Tag Archives: Dino Melaye

Dino Melaye: The making of a brand – By Reuben Abati

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It is a sign of the times, and a tragedy that the most popular senator in the Nigerian national assembly at this moment is not the person who has moved the most impactful motion, not a lawmaker who has proposed a thought-provoking bill, and certainly not any senator who has given any impressive speech debating a matter of national importance.

What we get, most of the time, in place of legislative responsibility, prudence, accountability and distinction is burlesque, farce, Japanese-styled Bungaku-Bunraku enactments, a dose of medieval commedia d’ell arte and an enormous supply of Yoruba Alarinjo with a bit of the Akata from Efik and Ibibioland. And the star in this comedy of errors that the Nigerian national assembly has become is a gentleman called Dino Melaye.  He is the perfect archetype of all that is wrong or right with the Nigerian legislature, a fine representation of contradictory binaries, and a lesson unto the rest of us.

I am not condemning Dino Melaye. I am in fact just about to say that we created a man like him, just as before him, we needed a Busari Adelakun, and a Lamidi Adedibu to show us the true character of Nigerian politics. And to those who think Dino Melaye is something of an aberration, I say to them that Dino Melaye is indeed a true picture of Nigerian politics. He is much smarter and far more politically savvy than those who condemn him. His Wikipedia profile announces that his ambition is to be Nigeria’s president someday, maybe he won’t become president, but he may suddenly show up in the future as something close to that high office.  He is far more Nigerian than those who criticize or condemn him. He knows the system. He plays the system. He has the capacity to beat the system. Most people who get to the top in Nigeria beat the system, and when they do so, they flaunt their smartness in the people’s face. The pundits write their articles but nothing changes, because a man like Dino Melaye can get a whole vice chancellor of a university created under the act to do his bidding, and a National Assembly to queue up behind him.

I read one piece in which the writer was wondering how on earth we ended up with a Dino Melaye in the National Assembly: A man like that whose brand raises too many questions.  His school certificate result is not exactly impressive.  His year of graduation from Ahmadu Bello University has been controversial, even with the sitting vice chancellor’s needless testimony. Nobody is sure whether a BA or a BSc is the appropriate description of a degree in geography. Dino’s name is allegedly missing in the university’s graduation year brochure, an omission that nobody has been able to explain. There is an NYSC group photograph but he is just about the only person not properly dressed. Former classmates have confirmed that he was actually a university student and that he graduated, and the vice chancellor says he got a third class. Third class!

I have never seen any student so proud of a third class like Dino Melaye. To celebrate his third class he wore to the national assembly, a doctoral candidate’s gown, and thus insulted the entire academic establishment. I have a Ph.D gown and the full robes of the Nigerian Academy of Letters, but no form of temporary insanity will make me wear either of both robes to a wedding party. Dino Melaye is a Nigerian senator; nobody should be surprised if one of these days he wears his distinguished borrowed robes to a funeral just to convince everyone that he has a university degree. No serious person advertises a third class degree, but Dino Melaye says on top of that, he has acquired six additional degrees, including certificates from Harvard and the London School of Economics. The lesson from this is that the certificates of everyone who aspires to lead Nigeria at any level must be carefully verified henceforth. Only God knows how many persons at the highest levels in Nigeria are parading certificates and qualifications that should form the subject of scrutiny. A nation that is led by the least educated and the most ignorant of its population is definitely in trouble.

In the United States, a man like Dino Melaye would probably never win an election. His former wife, Tokunbo accused him of battery and domestic violence and showed pictures to prove her point. Her short-lived successor made similar claims, spent six months and fled. There was another lady, one of those “man-eating” Nollywood girls who entertained us with her misery and the story of a child and DNA tests.  If the wives and the baby mamas were wrong, Dino Melaye soon had a tiff with senator Remi Tinubu and what he said about her menopausal status, we don’t have to repeat.  He even went to the front of Remi Tinubu’s house in Lagos to pose for a photograph, daring her husband to do his worst. Senator Tinubu’s husband, the Jagaban of Borgu, Asiwaju of Lagos, former governor of Lagos and national leader of the APC knew better. The last time Dino Melaye got into a duel, he came out of it with torn clothes, which he proudly advertised.

Dino Melaye poses as an anti-corruption crusader. He rides some of the most exotic cars in Nigeria, all labeled Dino 1 to 5 or whatever. He is loud, flamboyant, and unconventional. He can talk, which means he is articulate, he is fearless, he is also fiercely and stubbornly loyal to the incumbent Senate President Bukola Saraki. He can sing. He can dance. He obviously has no respect for women because he is a macho-man, an alpha male. He can also fight, and he considers journalists the scum of the earth. That is why when Omoyele Sowore of Sahara Reporters digs into his past and qualifications, his immediate response is to say that he is being stalked and to go after the investigative journalist with everything that he can deploy. Melaye was elected as a senator to make laws for good governance, but he has been busy acting like he is an awada kerikeri actor on loan to the national assembly.

I am not condemning him. He won an election. In fact he has won many elections. The people who voted for him must see something in him. The man who represented Kogi west before him used to make useful contributions that made the headlines, he was respected for his informed interventions; there was never a time he wore torn clothes to the red chamber, but the people voted him out and elected Dino Melaye and since he started ruffling things up, nobody who voted for him has questioned him. You actually get the impression that Melaye is considered a hero in his Kogi west constituency. This should explain why he enjoys being the drama king of the national assembly.

To politicians of his type, every kind of publicity is good publicity.  It is better to be heard and known, for whatever reason, than to be unknown and unsung.  In Melaye’s mind, he is obviously having fun. The kerfuffle over his academic qualification is probably as far as he is concerned, a joke, because afterall, he doesn’t need more than a secondary school certificate to be a member of the national assembly. When we write about him, discuss his politics, interview him, project him in the media, we are actually promoting his politics and brand.

His kind of brand works in Nigeria. What was the value of Busari Adelakun’s politics or that of Lamidi Adedibu? But both men ended up being more prominent in their constituencies than other politicians of their time. Lamidi Adedibu, the exponent of Amala politics, was so powerful, when a certain governor refused to pay him godfather-rent, he got him removed from office and as they say, nothing happened. Adedibu derived his power from being close and loyal to a bigger man of power. He could sing too. And he could dance. And that is perhaps why Dino Melaye should be taken seriously when he breaks out into a song:

A je kun iya ni o je

A je kun iya ni o je

E ni ti o to ni na, to n dena de ni

A je kun iya ni oje

That song is now top of the charts in Nigeria today, with a remix and multiple parodies by other public figures. The only man who is probably yet to learn that song is senator Ali Ndume, but it is a song that speaks to him directly and accounts for his six-month suspension from the senate.  It is also a song about power and dictatorship. There is nothing in it about values or fairness, or justice. It is a might-is-right composition, about the mighty punishing and oppressing the powerless. “A je kun iya” emphasises the severity of punishment, “eni ti o to ni na” underscores the imbalance of weight, and the lack of equality in strength.  It is a song of intimidation, threat and abuse, completely arrogant in tone and sense.

