.

By: A G Abubakar

It was the late Sardauna, Ahmadu Bello, who told Nnamdi Azikiwe, fondly called Zik, that they should understand their differences rather than forget them. That was in reaction to Zik’s call on the Sardauna to forget their differences in order to move the then nascent Federal Republic of Nigeria forward.

The message in Sardauna’s reply was that differences are what naturally define and distinguish one society or group from another. These differences may be rooted in faith, culture, or tradition. They constitute the sociological makeup of a people and are often difficult to abandon or merge into one another. Understanding one another makes it easier to identify common ground and leverage it to build a strong, virile and united entity.

More than half a century later, Nigerian society has yet to achieve even an adequate understanding among its diverse constituent groups, let alone forget their differences. The lesson here is that, as Imams plunge into the murky waters of Western liberal democracy, they should be mindful of the burden of understanding differences and the challenge of forgetting them.

There is practically nothing that says Imams should not participate in politics, constitutionally or otherwise. However, because of the demands of democracy, which have a high probability of clashing with their Islamic values, many have stayed away from partisanship. That attitude seems to have changed. Open declarations of political support, campaigns to secure party tickets, and the use of pulpits to advance partisan interests have increasingly come to define the relationship between Muslim clerics in Northern Nigeria and partisan politics.

Many clerics have become cheerleaders for political figures, often openly declaring their partisan support for politicians and political parties, sometimes with reckless abandon. In return for such endorsements, political actors and governments have extended assorted forms of patronage to them. Cash donations running into millions of naira, as witnessed in Jos; privileged access to Aso Rock; bulk allocations of palliatives; and sponsorship of Hajj pilgrimages illustrate some of the material benefits associated with political loyalty.

Some have gone a step further by abandoning the pulpit for the political arena and throwing their hats into the ring. They are no longer content with counselling their followers on such issues as piety, civic responsibilities, and “voting wisely.” They want to be voted into political office, too. They have that inalienable right.

The Nigerian Constitution enshrines this right. Sections 65 and 66, 106 and 107, 131 and 137, and 177 and 182 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) prescribe the qualifications and disqualifications for membership of the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly, as well as for the offices of governor and president, respectively. These provisions do not discriminate on the basis of faith.

Why single out Imams for scrutiny for seeking elective positions? Or generally for becoming partisan? Why are their counterparts, the pastors, not subjected to the same scrutiny? The answers are simple: leadership contexts and principles differ, sometimes so fundamentally that it takes uncommon willpower to suppress and reconcile one’s intrinsic beliefs with the dictates of Western liberal democracy. The Islamic political system and democratic practice may share a common vision of liberty (‘yanci) and justice (adalci), but they differ in their fundamental political processes and jurisprudence.

Most clerics have been schooled in the Islamic system of governance—the Sharia. Divesting themselves of deeply ingrained Islamic political convictions while discharging their democratic responsibilities may not be the easiest task.

A Christian cleric participating in democratic politics may arguably be seen as making a homecoming because of the historical relationship between the Church and the state. Christianity emerged in the eastern Mediterranean, within a world shaped by Jewish religious traditions and Greco-Roman civilisation.

As it spread across Europe, it encountered societies whose cultural and religious identities had already been shaped by Greek, Roman, Germanic, Celtic, and other pre-Christian traditions. Its expansion did not simply erase everything that preceded it. Rather, the encounter between Christianity and these traditions produced a complex process of religious transformation and cultural adaptation.

On the other hand, Christianity has also played a significant role in shaping Western political thought, particularly through Christian ideas and values. It all started when the Church found itself filling the political vacuum following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. The Church was inadvertently drawn into playing both secular political and spiritual roles at the same time. That was between 500 and 1000 AD. In the second era, between 1000 and 1300 AD, kings and the Church shared leadership. It was during this period that the former claimed the “divine right” to rule.

After centuries of turmoil within the Church and the monarchy, the two institutions were separated, ushering in an era of secular democracy and the rule of law. This process, particularly from 1789 onwards, was preceded by a long period during which the Church and the state mutually shaped each other in many respects. For instance the Church influenced the democratic concepts of equality before God (Law); freedom of conscience; separating religious and political authority (things of Caesar and things of God); universal suffrage (Benedictine orders); and institutional unconditional care for the vulnerable (agape), etc.

