The last may not have been heard about the
controversial lifestyles of the man presently in the eye of the storm, Senator Dino
Melaye, the embattled politicians who’s one of the most prominent of the 109
members that constitute the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly.
Representing Kogi West constituency in the Senate, the stupendously-rich-for-nothing
politician has no doubt cut an image of a flamboyant man who lives large to the
detriment of his people as no reasonable bill has been pushed/passed to benefit
anyone and as at the last check, the Greek gift he presented at home last
December was an account of a lobby from the National Emergency Management Agency-NEMA
who gave away relief materials. In this piece which sums up the alleged exaggerated
lifestyle of one of the nation’s most controversial political brands at the
moment, Solomon Adebayo, a brilliant youngman who’s a fellow ABU product presents
an empirical evidence of how Dino really bullied his way to the top. It’s an
interestingly amazing piece you’ll be happy you read.
Since Sahara Reporters broke the news of the
certificate scandal trailing Senator Dino Melaye and the subsequent media
reports on the issue, the Ahmadu Bello University, Kogi West Senatorial
District and Okunland have been in the wrong spot.
The appearance of ABU VC before a Senate Committee to declare that "Dino Melaye is a graduate of ABU" has not doused the fire.
Many including my self-are still asking why the Senator`s name is missing in all ABU`s record of graduates including the Alumni list, why both Dino and the VC have refused to present the certificate issued to him after his graduation!
The matter is more intriguing to me as a graduate of ABU.
I know full well that the sacrosanct rule was, and I believe still, that, even though a student is admitted to the remedial school with lower grades as Dino, (Dino got admission into ABU through the School of General and Remedial Studies, SGRS with three credits) such a student must rectify their "deficiencies" before their third year. ABU would never and I repeat, will never graduate a student with three credits. How they bent this rule for Dino, only the VC can explain.
I am pained reading comments of some people, disparaging one of the greatest citadels of learning in Africa. Others wondered how ABU admitted the Senator with three credits while some were at a loss as to the quality of the people he represents.
I, therefore, make bold to say that Dino is not the barometer to gauge the quality of ABU graduates or Okun people.
This is the story of Dino’s emergence in the political landscape
after he "graduated" from ABU. Dino found succour in one Kayode Akinjo, a former Union Leader at the Obafemi Awolowo University Ife, who was appointed the Special Assistant on Youths by former President Obasanjo.
Dino, a member of the House of Representative, Abdumumini Jubril who was embroiled in budget padding scandal and sacked as Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Funmi Odunsile, and others became squatters in the official residence of Mr. Akinjo at the former Nigeria Ports Authority`s quarters in Zone 6, Abuja.
Mr. Akinjo, the SA to President Obasanjo used his connections and closeness to Aso Rock to find jobs for his friends. With the help of Akinjo, they set up a rudderless NGO called Grand Alliance for Democracy; GRAND made Chief Tony Anineh their grand patron and the then Minister of Water Resources, Alhaji Muktar Shagari, their patron.
With Akinjo in Aso Rock, GRAND attracted donations and patronage from top government officials including ministers, heads of government agencies and government contractors. Top of the list of government contractors that funded their "NGO" then was the former chairman of defunct Dasaab Airlines.
Money rolled in for the boys, and they painted Abuja red.
Chief Tony Anenih donated the money (about six million naira then) they used that to rent their head office. A one story building somewhere in zone 6.
But like many rudderless organizations set out to make money, the principal actors were up in arms against each other over the sharing of millions of naira coming for them, and that was the end of GRAND as Chief Tony Anineh, and the ministers funding GRAND swiftly took cover to avoid the attendant embarrassment.
After the death of GRAND, Dino latched into Rtd. Brigadier General Buba Marwa and became his unofficial bodyguard and spokesman during the Adamawa state born retired military officer`s failed presidential bid.
Then, if anyone then made any derogatory or uncomplimentary remarks against Buba Marwa, Dino would address a press conference to abuse the person back. He was a very useful tool for Gen. Marwa the way he is now for the Senate President.
I can remember vividly asking him in one of those press conferences he organized for Marwa in a hotel somewhere in area 11, why can’t Marwa speak for himself, he couldn’t give any coherent response.
After Marwa`s presidential ambition had hit the rocks, Dino moved nearer home to seek political relevance and met a Godfather in late Architect Steven Olorunfemi, the then undisputable “political leader” in Okunland.
