Saminu Umar Ph.D, Senior Lecture; Department of Information and Media Studies, Bayero University, Kano surijyarzaki@gmail.com

In the entire history of Kano State, few moments have carried the weight of symbolic and substantive significance that April 23, 2026 promises to deliver. On that day, Her Excellency Senator Oluremi Tinubu, CON, First Lady of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, will stand in Nigeria’s most commercially historic city, not as a visitor passing through, but as the personal representative of a presidency that has made a conscious, deliberate, and far-reaching commitment to Kano’s industrial future. For a state that hosts one of West Africa’s busiest and most diverse commercial ecosystems, that accounts for a significant share of Nigeria’s leather, textile, groundnut, and agricultural commodity trade, and that carries within its borders an extraordinary concentration of entrepreneurial talent and industrial heritage, that commitment could not have come at a more critical time.
It is important to establish, from the outset, that Senator Oluremi Tinubu is not a conventional First Lady. In many countries, and indeed in much of Nigeria’s own political history, the office of the First Lady has been largely ceremonial, defined by social welfare appearances, ribbon cuttings, and charitable foundations. Senator Tinubu represents a sharp departure from that tradition. She served as the Senator representing Lagos Central Senatorial District in the National Assembly, accumulating a legislative record that spanned poverty alleviation, women’s rights, child welfare, and economic empowerment. She understands the architecture of governance, the language of policy, and the machinery of federal bureaucracy in ways that most ceremonial First Ladies simply do not.
When the Honourable Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Dr. Kingsley Tochukwu Udeh, SAN, personally visited the State House in Abuja in March 2026 to brief Senator Tinubu and formally request her championship of the Energise Commercialisation Now initiative, her acceptance was not the passive endorsement of a spouse lending her name to a government programme. It was the active engagement of a political leader who understood exactly what the programme was designed to achieve, and who brought her own convictions, her own networks, and her own authority to its execution. The First Lady is not merely attending the Kano event. She is championing it, and there is a profound difference between the two.
To understand why Abuja’s commitment to Kano’s industrial future matters so enormously, one must understand what Kano already is, and what it could become with the right federal partnership.
Kano State, with an estimated population of over 20 million people, is the most populous state in Nigeria. Its Kurmi Market, one of the oldest and most historically significant trading centres in West Africa, was once the terminal point of trans-Saharan trade routes that connected sub-Saharan Africa to North Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. The city’s leather industry, centred on the ancient Kofar Mata dye pits, produces finished leather goods that have found markets across Europe and Asia for centuries. Its textile sector, once among the most productive in West Africa, employed hundreds of thousands of workers before decades of policy neglect and energy poverty began eroding its foundations. Its agricultural hinterland, stretching across 44 local government areas, produces groundnuts, sorghum, millet, cowpea, and a range of commodities with enormous value-addition and export potential.
Yet despite this extraordinary economic inheritance, Kano has consistently punched below its weight in the national development conversation, largely because of the political isolation that defined its relationship with the Federal Government for too long. A state in perpetual opposition to the centre is a state that watches federal programmes pass it by. A state whose governor answers to a political godfather rather than to his own people is a state that cannot fully mobilise its own resources in the national interest.
Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf’s decision to align with the Federal Government under President Tinubu has fundamentally altered that equation. The ECoN national launch in Kano is among the first, most visible, and most consequential expressions of that alteration.
The Energise Commercialisation Now initiative is structured around a three-day programme format that moves from political mobilisation on day one, through innovation discovery and evaluation on day two, to investment and commercialisation facilitation on day three. For Kano, each of those days carries specific and measurable potential.
On day two alone, exhibiting innovators from Kano’s universities, including Bayero University Kano, Kano University of Science and Technology Wudil, and Northwest University Kano, alongside entrepreneurs from the state’s vibrant informal sector, will have the opportunity to present their innovations to a room containing private sector investors, venture capital firms, development finance institutions, and international partners expected to include representatives from the African Development Bank, Afreximbank, WIPO, and global technology platforms. For many of these innovators, it will be the first time in their careers that they will stand before an audience with the financial capacity and institutional authority to take their ideas from concept to commercial scale.
On day three, the deal rooms and industry matchmaking sessions could potentially generate investment commitments that transform Kano’s manufacturing landscape. The state’s existing industrial clusters, including the Sharada Industrial Estate, the Bompai Industrial Area, and the Challawa Industrial Estate, all of which have faced longstanding challenges of energy supply, infrastructure maintenance, and access to capital, stand to benefit directly from the investment mobilisation agenda that ECoN is designed to drive.
The Kano State Government has not been waiting passively for federal programmes to arrive. It has been doing the foundational work that makes federal partnership productive rather than performative.