The theological and jurisprudential relationship between Islam and democracy has a different historical background. Islam developed a political and legal tradition in which religious and political authority were historically interconnected, a relationship that has continued to influence Muslim societies to this day. The process of Islamic governance started with the early Muslim community under the Prophet Muhammad (SAW). He was guided by wah’y (devine inspiration), an aspect of which gave rise to the Constitution of Medina (622 AD). The subsequent institution of the caliphate after his death, developed an Islamic jurisprudence, and traditions concerning political leadership, justice, consultation (shura), allegiance (bay’ah), and public responsibility, based on the Prophet’s teachings.

In classical Islamic jurisprudence, political authority is generally understood to be subject to divine law and moral obligations derived from Islamic sources. In liberal democracy, political authority is ordinarily constituted and limited by a constitutional order grounded in popular sovereignty, individual rights, and the rule of law. These principles can conflict, particularly where interpretations of religious law differ from constitutional guarantees of individual liberty, religious equality, or popular legislative authority. The two systems, however, overlap in such areas as justice, accountability, consultation, and the welfare of society.

The dilemma facing an Imam who enters democratic politics is the challenge of reconciling his background with the demands of the Western democratic system within which he must operate. He knows that the sources of Islamic jurisprudence are generally identified as the Qur’an and Sunnah, with ijma’ (juristic consensus) and qiyas (analogical reasoning) among the principal methods recognised in Islam. This contrasts with democracy, where people and institutions formulate laws.

He also understands that political leadership is not merely an electoral contest between individuals seeking popularity. Rather, it is guided by certain qualifications, including maturity, soundness of mind, sufficient religious knowledge for the responsibilities of leadership, justice or uprightness, competence, and the ability to discharge the functions of governance. Some classical jurists also prescribed conditions such as male sex, lineage (Shi’a Imamate), among others, though with certain nuances.

The underlying principle, however, is significant: leadership is conceived as a trust and responsibility, not merely a badge of honour to be won. The Qur’anic concept of amanah—trust—therefore has profound implications for political leadership. The leader is not simply accountable to voters. He is ultimately accountable to God. That theological dimension distinguishes Islamic political ethics from the secular constitutional conception of political authority, where sovereignty, authority, and legitimacy rest with the people.

The Nigerian secular Constitution, for example, begins with the words: “We the people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria…” It establishes a constitutional order in which governmental authority is exercised through institutions created by the Constitution. In Islamic political theology, however, ultimate sovereignty belongs to Allah. The Qur’an states:
“The command is for none but Allah.” Qur’an 12:40.

Muslim scholars have interpreted the political implications of such verses differently. Some Islamist thinkers have used the concept of hakimiyyah,divine sovereignty,to argue that legislation cannot legitimately contradict divine law. Others have argued that democracy can be reconciled with Islam if it is understood as a mechanism for consultation, accountability, and the peaceful selection of rulers rather than as an assertion that human beings possess unlimited authority to legislate against God’s commands.

Beyond the religious injunctions is the more difficult question of conscience and the burden of knowing. A cleric who enters politics must operate within a constitutional system whose laws, institutions, and political culture may not always correspond perfectly with his understanding of Islamic jurisprudence.

A politician may have to negotiate with individuals whose lifestyles, beliefs, or political positions he strongly disagrees with. He may have to defend constitutional rights for people whose choices he personally considers morally wrong. He may have to work with political parties whose internal practices and the character of some of their members are far removed from his religious ideals.

One of the most significant areas of potential tension is the meaning of freedom. Liberal democracy protects freedom of expression, association, religion, and political participation. These freedoms extend to citizens with whom the cleric may profoundly disagree. A democracy does not merely protect popular or respectable opinions. It also protects unpopular opinions, minority viewpoints, and, within constitutional limits, conduct that sections of society may consider offensive or immoral.