Like all political leaders and Godfathers in Nigeria politics who equate their personal interests to the benefit of the people, late Architect Olorunfemi saw in Dino a weapon to settle scores with his political enemy-Mr. Richard Akanmode, a former Chief of Staff to then-Vice President, Atiku Abubakar who is from the same town as Dino.
Mr. Akanmode had previously frustrated Architect Steven Olorunfemi`s ambition to the Senate, so for the Architect, Dino was a payback cheque for Mr. Akanmode whose younger brother was also contesting the Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives against Dino.
So Architect Olorunfemi propped up Dino to challenge Mr. Akanmode`s younger brother, and as the political leader of Oweland (Kabba is the largest voting bloc in the constituency), he presented Dino as the choice of Owe people. Then, the late Architect’s words were a bond.
So in effect, Dino was an onlooker and the ultimate beneficiary of the political war between Architect Olorunfemi and Mr. Richard Akanmode.
Whatever deal or undertaking the late Steven Olorunfemi extracted from Dino, nobody knew. Unfortunately for the Architect, he died not long after Dino became a House member.
The death of the Architect therefore effectively freed Dino from any payback, liability, and encumbrances to anybody including his constituents as he the person who solely installed him as a House member left the scene for him.
This accounted for his delinking his constituency throughout his four years as House of Representative member.
The people then got tired of him and voted him out for Mr. TJ Yusuf, despite the millions he expended and his political theatrics.
After he had lost his House seat, Dino became an emergency "anti-corruption" campaigner, and gullible Nigerians got hooked by his antics because it was the era of demonizing the then President Goodluck Jonathan.
The Senator made in-road into APC and got the attention of the Godfathers notably Senator Bola Tinubu who saw in him an abusive tongue against President Jonathan and PDP. And as the "change" was blowing, as Mayokun Ehindero wrote in a piece, the people of Kotonkarfe and other purely Muslim communities in the Senatorial District just voted for “Sai Buhari`s” party with less attention to the name of the candidate on the ballot box.
Dino found his way into the Nigeria Senate.
Some few months ago when I heard that he distributed relief materials, he collected from the National Emergency Management Agency NEMA to people as Christmas and his empowerment gifts, I was not too surprised.
But I still took my time to investigate the matter up to the headquarters of NEMA and found it be true.
That is the typical Dino.
In more saner countries the Senate is the exclusive preserve of men and women who have reached the peak of their career in the public, private sectors and their private professional practice, the wealth of experiences they draw on to serve.
But in Nigeria, what you need is a godfather, lots of money, zeal to crush any stumbling block to your ambition.
That is why you find people whose CV is devoid of professional experience both in private and the public in the Nigeria Senate.
I challenge the Senator and all the names mentioned in my write-up to controvert these facts."
The appearance of ABU VC before a Senate Committee to declare that "Dino Melaye is a graduate of ABU" has not doused the fire.
Many including my self-are still asking why the Senator`s name is missing in all ABU`s record of graduates including the Alumni list, why both Dino and the VC have refused to present the certificate issued to him after his graduation!
The matter is more intriguing to me as a graduate of ABU.
I know full well that the sacrosanct rule was, and I believe still, that, even though a student is admitted to the remedial school with lower grades as Dino, (Dino got admission into ABU through the School of General and Remedial Studies, SGRS with three credits) such a student must rectify their "deficiencies" before their third year. ABU would never and I repeat, will never graduate a student with three credits. How they bent this rule for Dino, only the VC can explain.
I am pained reading comments of some people, disparaging one of the greatest citadels of learning in Africa. Others wondered how ABU admitted the Senator with three credits while some were at a loss as to the quality of the people he represents.
I, therefore, make bold to say that Dino is not the barometer to gauge the quality of ABU graduates or Okun people.
This is the story of Dino’s emergence in the political landscape
after he "graduated" from ABU. Dino found succour in one Kayode Akinjo, a former Union Leader at the Obafemi Awolowo University Ife, who was appointed the Special Assistant on Youths by former President Obasanjo.
Dino, a member of the House of Representative, Abdumumini Jubril who was embroiled in budget padding scandal and sacked as Chairman, House Committee on Appropriation, Funmi Odunsile, and others became squatters in the official residence of Mr. Akinjo at the former Nigeria Ports Authority`s quarters in Zone 6, Abuja.
Mr. Akinjo, the SA to President Obasanjo used his connections and closeness to Aso Rock to find jobs for his friends. With the help of Akinjo, they set up a rudderless NGO called Grand Alliance for Democracy; GRAND made Chief Tony Anineh their grand patron and the then Minister of Water Resources, Alhaji Muktar Shagari, their patron.
