By Remi Adefulu

Ogun State, South West, Nigeria, is arguably one of the most endowed among the 36 states of the country in terms of human and material resources. But analysts generally agree that the Gateway State is far from where it ought to be in terms of growth and advancement. This is not an indictment of Gov Dapo Abiodun as he is best to change the senario.

This is largely due to the fact the state’s vast endowments remain largely untapped for the good of the state and her people and make the state a strong force in the comity of states in the country. Several administrations have done their bit in terms of raising the bar of development, but a wide gulf still exists in terms of reaping maximally from what God has bequeathed the state with.

For instance, many are still at a loss regarding why Ogun State has not fully reaped from her proximity to Lagos which ranks among the leading economies in Africa. Both states have a cooperation deal, courtesy of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and Governor Dapo Abiodun, which is quite commendable but more needs to be done. The beauty of it is that the foundation has been laid by the present administrations in the two states, but the needed push is highly awaited.

One of the areas that would definitely improve the economy of the two states is a commercial railway venture to service both states. Already, the service is in existence between Iddo in Lagos to Agbado, Ogun State, but expectations are that the rail will receive additional push to other parts of Ogun State, since the state forms a circle around Lagos State.

Ogun State in particular needs to be at the forefront of this agitation as it stands to benefit optimally from this project because it possesses vast lands for agricultural and industrial use, which are scarce in Lagos. Even without this project, Governor Dapo Abiodun has been able to build on the efforts of past administrations by attracting mega businesses into Ogun State. His administration has equally opened up many parts of the state through the construction of several roads and bridges as a way of spreading development across the state.

However, his administration will do well to put in more energy into the joint cooperation agreement with Lagos State which covers many areas including rail, agric and others before his administration gradually grinds to a halt. It will be the icing on the cake of his impactful administration as he would have bequeathed an indelible legacy to his state. Surely, this would be one of the worthwhile things that the incoming administration would be inheriting and likely to build upon in view of its strategic importance to the socio-economic development of the Gateway State.

As earlier stated, Ogun State has barely scratched the surface given its enormous human and material resources scattered across the state. Already, many are jostling to be the state’s number one seat and their credentials are intimidating. The list includes Mr Tunde Lemo, a former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank; foremost journalist, Modele Sarafa-Yusuf; Senator Solomon Adeola A.K.A Yayi; Senator Iyabo Obasanjo-Bello; Alhaji Sarafa Ishola, Nigeria’s former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom; Mr Ladi Adebutu and Dimeji Bankole, former House of Representatives Speaker and Gboyega Nasir Isiaka A.K.A GNI.

No doubt, these aspirants, mostly from the APC, are political heavyweights most of whom are eminently qualified to occupy the coveted seat, going by their pedigree. However, one man stands out among the pack in terms of experience, competence and capacity and that is arguably Senator Solomon Adeola. At every level, he has demonstrated the highest commitment and capacity, shining like a million stars in ALL his endeavors.

As chairman of the House of Representatives Appropriation Committee, Yayi, as he is fondly called, gave the assignment his best shot, becoming the toast of his colleagues in the process. It was therefore little wonder that he was elevated to the position of Senator representing Lagos West Senatorial District, representing 10 of Lagos 20 Local Governments in the ‘Center of Excellence’. This ‘Golden Fish’ was fished out again and made the chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, an assignment which earned him even more laurels and applause.

His people in Ogun West Senatorial District virtually dragged him from Lagos to represent them in the same capacity and the technocrat has not disappointed them thus far. An assertive voice on the floor of the Nigerian Senate, no senator representing Ogun West has fared better than Yayi since 1999, going by his enviable track-record, which include the upgrading of Federal Polytechnic, Ilaro to a University, mega empowerment programmes, vocational training, scholarship awards and many more.

Across the length and breadth of Ogun State, Senator Adeola’s footprints are visible for all to see despite representing just one Senatorial District. These he has done by using his network of contacts across the different strata of government and without expecting any form of reward in return. All these he has done with little or no noise at all, leaving his good works to do the talking instead of any needless noise.