Other dilemmas include: is political freedom absolute?
Can citizens publicly criticise religion?
Should people be permitted to advocate lifestyles that a cleric regards as sinful?
Can a Muslim politician defend the constitutional rights of people whose personal conduct violates his religious convictions?
What about theft, inheritance, adultery, murder, and treason, among other matters?

A typical Nigerian Muslim cleric may have been exposed to three or more historically related theological models of political leadership and governance. The first is based on the Constitution of Medina, promulgated by the Prophet to establish a harmonious community. The second is the Pact of Umar, associated with Caliph Umar, the second of the four Rightly Guided Caliphs. It essentially structured society along the lines of the ruling class/religion and the ruled (Dhimmis), subject to specified conditions and obligations.

The third is the Millet (Milla) system, which was used during the Ottoman period. Under this system, leadership and control were devolved to accommodate distinct social and religious formations, which remained answerable to the Caliph. These three or more models are not mutually exclusive, as they evolved as part of the Sharia state system.

Challenges arise when the setting is diverse, with Muslim and non-Muslim populations being almost equal, and governance is based on Western liberal democracy, as is currently the case in Nigeria. Muslim scholars venturing into politics with a mindset shaped by any of the three systems may find it highly challenging, and delicate to navigate.

Perhaps that is why three groups have emerged among the clerics on this matter. The first comprises those who choose to distance themselves from democratic politics. The second encourages participation as a means of minimising potential harm to Muslims (maslahah and wasilah). The third comprises those who consider participation in democratic governance unacceptable and will stop at nothing to oppose it, including the use of violence. They argue that sovereignty belongs to God (hakimiyyah) and that human-made legislation (democracy) inherently contradicts divine law (Sharia).

Those who choose to participate in the democratic dispensation on a partisan basis belong to the second category, but they carry the burden of understanding the other dispensations and the implications of their decisions. To begin with, they must have a high degree of intellectual clarity about the two systems: they must understand their obligations under Sharia, understand constitutional democracy, and know where the two converge and where they diverge.

They must also acknowledge that the ulama cannot absolve themselves of responsibility for some of the persistent challenges confronting the North in particular and the nation at large. Their sectarianisn, complicity, internal divisions, or failure to provide the necessary moral and intellectual leadership may have, in no small measure, contributed to the problems the society faces. The same challenges a section of them is trying to address through full participation in partisan politics.

It is also obvious that they need to know, as a matter of fact, that once elected to public office in Nigeria, their oath is to the Constitution and the people, not to a personal clerical constituency. This is particularly important as they deal with issues such as political legitimacy under non-Islamic jurisprudence; legislation by democratic institutions in relation to divine injunctions; and political and moral accountability under Islam and democracy, among others.

The turban can enter the ballot box. It can even enter the Government House or the National Assembly. But once inside, it must confront the full demands of constitutional democracy. That is where clerical politics will ultimately be tested: what to forget, what to understand, and what to hold on to, without compounding the challengeson the ground. .

It will take uncommon patriotism to rise above Zik’s “let’s forget our differences” and Sardauna’s “let’s understand our differences” to embrace and defend a system that challenges the very foundations of one’s theological convictions. It is no small undertaking. Wishing the clerics well, provided their motivations are genuinely driven by the interests of the people and a sense of accountability to the Almighty.
A. G. Abubakar
agbarewa@gmail.com

 
 
 
BY VICTORIA NGOZI IKEANO
 
victoriangozii@gmail.com 08033077519
 
 
For the second consecutive year women have won the Nobel Peace Prize.  Altogether 69 women have since its inception in 1901 won the Nobel Prize which is in five categories, namely, Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature and Economics.   Understandably, there are more male laureates than female.  However, this columnist is more interested in the female laureates and more specifically in women winners of the Nobel prize for peace. I consider the peace prize as the most important of all five types of prizes because peace is the fulcrum for order and harmony from which ensue undisturbed development in joyous activity that makes for upwards progress and leads to real happiness.
 