Dino Melaye knows how to taunt his critics. I visited his website: dinomelaye.com.  There are nice photographs and links to other sites including his Facebook page, projecting him as a courageous and outspoken anti-corruption crusader and a political activist. We do not find any information about the bills and motions that he sponsored, or projects that he has embarked upon, or his relationship with his Kogi west constituency. This may be an oversight on the part of those who manage the site for him, but their omission is perhaps in order, since Dino Melaye is better known for the drama that he creates.

His Wikipedia profile offers nothing more impressive other than the notably juicy details about his marital life, his threat to “beat and impregnate another man’s wife”, and his monumental contribution to legislative debate about how Nigerian men should stop “importing” wives from foreign countries. To this should be added his promotion of the “aje kun iya” folk song into a quasi-national anthem. Elsewhere, a lawmaker’s profile online would refer to his or her electoral history, committee assignments and ideological positions on key national issues. What constitutes a lawmaker’s brand is what he stands for and how well he has served the people.

Dino Melaye’s brand is peculiar: he can sing, dance, fight and speak out loud.  He is an artful master of form. But what exactly does he stand for? What is his position on national security, healthcare, federalism, social security or agriculture? I don’t know.  But I won’t condemn him, because he is a well-made product of Nigerian politics. It is after all, difficult to know what most contemporary Nigerian politicians stand for. He is in addition, probably much better than half of the national assembly. He is more attentive at least than all those other senators who don’t attend plenary, certainly better than those who have spent more time there dozing off, or the ones who have spent years in that assembly and have never uttered a word, or sponsored a bill, support a motion or do anything of note. The pity is that many of such are now running up and down, seeking to become governors in their states in 2019. So, why won’t Dino Melaye nurse the ambition of becoming president someday?  A je kun iya ni o je…

OPINION: There’s a drop of Dino in all of us – By Niran Adedokun

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Psychologists talk about a condition known as narcissism. I understand it could have varying degrees of effect on people but pathological narcissists are said to be in love with an idealised self-image, which they project in order to avoid feeling and being perceived for their real, sometimes internally wounded self.

Narcissists are usually identified as haughty, self-centered, manipulative, and demanding. They also generally dwell on grandiose fantasies about their own successes, beauty or intelligence in addition to living with an obsessive sense of entitlement.

Experts say that in sustaining the attempt to pull one over people, narcissists are willing and able to tell lies and exaggerate to no end. All in a bid to gain the respect of people and remain on that high horse which they have set for themselves.

So, it is not out of place for such people to claim to have attained degrees that they have not attempted, journeys they never embarked on and possessions they never owned. And when they have indeed attained these milestones, they flaunt their accomplishments without consideration for the feelings of others!

Thoughts about this have nagged since allegations began making the rounds about Senator Dino Melaye’s certificates. While I had indications that the senator indeed graduated from the Ahmadu Bello University pretty early into the controversy, I found Melaye’s boast about being on his seventh degree consistent with tendencies to seek unnecessary attention and feel superior to others. Then, consider the unsolicited display of flashy automobiles and houses and Tuesday’s infantile adornment of an academic gown to the National Assembly!

But I then wonder whether Melaye is different from a lot of other Nigerians in any substantial detail. Here is a country where a vast number of the people are drunk on the pursuit of self and selfish interests. Good enough, psychology attests to the fact that there is a measure of the narcissistic in virtually every human being. In other words, as our world gets increasingly individualistic and goal driven, levels of narcissism, ranging from mild to severe are becoming more widespread.  It is doubtful that any Nigerian would want to dispute this, given that we see so much vainglory and covetousness around; it is sickening!

In the less than two decades of return to democracy, four instances of false certificate claims have reverberated nationally. The first scandal was blown open by The News magazine in 1999. It involved a young man with the name Salisu Buhari, who had just been elected speaker of the house of representatives. The News reported that Buhari did not attend the University of Toronto as he had claimed and that he falsified his age. After a series of denials and the magazine’s insistence on its scoop, Buhari admitted that he indeed forged documents and perjured himself.

Not long after, Tell magazine went to town with the alleged fraudulent educational claims by the then Lagos state governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. In some sense, the claims against Tinubu were a tad more grievous than Buhari’s. He was alleged to have lied about information regarding his primary, secondary and tertiary education.

There was also the accusation that a former minister of aviation, Stella Oduah, might have lied about her qualifications. According to the report, officials of St. Paul’s College Lawrenceville, Virginia, United States, where Oduah claimed to have gained a master’s in Business Administration, told an online news platform that no such programme ever existed in the institution. The report further insinuated that the woman might not even have obtained her first degree from the institution.

After we “ooed” and “aaed” for a couple of weeks, these allegations died natural deaths with each of those alleged to have infracted moving on with their lives. In fact, the only one of these allegations that the nation had the tenacity to resolve was the case of self-confessed Buhari, who later got a “go and sin no more” presidential pardon, and an appointment on the governing council of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka to boot.

Tinubu has gone on to be one of the heroes of Nigeria’s democratic growth and the seeming poster boy for what is the most progressive of our politics.  Of course, queries about the school certificate of President Muhammadu Buhari have met their untimely death given the inability of the people to agree on the morality behind giving Nigerians closure by proving the availability or otherwise of the certificate. But that is just by the way. Only God knows the number of our compatriots in and out of high office who walk the corridors of power and corporate offices armed with bogus educational achievements.

Why the theory of the possible prevalence of the narcissistic personality disorder is appealing, especially amongst seekers of public office in Nigeria is the fact that no one, including the President, needs more than a secondary school certificate, which they do not even need to pass to attain to any office. This is according to section 131 (d) of the 1999 constitution (as amended). So why do people lie about higher certificates which they did not acquire when the same is not a prerequisite?

This says a lot about our values as a people. In this same world in which three of the most influential people in the last century voluntarily dropped out of universities, Nigerians are cooking up stories about degrees that they neither attempted nor got.

For most of the past decade, the founder of Microsoft and one of the most benevolent givers to Nigeria, Bill Gates, has remained on top of the list of the wealthiest people in the world. Strikingly, Gates voluntarily dropped out of Harvard University.

