court. The suspects are currently in custody while investigations continue to track down other members of the drug trafficking network.
Slavery is a wound on the memory of the Universal Church, Pope Leo XIV, said on Monday, as he issued a fresh apology over the participation of the the Catholic Church in the centuries-long delay in condemning slavery.
The pontiff stressed the position of the church after his predecessors had offered similar apologies, said: “For this, in the name of the Church, I sincerely ask for pardon.”
Writing in a major text that warned about “new forms of slavery” behind the digital economy, the joined John Paul II, who denounced slave trade in 1992 before issuing a sweeping request for forgiveness for historical injustices in 2000 and Pope Francis who also repeatedly denounced contemporary forms of slavery.
In his own vein, Pope Leo, pointed out that the Church owned slaves until the Middle Ages and it also advised European sovereigns on how to justify the enslavement of “infidels.”
He stressed in “Magnifica Humanitas” (Magnificent Humanity), a document focused primarily on the rise of artificial intelligence, that it was only in the 19th century that “a formal, absolute and universal condemnation of slavery was clearly articulated.”
Hear him: “It is true that past events cannot be judged anachronistically, as though the moral criteria that matured over time had always been available. Yet neither can we deny or diminish the delay with which both society and the Church came to denounce the scourge of slavery. This constitutes a wound in Christian memory, one from which we cannot consider ourselves detached.”
Qowiy Oloyede, a resident of Oriya Sokoto road, Atan Ota, is currently telling operatives of the Ogun State Colice command, the reasons that pushed him into making a video suggesting that a part of the state was under attack of terrorists, knowing same to be fake.
Oloyede, reports say, dragged to the police on May 23 by one Ayinla Sodiq, who accused him of creating and sharing a misleading TikTok video falsely claiming that bandits had invaded the Atan Ota community..
Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency publication, which broke the news, said on immediately being questioning by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Oloyed, allegedly confessed to fabricating the video to gain followers on social media.
Apart from admitting that that he created the fake bandit attack content to gain followers and trend online, said in a video currently on social media the herder featured in the clip was a cattle rearer who usually grazed cows behind his shop and had initially refused to participate before eventually agreeing.
Oloyede, who also claimed he could neither read nor write, adding that his apprentice wrote the caption accompanying the video posted online, maintained that he had only produced and posted two similar videos, one on Monday and another on Wednesday.
The command, said to have recovered photographs and video evidence linked to the fake publication during preliminary investigation, added that the suspect would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Abeokuta, for further investigation, warning residents against spreading false information capable of causing panic and public disorder, and for the public to verify information before sharing content on social media.
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