 Let us delve into some statistics about the Nobel Prize for peace as it relates to women.  Overall, 21 females have been awarded this particular prize. The very first woman to win the peace prize was Bertha von Suttner, also described as the first Austrian Laureate, that is, the first female from Austria to be awarded a Nobel Prize. Bertha von Suttner was given the prize in 1905 “for her influential anti-war activism, her leadership in international peace movement and her authoring the famous pacifist novel, ‘Lay down your arms”’. Among other women Nobel peace prize winners are, Mother Teresa, Malala Yousafzai and Narges Mohammadi. Mother Teresa, a nun  clinched the prize in 1979, “ for her work for bringing help to suffering humanity”,  According to the awarding body  this involves, “building homes for orphans, nursing homes for lepers and hospices for the terminally ill” in Calcutta, India  through founding a new sisterhood, Missionaries for Charity.
 
 Malala Yousafzai,  at just age 17 (the youngest laureate) was awarded the Nobel peace prize in 2014 alongside Kailash Sayarthi (as joint winners), “for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education”.  Specifically, Malala, a Pakistani was honoured “for her fight for every child to receive education”. In 2012 she literally cheated death when she was shot in the head in a school bus, thereafter fleeing to England to live in exile. She was named among  the ‘100 most influential people’ by Time magazine in 2013. “On her 16th birthday she spoke in the United Nations.  In her speech Malala called for equal right to education for girls all over the world and became a symbol of this cause”.
 
 With the latest award to South African Navi Pillay, there are now three female African Nobel peace laureates; the others being Wangari Maathai of Kenya (2004)   and Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.  Sirleaf was joint winners with Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkoi Karman for “for their non violent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work”. In particular Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, a former Liberian president is described as Africa’s first female democratically elected head of state that “came to power in 2005, creating peace and economic progress in the country. She strengthened women’s rights, expanded freedom of speech and became an example for other African leaders”.  On her part, Wangari Maathai clinched it “for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace via the Green Belt Movement”.
 
Narges Mohammadi won it in 2023 for fighting the oppression of women and promoting human rights in Iran. She is said to have been arrested 13 times, sentenced to 31 years in prison with 154 lashes between 1998 and 2023. She was named Nobel peace prize winner whilst still in prison. Also, Venezuela opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won it last year, 2025. Machado had to be smuggled out of Venezuela with help of United States to be able to receive her prize because of restrictions placed on her by her home government. The latest female Nobel peace prize winner (2026)  is Navi Pillay, a former South African High Court Judge who also served as head of the United Nations Human Rights court.   She was so honoured for “being instrumental in ensuring war crimes against humanity and genocide are prosecuted”.
 
 All 21 female Nobel Peace winners were mostly activists in one way or other. Their activities are exemplary, worthy of emulation and praise. They were brought to limelight through exposure by the international media which in turn helped propel them to recognition. Still, efforts of all the Nobel laureates, male and female as well as others working externally in public domains in quest for global peace is like a drop in the ocean.  One area that can contribute maximally to world peace is the HOME. The home from where all of us take the first steps into the larger society, the outside world, is the very first place to nurture peaceful citizens in whom is rooted peaceful disposition in all its ramifications. Here, the woman holds sway, here is her high office. She has been imbued by the Creator with the ability to influence every fruit of her womb through high guidance as a guide, guardian and teacher. Unfortunately, we women have trampled and neglected the gifts bestowed on us by the Almighty in pursuit of worldly recognitions; we have neglected the home, turned away from our sacred callings, chasing  vainglorious sham instead.  The result is that we have through our wayward living, unworthy of  genuine womanhood, masked by false piety literally stretched our hands to the under-world, dark regions and begetting human beings who are no more than agents of darkness, tormenting  everyone with their evil deeds everywhere and peace is eluding mankind. We women bear the greater blame for this sad state of affairs!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 

By: Soknan Shedul
Every great nation reaches a crossroads where it must choose between temporary comfort or permanent prosperity. For decades, Nigeria was kept on artificial life support by policies that drained our national wealth to enrich a select few.

When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stepped forward, he promised a country built on real economic truth.

Through the Renewed Hope Agenda,
his administration is making the difficult, courageous choices needed to stop the bleeding and secure the future for every citizen.

Although the shockwaves of reform is still very much with us, the evidence is clear: the bold choices made to remove the fuel subsidy and unify the foreign exchange market are finally unlocking the wealth of our nation and returning it directly to the people.