The state’s 2026 budget of N1.477 trillion, the largest in its history, allocates N405.3 billion to education, N346.2 billion to infrastructure, and N212.2 billion to health. The administration has trained 2,000 Neighbourhood Watch operatives to strengthen community security, cleared N32 billion in pension backlogs that successive administrations had abandoned, and established Kano State Polytechnic in Gaya to expand technical and vocational education access in the state’s southern corridor. It has planted over 5.5 million trees under its Climate Change Policy, procured 199,000 bags of fertiliser for distribution to farmers, and approved 11 mini-dams to support year-round agricultural production.

These investments create the enabling environment that federal programmes like ECoN require to deliver lasting impact. An innovation commercialisation programme landing in a state with functional schools, rehabilitated hospitals, improved security, and an administration committed to SME development is a programme that has a genuine chance of changing lives. Senator Tinubu is not coming to Kano to commission a programme in a vacuum. She is coming to commission a programme in a state that is ready to receive it, deploy it, and convert it into tangible, lasting prosperity for its people.
Beyond Kano, the First Lady’s visit carries a message for the entire North West geopolitical zone and indeed for every part of Nigeria watching how the Tinubu administration deploys its development programmes. It signals that federal resources follow productive partnership. It signals that states willing to engage constructively with the centre, align with its development agenda, and build their own internal capacity will be rewarded with federal presence, federal investment, and federal attention at the highest levels.
For the governors and First Ladies from across the North West who have been invited to witness the Kano event, the message is unmistakable: this is what constructive federal alignment looks like in practice. This is what it means to place the interests of your people above the dictates of political sentiment.

History does not always announce itself loudly. Sometimes it arrives quietly, in the form of a three-day programme in a city that has waited too long for its moment. When Senator Oluremi Tinubu stands before Kano on April 23, she will not merely be flagging off a federal initiative. She will be opening a chapter in Kano’s industrial story that the state’s millions of people, its traders and craftsmen, its graduates and innovators, its farmers and manufacturers, have every right to read with pride, with hope, and with the quiet, unshakeable confidence that their best days are not behind them.

By Salihu Tanko Yakasai.

In any election, the most important stakeholder is the electoral umpire. Whoever is chosen to lead the electoral body carries a heavy burden, particularly in how key players and observers perceive the independence of that umpire, whether he will be fair and just or take sides with those who appointed him.

Typically, the person appointed to head the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is expected to ensure a level playing field for all candidates, irrespective of whether they belong to the ruling party or the opposition. Over the years in Nigeria, however, some INEC chairmen have been found wanting in the discharge of their duties.

Maurice Iwu is widely regarded as one of Nigeria’s most controversial INEC chairmen, largely because the 2007 elections under his leadership were heavily criticized for irregularities and lack of credibility. Even Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who won that election, admitted the process was flawed. While some argue he operated within a weak system, his tenure is still often seen as a low point for electoral integrity in Nigeria.

If you’re looking at credibility, transparency, and public trust, his tenure is often seen as a low point for Nigeria’s electoral process.

But from all indications, the current INEC chairman, Joash Amupitan, seems to be on the verge of becoming even worse than Maurice Iwu, as his tenure has been marked by one controversy after another since his appointment.

1- Religious bias allegation

The current INEC chairman, Amupitan, has faced criticism over a past petition in which he reportedly raised concerns about what he described as “Christian genocide.” This has drawn objections from groups such as the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, who argue that such a position raises questions about his neutrality in a religiously diverse country and have called for his removal.

2- ADC leadership portal controversy

While citing a court order, the INEC chairman reportedly derecognized David Mark and Rauf Aregbesola as Chairman and Secretary of the African Democratic Congress, respectively. This removal from INEC’s official portal could undermine the party’s ability to field candidates. Critics see this as a move that may disadvantage opposition parties in favor of the ruling All Progressives Congress.

3- Voter revalidation exercise concerns

Another major issue was the proposed voter revalidation exercise introduced close to the election timeline, which sparked backlash. Many argued that attempting to revalidate tens of millions of voters within a short period could disenfranchise many Nigerians in the 2027 general elections. Following public pressure, the commission suspended the exercise.