Steve Jobs,  late founder of Apple, was quoted by his biographer, Walter Isaacson, as saying in an address at Stanford that: “I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out okay.” Even in death, he remains one of the most talked-about personalities from the United States of America.

And then the much younger Mark Zuckerberg dropped out of Harvard to devote his time to his startup social networking site, facebook.com, in 2005. Ten years later, the company was worth $12.5bn with 1.5 billion active users monthly. Yet, Nigerians are falling over each other to acquire certificates which literarily have no meaning to their lives.

A corollary to the diminished value of our paper qualification is the premium that we suddenly began to place on the class of degrees that people earn. Companies, even those without any iota of academic objective, started to insist on employing candidates with first class or a minimum of second class upper degrees.

To beat them at their game, some dumb blonde, whose only aptitude is a pretty face, would succumb to the devices of a randy lecturer, settle herself and curiously come up at the top of her class. Not to be left in the cold, the young man who is not so endowed would bring out some money (usually nothing enough to prosper anyone), and buy any class of degree that he wants ready for sucker companies that value certificate over the quality of the personality that they intend to employ. No wonder so many companies end up employing incompetent impostors who cannot help themselves when confronted with the reality of the task at hand.

This is the tragedy of a nation without class. A nation which stifles the ability of its people to attain their best potential would most definitely breed manipulators, some of who will falsify things just to survive or for an ego trip, a desire to lord it over others. We are a people who build houses that we don’t need, drive cars way out of league and send our children to schools we cannot afford, all just to “belong” or make some people envious.

The only thing that is worse than our vain disposition is our enthusiastic dishonesty, the inability to own up to our malady and redress.  The way it is in Nigeria now, we are all holier than the Pope until we are caught in the same malfeasance for which we condemn others. Reminds me of something a musician once said to the effect that: “we all steal, but it is the thief that is caught red-handed that we join the mob to lynch” But until Nigerians sit down as a people and reassess our values, those wrong-headed values that drive the leader and the led in Nigeria will continue to clog our progress.

Senator Dino Melaye petitions DSS against Omoyele Sowore.

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Dino Melaye, a senator from Kogi west, has petitioned the Department of State Services (DSS) against Omoyele Sowore, publisher of Sahara Reporters, alleging “cyberstalking”.

According to the Cybercrimes Act, 2015, any person found guilty of cyberstalking is liable to pay a fine of not more than N7 million or imprisonment for a term of not more than three years or to both such fine and imprisonment.

Sahara Reporters had run a series of reports in which it alleged that Melaye did not graduate from Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria.

But on Monday, Ibrahim Garba, vice-chancellor (VC) of the university, told the senate committee on ethics and privileges, which is investigating the allegation, that the lawmaker graduated from the institution.

“From the records, distinguished senator Dino Melaye graduated as Daniel Jonah Melaye during the 3rd semester with a 3rd class degree,” he had said.

But even after the testimony of the VC, Sowore insisted that the lawmaker did not graduate.

“We knew and tweeted since last week that the VC rushed to the Geography Department to ask for records, and when he was told that the full records of the Department could not sustain a public claim that Melaye graduated, he cherry picked the 400 Level “3rd Semester” results,” Sowore had said.

“In that results (record), Dino (formerly known as Daniel Jonah Melaye) and his former HOD David Okoro Ogbonna connived to get him graduated (discharged) after “clearing” carry overs courses he never wrote. Those were Mr. VC’s “available records” to make his declaration before the Nigerian Senate today.

“However, the authentic records in our possession shows that Melaye couldn’t have graduated, he did not fulfill some core course requirements of which, for example, “Geog 307 (Long Field Trip)” handled by one Dr. Bello had to be met. I studied Geography and Planning at UNILAG, it was a compulsory course, and my colleagues and I did ours in Benue State.

“Daniel Jonah Melaye never fulfilled this core requirement, and further, several other carryovers were directly fixed for him by Ogbonna and some unscrupulous lecturers.”

Melaye had also filed a N5bn libel suit against Sahara Reporters and its publisher at a federal capital territory (FCT) high court in Abuja.

In the petition dated 24 March, Melaye accused Sahara Reporters of libel.

“Sometime this month (March 2017), the above listed individuals and organisations caused certain false and vexatious information to be sent by means of electronic communications, computer systems and network against my person that I did not graduate from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria,” he alleged.

 

Source: The Cable

Dino Melaye’s academic gown, a juvenile way to prove he attended ABU – Dean

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Academics have said that Dino Melaye’s donning of academic gown to the Senate plenary session on Tuesday is a “juvenile attempt” at proving that he attended the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

Senator Melaye had stormed the National Assembly Plenary Session on Tuesday (today) in what academics described as “ceremonial” gown, rather than an academic robe.

The senator representing Kogi West has been under fire in the past week, as critics allege that he did not earn an academic degree from the ABU as claimed.

In his defence, the Vice Chancellor of the institution, Prof. Ibrahim Garba, had deposed before the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions on Monday that Melaye earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Geography from ABU, with a Third Class.

Speaking to The PUNCH online, Professor of History and a former Dean of Faculty of Arts at the Lagos State University, LASU, Ojo, Abolade Adeniji, said if Melaye felt that his appearing in what he thought was an academic gown would confirm his claim that he attended ABU, it is “juvenile.”

Adeniji said, “This is a juvenile attempt at justifying his claims that he attended ABU. He has only made a fool of himself.

“What the senator has done is unusual, and this should be a source of concerns to his fellow senators.

“The senatorial position is an exalted one that should not be trivialised the way Senator Melaye is doing.

“The appearance he assumed today is not for an adult, much less a senator. He looks so cheap. It’s a political drama that was meant to prove that he has a degree.”

Another academic, the Dean of Arts Faculty and Associate Professor of English Language at LASU, Dr. Adeleke Fakoya, said the gown that Senator Dino Melaye wore “is a ceremonial one.”

“This is a ceremonial gown and not an academic robe. It is a ceremonial uniform usually worn during formal ceremonies in any Ivory Tower.

“Even then, you can only wear such ceremonial robes if you are a part of the procession in the academic environment; never in the context in which Senator Melaye wore it today.

“The type of gown that the senator wore in that photograph is usually worn by vice-chancellors, registrars, deans, etc.

“If Melaye intended it to prove that he graduated from ABU, then he missed it big time because the type of gown he is wearing is not for someone being conferred with a first degree, to start with.

“It is a ceremonial costume that should not be worn in frivolous manner as this senator has done. It’s either hired or stolen.”

On the implications of Senator Melaye’s action, Fakoya said it wouldn’t change anything.