With Akinjo in Aso Rock, GRAND attracted donations and patronage from top government officials including ministers, heads of government agencies and government contractors. Top of the list of government contractors that funded their "NGO" then was the former chairman of defunct Dasaab Airlines.
Money rolled in for the boys, and they painted Abuja red.
Chief Tony Anenih donated the money (about six million naira then) they used that to rent their head office. A one story building somewhere in zone 6.
But like many rudderless organizations set out to make money, the principal actors were up in arms against each other over the sharing of millions of naira coming for them, and that was the end of GRAND as Chief Tony Anineh, and the ministers funding GRAND swiftly took cover to avoid the attendant embarrassment.
After the death of GRAND, Dino latched into Rtd. Brigadier General Buba Marwa and became his unofficial bodyguard and spokesman during the Adamawa state born retired military officer`s failed presidential bid.
Then, if anyone then made any derogatory or uncomplimentary remarks against Buba Marwa, Dino would address a press conference to abuse the person back. He was a very useful tool for Gen. Marwa the way he is now for the Senate President.
I can remember vividly asking him in one of those press conferences he organized for Marwa in a hotel somewhere in area 11, why can’t Marwa speak for himself, he couldn’t give any coherent response.
After Marwa`s presidential ambition had hit the rocks, Dino moved nearer home to seek political relevance and met a Godfather in late Architect Steven Olorunfemi, the then undisputable “political leader” in Okunland.
Like all political leaders and Godfathers in Nigeria politics who equate their personal interests to the benefit of the people, late Architect Olorunfemi saw in Dino a weapon to settle scores with his political enemy-Mr. Richard Akanmode, a former Chief of Staff to then-Vice President, Atiku Abubakar who is from the same town as Dino.
Mr. Akanmode had previously frustrated Architect Steven Olorunfemi`s ambition to the Senate, so for the Architect, Dino was a payback cheque for Mr. Akanmode whose younger brother was also contesting the Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu Federal Constituency seat in the House of Representatives against Dino.
So Architect Olorunfemi propped up Dino to challenge Mr. Akanmode`s younger brother, and as the political leader of Oweland (Kabba is the largest voting bloc in the constituency), he presented Dino as the choice of Owe people. Then, the late Architect’s words were a bond.
So in effect, Dino was an onlooker and the ultimate beneficiary of the political war between Architect Olorunfemi and Mr. Richard Akanmode.
Whatever deal or undertaking the late Steven Olorunfemi extracted from Dino, nobody knew. Unfortunately for the Architect, he died not long after Dino became a House member.
The death of the Architect therefore effectively freed Dino from any payback, liability, and encumbrances to anybody including his constituents as he the person who solely installed him as a House member left the scene for him.
This accounted for his delinking his constituency throughout his four years as House of Representative member.
The people then got tired of him and voted him out for Mr. TJ Yusuf, despite the millions he expended and his political theatrics.
After he had lost his House seat, Dino became an emergency "anti-corruption" campaigner, and gullible Nigerians got hooked by his antics because it was the era of demonizing the then President Goodluck Jonathan.
The Senator made in-road into APC and got the attention of the Godfathers notably Senator Bola Tinubu who saw in him an abusive tongue against President Jonathan and PDP. And as the "change" was blowing, as Mayokun Ehindero wrote in a piece, the people of Kotonkarfe and other purely Muslim communities in the Senatorial District just voted for “Sai Buhari`s” party with less attention to the name of the candidate on the ballot box.
Dino found his way into the Nigeria Senate.
Some few months ago when I heard that he distributed relief materials, he collected from the National Emergency Management Agency NEMA to people as Christmas and his empowerment gifts, I was not too surprised.
But I still took my time to investigate the matter up to the headquarters of NEMA and found it be true.
That is the typical Dino.
In more saner countries the Senate is the exclusive preserve of men and women who have reached the peak of their career in the public, private sectors and their private professional practice, the wealth of experiences they draw on to serve.
But in Nigeria, what you need is a godfather, lots of money, zeal to crush any stumbling block to your ambition.
That is why you find people whose CV is devoid of professional experience both in private and the public in the Nigeria Senate.
I challenge the Senator and all the names mentioned in my write-up to controvert these facts."
GOD IS WITH US
Solomon Adebayo
No comments:
Post a Comment