A party man to the core, Yayi is one of those that have contributed to the fortunes of APC in and out of election season as seen in the performance of the party in Ogun West in the 2023 general elections across Ogun West. Though desirous of governing Ogun State, Yayi is not desperate but focused on delivering his mandate, and showing clearly his philosophy of politics without bitterness. That is why he is a friend to all the high and, mighty and maintains a rare relationship with the grassroots in the politics of Ogun State and beyond.

With his gravitas, experience and exposure, Ogun will surely be in safe hands with Adeola as Governor in 2027.


Adefulu, a Journalist lives in Lagos

By Omoyeni Eniola

Road traffic accidents (RTAs) have emerged as one of Nigeria’s most persistent yet under-acknowledged public health crises. Every day, Nigerian roads claim lives, maim young citizens, and push families into grief and financial hardship. Yet, despite the scale of devastation, road traffic injuries continue to receive far less attention than other public health threats.

Data from the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) consistently show that thousands of Nigerians die annually from road traffic crashes, with tens of thousands more sustaining serious injuries. The majority of these victims are young adults in their most productive years, making road traffic accidents not only a health issue but a major threat to national development. What makes this burden particularly tragic is that most road traffic accidents are predictable and preventable.

Road traffic accidents exert enormous pressure on Nigeria’s healthcare system. Emergency departments across the country are inundated with victims suffering from traumatic brain injuries, fractures, spinal cord damage, internal hemorrhage, and burns. Many survivors require prolonged hospitalisation, repeated surgeries, and long-term rehabilitation—services that are limited and costly.

Beyond the hospitals, the economic impact is devastating. Families are often forced to sell assets or incur crippling debt to pay medical bills. When breadwinners are killed or permanently disabled, entire households are pushed into poverty. At the national level, productivity losses and healthcare costs run into billions of naira each year.

As an emergency room and trauma doctor, I witness the consequences of road traffic accidents on an almost daily basis. In many emergency shifts, road crash victims make up the bulk of critically ill patients. These are frequently young, otherwise healthy Nigerians whose lives are abruptly altered by avoidable events.

I have managed patients with severe head injuries because seat belts were ignored, motorcyclists with devastating brain trauma because helmets were not worn, and families involved in high-speed collisions on poorly maintained highways. One of the most distressing realities of trauma care is knowing that many of these injuries—and deaths—could have been prevented by simple safety measures.

Delayed rescue and poor pre-hospital care remain major contributors to mortality. Victims are often transported long distances in private vehicles without first aid, arriving hours after injury with severe blood loss or complications. In several cases, the injuries themselves were survivable, but the absence of timely emergency response turned manageable trauma into fatal outcomes.

Several factors continue to drive Nigeria’s high burden of road traffic injuries, including poor road infrastructure, reckless driving, weak enforcement of traffic laws, poorly maintained vehicles, and inadequate emergency medical services. These factors often interact, creating a deadly chain of events with predictable outcomes.

Reducing road traffic accidents in Nigeria requires a coordinated, multisectoral response. Investment in safer road infrastructure must be prioritised. Traffic laws must be enforced consistently and transparently. Public education on road safety should be sustained, vehicle safety standards strengthened, and a functional national emergency medical response system developed.

Road traffic accidents are not inevitable. Treating them as a public health priority rather than routine traffic incidents can save thousands of lives each year. Every life saved on the road represents a family preserved, a future protected, and a nation strengthened.

Dr.  Eniola is a Medical Doctor at ER & Trauma

By Wole Olujobi

“Let me have men about me that are fat,
sleek-headed men and such as sleep a-nights.
“Yond Cassius has a lean and hungry look. He thinks too much; such men are dangerous….
“I do not know the man I should avoid so soon as that spare Cassius. He reads much, he is a great observer, and he looks quite through the deeds of men. He loves no plays, as thou dost, Antony; he hears no music; seldom he smiles, and smiles in such a sort as if he mock’d himself, and scorn’d his spirit that could be moved to smile at any thing.
“Such men as he be never at heart’s ease whiles they behold a greater than themselves, and therefore are they very dangerous.”