He said it’s like the case of a church leader who chooses to wear a Pope’s gown.

“It won’t make that person a Pope, because we know the processes involved towards becoming a Pope.

“Ditto for academics. You must earn what you claim to possess, academically or by way of honorary bestowal.

“The onus is on anyone to justify his claims to any degree, instead of treating sacred objects with frivolity as we have here.”

Sahara Reporter’s Sowore insists Dino Melaye never graduated from ABU

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The man whose online news medium first alleged that a Nigerian senator did not have a degree from a government-owned university contrary to the senator’s claims has insisted that the record presented by the vice-chancellor of the university in question did not reflect the truth.

Omoyele Sowore, the founder of Sahara Reporters, said Monday that the vice chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University, Professor Ibrahim Garba, “cherry picked the 400 Level ‘3rd Semester’ results” after he was told by unnamed officials of the university that “available records” could not back up Senator Dino Melaye’s claims that he graduated from the school.

“The authentic records in our possession,” he wrote, “shows that Melaye couldn’t have graduated, he did not fulfil some core course requirements of which, for example, ‘Geog 307 (Long Field Trip)’ handled by one Dr Bello had to be met.”

He also insisted that the absence of Melaye’s name in the Convocation Brochure of Ahmadu Bello University, which combined graduating students from 1998/99-2000/2001 sessions, supported his claim that Melaye never graduated from the school.

But Professor Garba told the Nigerian senate’s Committee on Ethics and Privileges on Monday that Melaye did finish from the school with a third class B.A. in Geography.

“From records, Dino formerly known as Daniel Jonah Melaye graduated from ABU, BA Geography,” he said.

The Senate had on March 21, 2017, mandated the Committee to investigate Sahara Reporters’ allegation that Melaye did not finish university education at ABU. This followed a point of order raised by former Leader of the Senate, Mohammed Ndume, during plenary.

Melaye, who also appeared before the Committee to defend himself against the allegation, presented documents such as acceptance letter, acceptance of offer of admission, result and final year dissertation to buttress his claims of being an ABU alumnus. He stated that he was yet to collect his original certificate from the university.

Curiously, however, the senator said he changed his name from Daniel Melaye to Dino Melaye but did not present any affidavit to back up that claim.

 

Source: The Guardian

Dino Melaye attends plenary at the National Assembly wearing an academic gown

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It was a dramatic but funny turn of events at the plenary of the Nigerian Senate when embattled senator, Dino Melaye showed up in the National Assembly complex dressed in an academic gown.

Recall that Dino has been in a long battle with media organization, Sahara Reporters over alleged irregularities in his university credentials.

Mr Dino who appeared before Senate ethics committee investigating allegations over his certificate scandal on Monday told the committee that he is a graduate of ABU, Zaria although he is yet to collect his certificate from the institution.

He further went to state that he intends to collect the certificate when he visits the institution on Friday.

The Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria was also summoned by the Senate ethics committee. Prof. Ibrahim Garba told the committee that from record, Dino Melaye graduated with a third class degree.

The institution’s VC, Prof. Ibrahim Garba told the committee that from records, Dino Melaye graduated with a Third-Class degree in Geography.

Dino Melaye Graduated With A 3rd Class + Other Top Stories In The NEWS Today!

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In Case You Missed It: Omojuwa.Com brings you a recap of top stories in the NEWS today 27th of March, 2017.

 

Dino Melaye graduated with a 3rd class in Geography – ABU VC

The Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, is now at the National Assembly for the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petition hearing investigating the certificate scandal involving Kogi State senator, Dino Melaye.

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#TRCWithOmojuwa: Dino Melaye, Hadiza Usman & Why You Should Never Trust Twitter Standards

On the lastest episode of The Real Conversations With Omojuwa, the top trending topics were all discussed on his YouTube channel.

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Convicted ex- Adamawa governor, Bala Ngilari, granted N100m bail

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El-Rufai confirms memo to Buhari, denies leaking it to media

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#TRCWithOmojuwa: Dino Melaye, Hadiza Usman & Why You Should Never Trust Twitter Standards

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On the lastest episode of The Real Conversations With Omojuwa, the top trending topics were all discussed on his YouTube channel

He started out by pointing out the shift in Sahara Reporters’ searchlight from controversial preacher, Apostle Suleiman who’s alleged to have had an extra marital affair with his ex-lover, Stephanie Otobo to Senator Dino Melaye, who claimed he has a whooping seven university degrees including one from the prestigious Havard University.

He also talked about an incident that happened in the course of the week, where an online NEWS platform published a damning “exclusive” story which indicted NPA’s MD, Hadiza Bala Usman of sharing revenue generated from the ports to some key APC chieftains. That story however has been refuted by Mrs Hadiza who has also taken the issue a step further by enacting legal action against the NEWS platform, who in turn retracted the story and issued a public apology to Hadiza Bala Usman.

And taking the conversation down to Twitter, Japheth Omojuwa turned the spotlight on the perils embedded in living life in conformity to “Twitter Standards”.

Watch Video Below:

UPDATE: Dino Melaye graduated with a 3rd class in Geography – ABU VC

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The Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, is now at the National Assembly for the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petition hearing investigating the certificate scandal involving Kogi State senator, Dino Melaye.

Senator Dino Melaye is appearing before Senate ethics committee investigating allegations over his certificate scandal.

Senator Melaye told the committee that he is a graduate of ABU, Zaria although he is yet to collect his certificate from the institution.

He further went to state that he intends to collect the certificate when he visits the institution on Friday.

In a reply to the question; “Did Senator Dino Melaye graduate from the ABU?”, the institution’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Ibrahim Garba told the committee that from record, Dino Melaye graduated with a Third-Class degree in Geography.

 

More to come…

UPDATE: I graduated from ABU but I’m yet to collect my certificate – Dino Melaye

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The Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, is now at the National Assembly for the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petition hearing investigating the certificate scandal involving Kogi State senator, Dino Melaye.

Senator Dino Melaye is appearing before Senate ethics committee investigating allegations over his certificate scandal.

Senator Melaye told the committee that he is a graduate of ABU, Zaria although he is yet to collect his certificate from the institution.

He further went to state that he intends to collect the certificate when he visits the institution on Friday.

 

More to come….

BREAKING: ABU VC arrives Senate for Dino Melaye’s certificate hearing

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The Vice-Chancellor of the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, is now at the National Assembly for the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petition hearing investigating the certificate scandal involving Kogi State senator, Dino Melaye.

The Senate had last week tasked the committee chaired by Samuel Anyanwu, PDP-Imo, to investigate the allegation that Mr. Melaye, APC-Kogi, did not graduate from ABU as he claims in official documentations.