FROM WASTE TO WEALTH: RETURNING BILLIONS TO LOCAL COMMUNITIES.
For years, trillions of Naira vanished into corrupt fuel subsidies and uneven currency exchange markets. That era is over. The unified Naira has stabilized within a tight corridor, and Nigeria’s external reserves have surged past $55 billion—giving us over 11 months of solid import cover.
More importantly, the money saved from the subsidy is no longer locked in Abuja or pocketed by speculators.

The Federation Account allocation to state and local governments (FAAC) has skyrocketed from ₦3.4 trillion in 2022 to an unprecedented ₦11.38 trillion, a massive 232% increase. This means your local community now has the direct financial power to build better roads, upgrade healthcare facilities, and fund real grassroots development.

INVESTING IN YOUR FAMILY:
EDUCATION, JOBS, AND
TAX RELIEF; Real economic growth is measured by how it lifts up families. The administration has matched its structural reforms with historic, direct relief programs designed to safeguard the middle class and protect the vulnerable:

KEEPING EDUCATION ALIVE: The Nigerian Education loan Fund has moved from a vision to a massive success. It has disbursed over ₦322 billion, directly supporting more than 1.6 million student applications with interest-free academic loans and monthly upkeep allowances across 354 institutions. Single institutions, such as Ekiti State University, have received billions at once to instantly wipe out the tuition debt of over 10,000 students.

UNPRECEDENTED TAX RELIEF FOR SMALL BUSINESSES: To protect local employment, over 200 confusing legacy levies have been slashed down to roughly 60. Crucially, the administration has completely exempted small businesses with annual turnovers under ₦50M–₦100M from paying corporate income tax, ensuring local shop owners, traders, and entrepreneurs keep their doors open and their profits in their pockets.

A FAIR MINIMUM WAGE: The administration has implemented the new ₦70,000 national minimum wage, anchoring a comprehensive effort to lift the baseline earning power of our public workers and strengthen household purchasing power nationwide.

SECURITY RESTRUCTURING:
RECLAIMING OUR COMMUNITIES.
Economic prosperity cannot exist without physical safety. Recognizing that our nation’s progress depends on secure communities, President Tinubu has authorized the most aggressive expansion of internal and external defense frameworks in modern Nigerian history:

TAKING BACK THE STREETS WITH STATE POLICE: Moving past rigid, distant federal command structures, the executive State Police constitutional framework has advanced rapidly through the National Assembly. Backed by the brand-new National Policing Bill, this landmark reform ensures that local officers—who intimately understand your neighborhood’s unique vulnerabilities—are empowered to protect your community under strict federal safeguards and standardized professional criteria.
This in addition to the recruitment of forest guards to man our forests.

A MASSIVE 50% MILITARY EXPANSION: To eliminate banditry and secure our critical agricultural zones, the administration has expanded the Nigerian Army from 8 to 12 field divisions. Supported by 28,000 newly recruited personnel, these new commands are strategically placed across vital regions—including Makurdi, Ilorin, Jalingo, and Benin City—to permanently clear out ungoverned spaces, protect our agrarian belts, and allow our farmers to safely return to their lands.

THE INFRASTRUCTURAL DRIVE: CONNECTING THE NATION FOR SHARED WEALTH: The administration of President Bola Tinubu is pursuing an aggressive infrastructure agenda institutionalized primarily through-
The Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund (RHIDF)- Moving away from fragmented, small-scale construction, the government’s approach focuses on building expansive economic corridors designed to link regional agricultural hubs, heavy mining deposits, and commercial zones directly with maritime export ports.

THE LAGOS – CALABAR COASTAL HIGHWAY: This monumental project is a 700–750 km modern concrete-technology expressway designed to span nine coastal states, linking major industrial zones, oil-producing regions, and commercial hubs directly along Nigeria’s Atlantic coastline.

ECONOMIC ADVANTAGE: By directly connecting production and marketing centers for over 30 million people, this highway unlocks massive maritime trade, tourism, and real estate potential. Its advanced concrete design ensures long-term structural durability, drastically reducing vehicle maintenance costs and slashing travel times for commercial freight moving between southwestern and south-southern ports.