That is the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar’s scorecard for Roman nobleman Caius Cassius who led other Roman Senators during the time revolt against Caesar was reaching its peak to brutally assassinate him at the Capitol, ending both his reign and life as he fell bleeding onto the Senate floor at the feet of the statue of Pompey.

Envious! Ambitious! Dangerous! That is Caesar’s descriptive and thematic ambience of the conflict between public appearance and private reality of Cassius as a Roman nobleman, which coincides with former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s portraiture of petit (lean) Malam Nasir El-Rufai, former Governor of Kaduna State, in the Nigeria’s shark-infested political waters where “the near in blood, the nearer (is) bloody”.

Obasanjo, El-Rufai’s former boss, was he who first drew our attention to the ills that ail the former governor’s public life, describing the former minister of the FCT in the following words:

“Nasir’s penchant for reputation savaging is almost pathological. Why does he do it? Very early in my interaction with him, I appreciated his talent. At the same time, I recognised his weaknesses; the worst being his inability to be loyal to anybody or any issue consistently for long.

“He lied brazenly, which he did to me, against his colleagues and so-called friends. My vivid recollection of him is penchant for lying, for unfair embellishment of stories, and his inability to sustain loyalty for long… with little or no regard for integrity.”

Obasanjo had earlier accused El-Rufai of three problems: the first is being too clever; second is being too clever; and third is being too clever.

Unfortunately, it was not only Obasanjo that had seen through this facade of patriotism in El-rufai that is rooted in clever ways of doing things to allegedly undermine his boss in order to have his way.
This much the DSS declared in its security report on El-Rufai. In what appears to be a political profiling, the DSS accused the former governor of backstabbing his former bosses. The agency said: “El-Rufai backstabbed former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Vice President Atiku Abubakar (who is said to have brought him into the Obasanjo administration), and the immediate-past President Muhammadu Buhari.”

Apart from DSS, El-Rufai had had a brush with the EFCC in its investigation on the contracts awarded between 2015 and 2023 under his leadership in Kaduna State, alleging that most of the loans obtained by the El-Rufai administration within the eight years were not utilised for the purposes for which they were secured, with the DSS also citing his “anti-people policies” that allegedly destroyed people’s livelihoods and market demolitions without compensation or alternatives, including the sacking of thousands of civil servants and removal of traditional rulers without due process.

The report further explained: “During the Senate confirmation process, the National Assembly requested security clearance from both national and international security and intelligence agencies, and it was discovered that Nasir el-Rufai failed his security screening woefully.

“He was considered a diplomatic liability to Nigeria because, on Thursday, February 7, 2019, Malam Nasir el-Rufai threatened European Union observers if they intervened in Nigeria’s impending Presidential elections, which were to take place on Saturday, February 16, 2019.

“On that day, Mr. el-Rufai said: ‘We are waiting for the person who will come and intervene. They will go back in body bags because nobody will come to Nigeria and tell us how to run our country.'”

The report added: “So strongly did the European Union view this threat that they wrote officially to the Government of Nigeria to protest and issued a public statement censuring Nigeria.

“Nasir el-Rufai’s government was indicted in the Zaria Shiite Massacre of Saturday, December 12, 2015, where 438 Shiite men, women, children and infants were slaughtered in one of Africa’s worst human rights violations.”

In what is clearly a breach of trust and paying evil for good, el-Rufai’s government was specifically cited for allegedly demolishing the homes of his political opponents in Kaduna, a clear act of betrayal of the people who he swore to protect their livelihoods while canvassing for their votes.

Again, apart from priming himself worse than a spitting cobra, El-Rufai, even though in SDP, maliciously became a joint spokesman for the triumvirate of Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi and Rotimi Amaechi in the struggle for ADC’s presidential ticket, recklessly, in an act of indiscretion, falsely discrediting Tinubu and squealing for the men that he will later characterically rebel against, in his pathological rebellion against whoever holds higher position than himself in an act of betrayal.
In sync with Caesar’s characterisation of Cassius, El-Rufai, evidently self-propelled to be a rebel, and the most bitter of the co-rebels over ministerial bid that ended in fiasco, went to town in confirmation of Obasanjo’s accusation against El-Rufai for having a pathological penchant for lying, unfair embellishment of stories, and inability to sustain loyalty for long.