That Senate’s resolution followed a motion by former Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, who said the scandal had made the Senate subject of public ridicule.

Mr. Melaye claims eight degrees, including two from Harvard University and London School of Economics and Political Science, but Sahara Reporters reported how the two schools debunked the Senator’s claims.

Mr. Melaye is also present at the hearing currently underway.

The ABU had turned down earlier media inquiries to confirm whether Mr. Melaye graduated from the school.

Dino Melaye is the architect of his own problems – Ex-schoolmate

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A former schoolmate of vocal senator, Dino Melaye, at the Ahmadu Bello University, ABU, has said the current certificate scandal he is facing is self-inflicted, Premium Times reports.

?Abdussobur Salaam, who now works at the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, FUNAAB.

Salaam, who spoke on a Penpushing social media platform also confirmed his comments to the online news medium.

He said he studied Political Science at ABU at the same time Melaye was a student in the Department of Geography at the university.

“Permit me to make an intervention on the issue of Dino and ABU, having been admitted and ‘graduated’ from ABU same year as Dino. I use the word ‘graduated’, very guardedly and with caution.

“Permit me to say that as at the time we were admitted, Geography Department was under the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS). In our 200 level, the Faculty was split and Geography Department had issues of where to fit in. It was initially placed under Faculty of Arts and later shifted to Faculty of Sciences where it is presently domiciled. The narrative on his certificate could be correct”, Mr. Salaam wrote.

“Dino and I are supposed to be ‘friends’ but differences never permitted while we were in school. Till date, we communicate once in a while, but I dare say he is the architect of his problems.

“I have spent all yesterday responding to enquiries on different platforms about Dino’s status as a graduate. My take?

“We were admitted the same year, initially into the same faculty of FASS, and given that our courses were four years, we ought to have graduated same year.

“However, recalling how studentship in ABU was that period, you could never be too sure of the academic status of any ‘student’.

“What do I mean? We had ‘students’ who were always around, attended lectures, participated in all student activities, were allocated hostel space, were always holding files and feigning academic seriousness, only for an issue to come up and you would find out that despite your having known them for years, they were never students but just lived pseudo student lives!”

Salaam said during their time at ABU their were many fake students who disguised as authentic ones.

“If they were never discovered, 20 years time, if a controversy arose as to their status, one would swear confidently that the person graduated!”, he stated.

“While this is not exactly the same with Dino, you cannot be too sure until facts are unearthed.

“I know for a fact that we were admitted together. I am aware that he was very active in student political circles, though he has attempted to insinuate that he was SUG president to shore up his political profile. Unfortunately, during our time, under the reign of Uncle K, (General Kontagora as Sole Administrator) the student Union was proscribed, so that claim cannot stick! He lied on that!

“As President of Geography students, I am aware that he was impeached. I also know that he had fraud related issues with the Kogi State Students Association and Segun Halilu personally had lamented to me about this, then.

“I remember that he wanted to join the OAU students club then, and we blocked his membership, knowing his tendencies to cause confusion and take over the structure of the club for personal ends”.

Speaking further, Salaam said it is only the records of ABU that can state whether Melaye was a bonafide graduate of the university.

“On his status as a graduate, only the records can tell. For all you know, he may have had a few unresolved carry-overs. Knowing Dino, he may have bluffed, paid or manipulated the system to ensure those records are obliterated.

“If not, recall that given the circumstances of our year set, many concessions/waivers were given to ensure that we graduated, having spent almost double the statutory length of years we should spend. Dino may just have been such a beneficiary of waivers. It is however not our place to tell, but the truth will unfold itself”, Mr. Salaam stressed.

“As a political scientist, what I see is a class fragmentation struggle. An in-house struggle within the elite class. Saraki and Dino are the subjects of attack today for takeover of the National Assembly. They may get over it or it may consume them.

“However, I do not have my sympathy for him (Mr. Melaye) because he is also a master in the art of subterfuge, blackmail and crude propaganda. Today, he is a victim of the same method he has adopted over the years and I am happy to see the tables turn!

“Unfortunately, issues like this have led to the results they were meant to produce – public hysteria! Everyone is now caught up in debates about the Dino certificate scandal, or is it Dinogate?

“Everyone includes me! Last two weeks, it was Apostle Suleman. This week, it is Dino. Who knows who next week will throw up? While we dwell on personalities, and are distracted by their shenanigans, we continue to remain victims of the plots and scheming.

“At the end of the day, things like this die off, others take their place in an endless cycle of politics of personality. While the elite class continues to regale us with entertainment, the real problems of underdevelopment, poverty, poor infrastructure, bad governance, corruption, and other malaise remain! God help Nigeria!”, Mr. Salaam concluded.

Efforts to reach Melaye on Salaam’s new claims were unsuccessful as the senator refused to pick his call.

 

Source: YNaija

Senate to summon ABU authorities over Dino Melaye’s certificate scandal

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The Senate will this week summon authorities of the Ahmadu Bello University to clear the air on the certificate scandal rocking the senator representing Kogi West senatorial district, Dino Melaye, The Punch reports.

A source who spoke on the matter said, “The Senate is inviting the authorities of the Universities Dino Melaye said he attended. Specifically, the Senate is inviting Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) to clear the controversy. The truth will be cleared by ABU this week. All the allegations are rubbish, ABU will not offer anybody admission with three credits.”

 

Source: YNaija

Dino Melaye needs our urgent help – By Abdullahi O Haruna

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When you are humble, taciturn and mindful, your shortcomings are easily overlooked, even in war, only the arrogant and pompous fighter suffers death fast. My father would always say, not every breast is ripe enough for a man to touch. In life, not every fight should a man fight. Regardless of what, we must choose our fight wisely.

Dino Melaye is perilously intelligent, he is an uncommon fighter. With sheer doggedness, he defined a template of survival. From an abysmally poor background, the Okun born lad extricated himself from the intimate embrace of poverty.

That he is where he is today, is a testimony that where you come from is never a limitation to what you are today. Using empirical measurements, I dare to say that Dino has broken the ceiling of limitations. He has redefined what struggle for emancipation is. He is a walking reference of grass to grace.

Tragically, instead of being celebrated for his feat, he succumbed to the weaknesses of mortals. He began to play the god. He dares the gods to wrestling match. He brags and puff in arrogance. He become rambunctious, irritating and discourteous . He could challenge anyone to a fight. He climbed the high horse and attributed his divorce from poverty as his sole efforts.  He wears anywhere the garment of arrogance and self worth.