THE SOKOTO- BADAGRY SUPERHIGHWAY: This 1,000 km North-South transit artery connects Nigeria’s northern borders down to the southwestern coast, strategically designed to establish a seamless, high-speed logistical link that completely bypasses traditionally congested interior routes.

ECONOMIC ADVANTAGE: This superhighway grants deep northern agricultural zones and solid mineral deposits direct, bottleneck-free access to southwestern export markets and ports. By bridging the vast geographic gap between northern producers and southern consumers, it reduces food spoilage, stabilizes nationwide commodity pricing, and accelerates regional integration.

NATIONAL RAIL & URBAN MASS TRANSIT: The government has historically decentralized rail development by moving it from the Exclusive List to the Concurrent List, alongside approving $2.99 Billion for metropolitan light rail projects like the Lagos Green Line, Kano Metro, and Kaduna Rail. Concurrently, the cross-border Kano-Maradi Railway is being rapidly advanced to anchor the Trans-Saharan trade corridor.

ECONOMIC ADVANTAGE: Empowering states and the private sector to build rail networks breaks federal monopolies and drives competitive urban development. Affordable mass transit slashes daily commute costs for millions of urban workers, directly boosting city productivity. On a macro scale, the cross-border rail links tap into the landlocked markets of the Sahel, positioning Nigeria as the dominant logistical hub for West African trade.

STRATEGIC REVITALIZATION OF THE OIL AND GAS SECTOR: Far from being neglected, the oil and gas sector is undergoing strategic restructuring under President Tinubu to boost domestic utilization, drive energy security, and accelerate the transition to sustainable fuel:

THE PRESIDENTIAL CNG INITIATIVE
(Pi-CNG): This groundbreaking program serves as a direct strategic buffer against high fuel costs by aggressively accelerating the transition to Compressed Natural Gas. By driving the mass deployment of CNG conversion kits, establishing nationwide refueling infrastructure, and rolling out CNG-powered mass transit buses, the administration is drastically reducing commercial transportation costs across all six geopolitical zones.

DECENTRALIZATION & REFINERIES SUPPORT: The administration altered regulatory policy to ensure domestic crude supply obligations are met—most notably supporting the fully operational Dangote Refinery and advancing the rehabilitation of state-owned refineries (Port Harcourt and Warri) to ensure local fuel sufficiency.

GAS- TO-POWER INFRASTRUCTURE: Accelerated investments are being funneled into the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline project and gas processing facilities to anchor industrial clusters across the country, aiming to maximize Nigeria’s 200+ trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves.

GOVERNMENT HEALTH INTERVENTIONS FOR INDIGENT PATIENTS
To shield the most vulnerable Nigerians from catastrophic healthcare expenses, the government has scaled up targeted social health interventions:

THE BASIC HEALTH CARE PROVISION FUND (BHCPF):
The administration redesigned the BHCPF to channel massive funding directly to over 8,000 Primary Health Care (PHC) centers across the country. A dedicated portion of this fund goes toward providing a basic minimum package of health services for Nigerians who cannot afford health insurance premium payments.

SECTOR-SPECIFIC VULNERABLE GROUP FUNDS: Operating through the
National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA)the government is expanding the Vulnerable Group Fund. This framework subsidizes or fully covers medical insurance premiums for indigent citizens, pregnant women, children under five, and the elderly.

CANCER HEALTH FUND (CHF)
The government maintains and has expanded the CHF initiative, which specifically provides subsidized or fully funded chemotherapy, radiation, and surgical care for indigent cancer patients at designated federal tertiary hospitals across the geopolitical zones.

THE HUMAN COST:
FACING THE REALITY OF THE BROKEN EGGS.
Yet, the ultimate test of structural transformation lies not just in macro-economic data or newly laid concrete, but in the micro-realities of the Nigerian dining table.
There is an undeniable “dark side” to these reform phases—a period of severe economic friction where the removal of structural distortions has translated into high inflation, elevated transportation costs, and a deeply strained cost of living for the average citizen.
Opposition figures and independent civic bodies reason that the viability of these arguments at the ballot box will ultimately depend on whether macro-reforms successfully translate into lowered living costs, improved public security, and heightened citizen prosperity before the election.