He started spewing false claims to discredit President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who he had earlier promoted across the globe, including painting gory and scary pictures of the security and economic health of the nation to scare the much-needed international investments to grow the nation at the time President Tinubu’s economic reforms are yielding positive results, so much so that both the World Bank and IMF had hailed the nation’s economic health as unprecedented in recent years.

El-Rufai, who had almost 20 years in marathon runs in government positions of high authority, and whose entire life is denominated in anger and morbid sense of entitlement, is today the supervisory spokesman for the Association of Displaced Complainants (ADC); the latest political contraption in Nigeria, which now serves as a refugee camp for disoriented politicians that lack focus and ideological strength to push any viable agenda for development. At best, it is a post-protest platform for displaced, disgruntled, desperate and discharged (DDDD politicians) who, out of 2027 poll jitters, are clinging to any straw in the midst of wild storms threatening their political lives.
Such a conglomeration of “trial and error” gamblers of diverse backgrounds in moral and ideological orientations is dangerous for any vision to grow a nation.

As Obasanjo hinted on former minister’s alleged penchant for lying and his inability to sustain loyalty for long, El-Rufai ‘s rebellious Binam wood moved to the Dunsinane of ambition, as the former governor declared gleefully, boasting on a live television programme to the shock and chagrin of the nation that he, in cahoots with other cohorts, wiretapped the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, allegedly giving orders to arrest him; a clear criminal conduct that attracts a jail term, particularly at the time such a criminal conduct is believed to be the strength of the Boko Haram and bandits in their sabotage operations to put the nation’s security and economy at risk.

So far, the ambush has failed as El-Rufai faces the law, even as President Tinubu consolidates grounds to take Nigeria, the Goshen of Africa, out of the suffocating economic woods planted by PDP’s ruinous years in power during which El-Rufai was a principal participant in a privatisation scheme led by Abubakar Atiku that sold Nigerian patrimony to cronies at half-pence.

The questions are: If relevant authorities could confirm El-Rufai to be a national security risk and too dangerously clever and regarded as international target over his reckless indiscretions over human rights abuses and international conventions, including felony against the state and domestic violence and rebellion against his people and with records allegedly declaring him as a pathological liar with uncanny capacity to undermine and backstab his benefactors, and he is everyday conducting himself in a manner not consistent with a man of noble heart, who is that Jesus Christ that is so rude to trust another Judas Iscariot? Or who is that liberal Islamic cleric that is so base that will accommodate the tribe of Banu Qurayza who violated their peace treaty with Prophet Muhammad by conspiring with enemies during the Battle of the Trench (Ahzab)? Or the hypocrites (Munafiqun) (Surah At-Tawbah 9:77), who broke their promises to Allah and engaged in lying?

Can President Bola Ahmed Tinubu therefore be faulted in his rejection of El-Rufai as a minister in his cabinet? Who will appoint a diplomatic liability, security risk, malice merchant and notorious rights abuser a minister? Who will risk another Abacha/Babangida at garrison command to dine with General Muhammadu Buhari in the seat of power?

That El-Rufai braved the odds in confrontation with the North to fight for the emergence of Tinubu as APC’s candidate and eventual winner of the 2023 presidential poll, I sympathise with the former governor after failing to make Tinubu’s cabinet. That he is ambitious, like soldiers, I grant that ambition is a politician’s debt. But that as he is maliciously dangerous as the records have proven that his quixotic risks are sauce for Cassius syndrome that has now cooked troubles for him, I plead that the former governor be left to the law to have a day with the consequences of his indiscretion as the law prepares for him the banquet of recompense in his rebellion-driven antics.
For sure, Nigeria can no longer be handed to the locusts after President Tinubu has proven that he is capable of turning Nigeria from the desert of lack and land of hunger to the oasis of development.

As Cassius ate from his own rebellious pot and drank from his cup of ambition, the law should allow El-Rufai to eat the dinner that rebellion has cooked for him in the kitchen of indiscretion.

* Olujobi, journalist and former Deputy Director of Media and Publicity, 2023 Ekiti State APC Presidential Campaign Committee, writes from Ado-Ekiti