Instantly, he lost the admiring gaze from the public. He became a nuisance reference, a defender of absurdities. He goes violent and uncivil in his manifestations.  Within a blink of an eye, a promising lad transformed to a scornful reference. His unguided show of wealth didn’t help matter, he flaunt his wealth before his poor companions, instead of using his possessions as motivating tools, he turned them to oppressing teachings.

Instead of reliving himself in people, he found solace in the esoteric affluence of life, Forgetting that like erection, nothing last forever in life. Those who live forever are those who recreate themselves in others.

Playing the devil’s advocate all the time leaves you sapped in moral, value and dignity. Not every fight is your fight. You can’t be more intelligent than a body of 109 parliamentarians.  You can’t always speak their minds. Leave the microphone for once. Your thunderous voice should be reserved for the good of humanity. The world should regard you as a model of hope and not the monster of the parliament.

Ordinarily, the world would have come to your defense when the case of not graduating from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria came up, instead the public have joined in thorough search of your ABUSITE status. That you went to ABU to them isn’t enough, arguing in stoic defense that not everyone who went to the market returns with wares. Some even said that you may have earned a degree in ABU but not the character that comes with learning. Majority of Abusites are even saying that you quickly come clean by putting forth your degree before the public so that the issue of forgry can be lay to rest.

This is what unguided heroism can cause, it makes one vulnerable, exposed and opened to needless harms. The chick survived the fury of the hawks because it lay low from the prey of the hawks.

 

Please save your promising rise by choosing the fight that suits you as the furious rise of a child is usually not lasting especially when the child is against nature.

Proactively musing

Senator Ndume Calls For Investigation Of Saraki, Melaye Over Forgery Scandals.

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Senator Ali Ndume on Tuesday called for an investigation into Senators Bukola Saraki and Dino Melaye over allegations of Customs documents forgery and university certificate forgery, respectively.

Mr. Ndume was prompted to call for the investigation after the scandals were revealed.

An investigation revealed on Saturday that Mr. Saraki had his bulletproof Range Rover SUV confiscated by Nigeria Customs Service officials in January 2017 because he had forged the duty payment document and end-user certificate required for importing the vehicle.

On Monday, it was revealed that Mr. Melaye forged his graduation certificate from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU).

Remarking that the scandals were insulting and embarrassing to the Senate, Mr. Ndume called on the ethics committee to investigate the embattled senators.

Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, presiding over the Senate in the absence of Mr. Saraki, who is facing separate corruption charges at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), subsequently referred the matter to the ethics committee. The committee will report its findings to the Senate within the next four weeks.

Senators speaking anonymously to reporters, however, doubt that the ethics committee will indict the two senators, as the committee is populated by their close political allies.

 

Source: Sahara Reporters

Senate set to investigate Dino Melaye over alleged certificate forgery

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The Nigerian Senate has kicked off an investigation into whether Senator President Bukola Saraki and Senator Dino Melaye have abused their privileges as lawmakers in the Upper House of legislature.

Saraki is being probed under suspicion that he may have used his office to avenge the seizure of his imported bullet-proof vehicle by the Customs

While Senate is investigating Saraki over claims that he allegedly used his office to seek revenge against Nigeria Customs Service boos Hameed Ali, Melaye is being investigated over claims that he may have forged his certificate with which he ran for the legislative seat.

The Senate resolved to probe Saraki and Melaye following a motion moved by Senator Ali Ndume representing Borno South requesting that allegations against the two lawmakers should be investigated to ensure that there was no abuse of legislative privileges by them.

According to Ndume, allegations that the Senate invited Hameed Ali because he reportedly seized a bullet-proof Range Rover that belonged to Saraki because it did not have the proper papers needed to be looked into before the Red Chamber can move on with questioning Ali over the controversial issue of collecting Customs duties on old vehicles.

On the other hand, Ndume said allegations that Melaye did not really graduate from Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) in Zaria as claimed in his CV has to be investigated to make sure the truth is revealed.

The Senate Committee on Ethics and Privileges is looking into the two matters and will report back to the house in two weeks.

EFCC to interrogate Dino Melaye, AMMC on Saraki’s ‘invisible’ N125m house.

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) will invite Dino Melaye, chairman senate committee on FCT, for questioning over an “invisible” N125 million building purportedly rented for the senate president, TheCable has learnt.

The commission will also invite officials of the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC) for interrogation.

The property is said to be located at Plot 973, Mban Close, off Pope John Paul Street, Maitama, Abuja, rented at N50 million per year on a two-year tenancy, with fees and VAT bringing the total cost to N125 million.

But the building could not be traced by TheCable after several searches.

TheCable had reported that the AMMC – in league with Melaye’s committee – rented the property from Legendark Consultants for the senate president.

The senate president, who lives in his own house at Lake Chad Crescent, Maitama, has since denied knowledge of the deal.

TheCable had also reported that a second house purportedly rented for Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu at Plot 22, Vaal Street, off Rhine Street, Maitama, Abuja, is unoccupied.

Ekweremadu still lives at his personal residence at the Apo Legislative Quarters, and his media aide, Uche Anichukwu, said he is not aware of the property.

Curiously, the key players in the affair refused to pick up calls or reply to SMS from TheCable.

However, an official of the EFCC has told TheCable that the agency will invite the principal actors for questioning “anytime from now”.

TheCable understands that officials of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), which superintends the AMMC, have confirmed that payment was actually made for the property.

But Melaye has described the documents as “made in Taiwan”.

 

Source: The Cable

Dino Melaye raises petition against Osinbajo for refusing to sign 3 bills

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Senator Dino Melaye on Wednesday frowned at Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo’s refusal to assent three bills passed by the National Assembly.

Mr. Osinbajo in a letter read by the Senate president, Bukola Saraki returned the bills for proper correction.

But Senator Melaye quickly raised a petition on the refusal by the Acting President Prof. Osinbajo to assent to 3 bills passed by the National Assembly.

The Senate President while responding said the issue will be referred to the legal department for advice and interpretations of the law.

 

Source: www.nigerianeye.com

 

Dino Melaye: Nigerians have opened a ledger for thieves in power

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Dino Melaye, a senator from Kogi west, has urged the senate to double its effort in exposing corruption because Nigerians are watching.

 

Raising a point of order on alleged contract infraction by the ministry of power, works and housing at the floor of the upper legislative chamber on Wednesday, Melaye said Nigerians had opened a ledger for thieves in power.

 

“I draw the attention of the country to some infraction and corruption between the ministry of power and the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP),” he said.

 

He alleged that the ministry and the BPP had colluded in ?inflating the cost of contracts for the rehabilitation and construction of bridges and roads across the country.