While there is a consensus that these hardships are painfully real, leading to widespread frustration across the federation, but in the mathematics of true nation-building, eggs must be broken if the nation is ever to enjoy the omelette of permanent prosperity.

Ultimately, history teaches us that a grand destiny is never forged without friction. We are living through the reality of the broken eggs—the painful, necessary fracturing of an unsustainable, decaying status quo.
But let it be known that these are not the fragments of ruin; they are the shattered shells of a past we had to outgrow.

From the crucible of these fierce reforms, a magnificent new dawn is hatching. The old, fragile shell has been broken precisely so that a resilient, unstoppable economic giant can finally step forth, spread its wings, and claim its rightful dominion in the sun.

GOVT. MUST COME DOWN TO THE MASSES ON THE GROUND; To bridge this critical empathy gap, the government must actively descend from institutional heights and meet the masses on the ground through a radical grassroots communication strategy.

Rather than relying on technical economic bulletins and high-level press briefings from Abuja, the administration needs a decentralized engagement model that uses local town halls, market square interactions, and traditional rulers across all six geopolitical zones and the FCT.

By translating complex policies into indigenous languages and transparently explaining the sequencing of the reforms, the government can transform an imposing policy agenda into a shared, understood national journey.

True public buy-in is built on the visible, direct deployment of safety nets that match the scale of the sacrifices being made.

Persuading the populace to stay the course requires the administration to show exactly where the rescued wealth from these broken eggs is being distributed in real time.

Accelerating the visible rollout of localized relief, lowering food distribution bottlenecks, and showing immediate infrastructural returns in vulnerable communities, will demonstrate that the current economic pain is not a permanent condition, but the unavoidable labor pains of a secure and self-sufficient New Nigeria.

THE COURSE TO PROSPERITY;
The measure of historic leadership has never been found in the comfort of status quo politics, but in the courage to dismantle it.

President Bola Tinubu’s administration has consistently demonstrated the rare political will required to confront Nigeria’s most deeply entrenched distortions head-on. Where previous leadership cycles chose short-term popularity and costly postponements, this presidency has deliberately deployed its political capital to enact structural, surgical reforms.

Beyond the immediate, difficult adjustments of these reforms lies a meticulously designed blueprint for enduring Nigerian prosperity and physical security. The strides taken across his first term are foundational pillars engineered to support a modern, self-sustaining federation.

This is the handiwork of a deft political strategist who understands that true nation-building requires structural strength over superficial praise. President Tinubu’s distinct footsteps clearly point toward a decentralized, economically resilient Nigeria where local government autonomy is respected and every region shares in the commonwealth.

The proof of this vision is already surfacing in our national indicators; Structural transformations do not yield instant miracles, but according to the
National Bureau of statistics, NBS,
the foundations being laid today are rock-solid, with Nigeria’s economy expanding at a resilient 4.43% growth rate while headline inflation continues its steady downward drop.

President Tinubu’s vision refuses to offer cosmetic band-aids, choosing instead to bear the political weight of foundational reforms so that the generations of tomorrow can inherit a stable, thriving economy.

A masterclass in Political Strategy, President Tinibu clearly commands a historic capacity to forge cross-regional alliances, manage complex legislative dynamics, and maintain stability during deep economic shifts as evidence of an unmatched political acumen

As we look toward 2027, the choice before every well-meaning citizen is between returning to the volatile illusions of the past or consolidating the hard-won foundation of a New Nigeria.

True transformation demands patience, continuity, and an unyielding belief in the trajectory now set before us. By standing firmly behind a leader whose courage, visionary reforms, and unmatched political wit have finally unlocked the path to our true potential.

Let us confidently stay the course, protect our shared progress, and vote to accelerate our shared journey toward a prosperous, united, and secure future under the Renewed Hope Agenda – so as to ensure that our temporary sacrifices and pain we have shared yield permanent prosperity.##

soknanshedulishaku@gmail.com.
National coordinator,
Congress of Minority of Northern Nigeria, CMNN.
writes from Abuja.