 

“Nigerians are watching; they have opened a ledger for thieves in power, and who are still in power,” he said.

 

He thereafter prayed the senate to give him the carte blanche to bring a motion on the issue to the chamber on Thursday.

 

The senate subsequently granted his request.

 

Source: The Cable

Dino Melaye charges youths to ‘wake up and act fast’.

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Dino Melaye, senator representing Kogi west, has advised youth not to allow themselves to be used in fulfilling the selfish ambitions of desperate politicians.

 

Melaye said this in Abuja during the end of the year gala night and award ceremony of the Peace Corps of Nigeria (PCN).

 

“The youth in the country are change agents because in an unjust society, silence is a crime. The youths should develop their positive dreams,” he said.

 

“They should wake up and act fast. As youth, we must not sleep and we should not be divided by religion, culture, tradition, and it is time to say bye to terrorism.”

 

Melaye said the PCN would not only be relevant in security of Nigerians but instrument to the revolution of Nigerian youth.

 

He enjoined the youth to always promote the change mantra of the present administration for a better future.

 

Femi Falana, a human rights lawyer, called for the endorsement of the Peace Corps bill in order to be an act of parliament.

 

He said the PCN would be a pillar of social change and growth, advising the organisation to educate and re-orientate youth.

 

“This organisation should go out and mobilise our youth, as many of them are suffering from ignorance.

 

“The youth are being used to stage demonstrations in support of corruption. I am challenging this organisation to change some of the wrong mind set of youths.”

MTEF: Dino Melaye accuses Buhari of being dishonest to Nigerians

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Nigeria Senate on Tuesday received executive communication on the 2017-2019 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper for the second time in three weeks.

In a motion by deputy Senate Leader, Bala Ibn’Nallah, he sought for consideration of the MTEF document resent by the executive, having been rejected earlier by the Senate.

“That the Senate do consider the request of Mr. President and C-in-C on the 2017-2019 Medium Term Expenditure Frame work (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper in accordance with the Fiscal Responsibility’ Act, 2007,” he said.

In a wild reaction to the debate, Dino Melaye described Buhari as being dishonest to Nigerians, insisting that the projections was not realistic and conjured to deceive the upper chambers.

He urged the Senate to throw away the document for the second time.

“This MTEF is a lie, its not truthful, it not transparent and nobody should sit down here to be deceived by Buhari,” Dino said.

” Senate President, I am ready to say the truth and die by the truth rather than toe the line of lies as far as this document from the executive is concerned, ” he added.

Dino took a swipe on the Minister of Budget and National Planning for not knowing about huge debts the nation is dragged into by the present administration.

He called for an explanation on the level of implementation of 2016-2017 MTEF, which he believes was not implemented.

Those who aligned with Dino’s views are Senators Samuel Anyanwu, Usman Nafada, Emmanuel Paulker, Joshua Lidani

But Senator Sani Ahmad Yerima in a divergent view, says the document was not digested by some colleagues, saying the projection was on the current economic indices, noting that government can turn things in three weeks.

Senator Biodun Olujimi on her part said the document fell short of expectation, saying it was a product of incompetence. She wondered at how the executive came about figures that were unrealistic.

“It’s good at this time that we should tinker with document because the way it is, it is voodoo oriented meant to produce voodoo outcomes,” Olujimi said.

Senator Solomon Olamilekun (Lagos West), emphasized that President Buhari’s economic team is in disarray, saying they don’t have grasp of economic reality.

Concerns of Senators was the production of crude oil capacity which was increased from 2.2million barrels per day to 2.3million in the current MTEF which they insisted was unrealistic due to militant activities in the Niger Delta.

After exhaustive deliberations, Senate President referred the documents to the Committee on Finance and Appropriations to be reverted in two weeks.

Dino Melaye, Remi Tinubu Clash, What Really Happened

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Further details of the altercation between Senators Dino Melaye (APC-Kogi) and Remi Tinubu (APC-Lagos) which saw both lawmakers calling each other names and charging at each other, revealed how it all happened.

Those who witnessed the incident, which occurred during a closed-door meeting held by senators on Tuesday, said trouble started when Mr. Melaye urged the Senate to descend heavily on members who had offered to serve as prosecution witnesses in the ongoing forgery case against Senate President Bukola Saraki and his deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.

The Kogi senator is said to have accused the senators of being used by the presidency to destabilise the Senate and warned them to be ready to face the consequences of their action.

“You should go and tell those who sent you that nobody, I said nobody, no matter who he is, can ever control this Senate, ” Mr. Melaye was quoted as saying as he pointed at the affected senators, his face contorted in rage.

Sources said when Mrs. Tinubu was recognised to speak, she rose, and said, “I’m just wondering why whenever Senator Dino speaks in this chamber, he is always threatening people and behaving childishly and at times like a thug.

“I think he needs to know that every senator here represents their constituencies. And that there is no need to threaten anyone.

“We are seeking and working towards reconciliation, yet you are busy issuing threats.”

One of our sources said at this point, Mr. Melaye jumped up from his seat and charged towards Mrs. Tinubu, saying, “Look this is not Bourdillon (referring to the famous Lagos residence of Mrs Tinubu’s politician husband). I will beat you up, ….. impregnate you and nothing will happen.”

 Witnesses said as Mr. Melaye charged towards the Lagos senator, other senators, especially those from the South-West geopolitical zone, waded in and shielded Mrs. Tinubu from attack, and then calmed her down.

A few other senators also prevailed on Mr. Melaye to take it easy and let peace reign, sources said.

“We had to move in to save the situation because he had already overwhelmed her with his voice,” one of the senators, who calmed Mrs. Tinubu down, said.

“Many dirty thing do happen during closed-door sessions, but people don’t get to hear about it,” another senator said. “But now that the senate is divided, proceedings at executive sessions are being leaked to the press.

“Yesterday was one of such dirty sessions, there was ramblings, uproar and profanities. It was so sad.”

Also during the meeting, Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe (PDP-Abia) called on the Senate to go for President Muhammadu Buhari’s “jugular”.

When colleagues asked him what he meant, the senator said it had become clear that Mr. Buhari had no respect for the Senate and that the time had come for him to be impeached.

Mr. Abaribe said the president was encouraging his subordinates to disrespect the upper chamber and that only two options were now open to the senate – go for the president’s jugular (impeachment) or continue to seek reconciliation that might not work.

Mr. Melaye on Wednesday morning said reports that he was planning to initiate impeachment proceeding against President Buhari were untrue. But he was silent on reports that he threatened Senator Tinubu or used the “F” word on her.

Credit: PremiumTimes

What Dino Melaye Told Obasanjo Over Letter To National Assembly

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The Chairman, Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory, Dino Melaye, on Thursday reacted to the letter written by ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, describing it as “a misplacement of anger.”

Arguing that Mr. Obasanjo’s regime exposed the National Assembly to corruption and easy money, Mr. Melaye (APC Kogi West), in a statement in Abuja, said he expected the former resident to have forgiven all those who “defrauded him in 2007, those who collected his money and refused to implement the 3rd term agenda.”

He said, “I have tremendous respect for President Olusegun Aremu Okikiola Obasanjo. Elder statesman, respected pan Africanist and committed patriot. I went through the letter written to all senators and members of the House of Representatives. The letter I can see is a misplacement of anger.

“Our leader is mistaking the 8th National Assembly as the same Senate Assembly that defrauded him in 2007: Those who collected his money and refused to implement the 3rd term agenda. I appeal to Baba that we are not the ones please. After nine years of that bribery saga, the first of its kind, I expect forgiveness to have taken place.

“There was the case of bribery introduced by the Obasanjo’s regime in the desperate attempt to remove Speaker Ghali Umar Na’abba from office then. In fact, there was open display of that bribery money on the floor of the house.

“That government exposed the National Assembly to corruption and easy money. I hope this is not an attempt to cover up and distract attention from the Halliburton and Siemens corruption allegations.

“While I am against corruption anywhere in Nigeria, I will not support accusations based on anger and vindictiveness. The 8th Senate should also look inwardly and purge herself of all the deliberate misgivings of the past. Nigeria must work and we must support the anti corruption stand of the Muhammadu Buhari’s Administration.”

Credit: PremiumTimes

Tribunal Upholds Dino Melaye’s Election

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The National Assembly and Legislative Houses Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Lokoja, Kogi State has upheld the election of Senator Dino Melaye as the winner of the 2015 Kogi West Senatorial Election against the petition by his rival, Senator Smart Adeyemi.

Melaye had been declared winner of the election conducted March 28 pulling an upset that shocked many who had come to know Senator Adeyemi for his populist views in the Senate and even his populist exposure at home.

The legal exchange between the two contending parties reached a dramatic point last Tuesday after the lawyers of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC were compelled to tender a certified true copy of the APC report on the Kogi West Senatorial primaries in which it was adduced that Melaye did not partake in that primary.

Read More: vanguardngr

Is Senator Dino Now Madam Saraki’s Handbag Carrier? By Ahmed Oluwasanjo

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Dear Senator Dino,

 
Congratulations on your appointment as Chief Bag Carrier to madam Toyin Saraki. I must confess it’s a well deserved appointment considering your support to her husband’s emergence as our senate president.
 
I’m doing you this letter in response to your comic defense on your recent visit to the head quarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with Madam, titled “Stand Up For What You Believe”. Indeed, you stood well in the visit’s picture, bravo! By the way, how best could you have shown the world that you can go to war blindfolded with your oga at the top? 
 
Mind you, I thought you would be smart to let go of it but you have chosen to embark on a defense that further reveals your arrogance and utmost disrespect for your constituents, the same reason for which you were beaten and your clothes torn on the House of Representative floor. Your arrogance shrouded the merit of your case then and sadly, you have not learnt.
 
Your claim on how many times you were arrested during President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration was quiet touching. But, Nigerians like late Gani Fawehinmi, Late Beko Ransom-Kuti and Femi Falana and many others were not only arrested but jailed in the military era for fighting for a better Nigeria, yet, they never made news out of it. Besides, we live in a Nigeria where many are unlawfully arrested and detained, so, why feeling like an hero for being arrested? Your arrest and Bring Back Our Girls group membership brought you out of political oblivion then because you were jobless, we all know.
 
I agree with you that friendship is all about sacrifice, when things are good and when they are bad. The presence of your Madam’s darling (Bukola Saraki) at the EFCC’s office would have justified this but he was no where to be found, or, are you a better friend to Madam than oga at the top? If Saraki could not go on such visit with his for better for worse partner, how was your company more important? Please think.
 
Sometimes last year it was bruited that you misbehaved when your relationship with your wife got sour. That infamous report depicted you as a Mike Tyson that lacks the mien of a gentle man and how you mutated to a balogun leyin obirin baffles me. 
 
Let’s look at it from another angle, if an ordinary member from your constituency like me was the one invited for questioning at the EFCC,s office would you have been there for him or her? If your constituent was announced on the radio to have had an accident, would you have rushed down there to see how you could help? If you had done such in the past I am sure it must have gone viral like pictures of your cars. 
 
Senator Dino, your constituents voted you for serious business not as handbag carrier to Madam Saraki. Seeing my senator in such visit was a big insult to me and other concern constituents who vehemently campaigned and voted for change, therefore, you need to stop putting up baseless defense, respect our mandate and face what you were voted for. I know you might feel this is just a rant from a hungry constituent, but remember, 2019 is still very much ahead us all.
 
Thank you.
 
Ahmed Oluwasanjo
VIEWS EXPRESSED ARE SOLELY AUTHOR’S…

Senate Presidency: 65 Senators Support Saraki, Group Headed By Dino Melaye

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As federal lawmakers wait for the national leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to zone political positions in the National Assembly, a group known as The Like Minds has emerged with backing to the aspirations of senators Bukola Saraki and Ali Ndume.

The Like Minds claims to have 65 Senators on its list. The group is reportedly headed by former member of the House of Representatives and Senator-elect from Kogi State, Dino Melaye.

The group claims its membership cuts across all the six geo-political zones, including 27 Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senators.

The group claimed it was working to ensure that no external influence or external political godfather hijacked the Senate leadership.

A source privy to the group disclosed that despite the alleged endorsement of a particular aspirant and his alleged sponsorship by the leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the numerical number of The Like Minds group continues to increase on daily basis.

The source further said the North East, which was said to have endorsed the candidature of Senator Ahmad Lawan has 15 Senators in The Like Minds camp and nine Senators out of 21 from the North West.

He also said 11 APC Senators out of 18 from the North Central had identified with The Like Minds, while 11 out of 18 from the South West had also given their backing to the Saraki/Ali Ndume camp.

He, however, said it was “the belief of The Like Minds that the decision on which zone produces the Senate President will be taken by the national leadership of the APC and that the group will only act in accordance with the decision of the party.”

Another source, who declined to be named also said that whoever emerged as the Senate President must be the consensus candidate of the Senators.

“We want to make sure that it is only Senators that will decide who will be the Senate President and not an external body.

“We are committed to serving the country and giving the best for the overall interest of the generality of the people,” he added.

Credit: sunnewsonline