4- Social media partisanship allegation

Questions have been raised about an alleged social media account linked to Amupitan, said to contain posts supportive of the APC and critical of opposition movements such as the “Obidient” movement. Although he denied ownership, some online claims suggest links to personal identifiers such as an email address and phone number, leaving the issue contested.

All these controversies are happening even before the elections. If Maurice Iwu is the yardstick for a poor election umpire, then by all accounts, Amupitan appears to be on track to surpass that record. If he can be perceived as this compromised before the elections, what should be expected on election day?

When the credibility of an election collapses, the consequences go far beyond the ballot box. Voter turnout drops as people begin to feel their votes no longer count, and the legitimacy of whoever emerges as winner is immediately questioned. This often fuels political tension, deepens divisions, and in some cases can trigger unrest. Ultimately, a flawed electoral process does not just produce disputed outcomes, it weakens public trust in democracy itself and makes governance far more difficult.

This is why all well-meaning Nigerians, as well as the international community, must lend their voices to calls for the removal of such a controversial INEC chairman. The credibility of the elections is already being questioned even before they are held. It is like a referee in a football match wearing the jersey of one of the teams, you do not need anyone to tell you that such a referee cannot be neutral.

As Kofi Annan once said, “Credible elections are the cornerstone of democracy.” When that credibility is in doubt, the very foundation of the democratic process is weakened. Nigeria cannot afford to gamble with that foundation in 2027.

By Martin Yakwo

The humid air of Benisheikh felt heavy yesterday, not with rain, but with the silence of a trap. Brigadier General Oseni Braimah stood in the center of the 29 Task Force Brigade’s perimeter, his thumb tracing the jagged edge of a radio that hadn’t caught a clear signal in three days.

He had surely sent five memos to Abuja in a month. He’d asked for the T-72 tanks promised in the quarterly budget and the thermal optics needed to see through the encroaching Sahel dust. After all the general in his youth was trained in the annals of red house aka octopus house..where being on point was a religion? Sharp thinking was necessary to survive and being resourceful was mandatory.

But alas, The replies from the High Command via the buffoons in the villa were always the same: “Resources are being deployed. Maintain your position.” But Braimah knew where the resources were. He had seen the photos of the new mansions in Lakeview, Abuja, owned by men who had never heard a shot fired in anger. He knew the “superior firepower” touted in the morning press releases was sitting in a shipping container in Lagos, held up by a kickback dispute between greedy politically inclined morons and the compromised analogue generals who have become their partners in crime and corruption.

“General,” his adjutant whispered, pointing toward the tree line. “The scouts didn’t return.” how could they have returned? They had already been betrayed by some rehabilitated sons and daughters of Satan with the blessing of the NSA and his clowns in control of the nations security apparatus a long time ago.

Braimah reached for his rifle. It was a decades-old weapon, the ubiquitous AK 47? its barrel worn smooth. He knew the political will to end this war didn’t exist; a forever war was too profitable for the men/agbayas in flowing agbadas, multi million naira watches and their paramilitary gang members in well starched khakis who the general answered to. If the insurgency died, the “security votes”—those unvetted billions—would vanish. After all, the dirty, stinky, drug addled vermin known as Boko Haram are the prodigal sons of some of the hierarchy as well as the politicians. These boys are cash in the bank as it is and so must be protected and supplied more than the military itself.

Then, the darkness erupted.
The terrorists didn’t come with swords; they came with brand-new technicals and night-vision goggles—gear better than anything Braimah’s men possessed. The General sprinted toward the front trench, shouting orders that were drowned out by the screams of boys holding jammed rifles.
He picked up a Light Machine Gun from a fallen soldier, but after three bursts, it seized.

The procurement officers had bought “refurbished” ammunition that was actually decades-old surplus. “Request air support!” Braimah roared over the thunder of RPGs.
“The jets are grounded in Maiduguri, sir!” the comms officer yelled back, tears streaking his dusty face. “They say there’s no fuel budget cleared for night Sorties!”

Braimah looked at the sky, vast and empty. No air support? No night time drones? It wasn’t the enemy that had defeated him. It was the ink on the diverted contracts and the shrugs in the air-conditioned boardrooms of the capital. He stood tall, a silhouette of defiance against the muzzle flashes. He was a lion led by sheep, a guardian sold for a percentage. As the perimeter collapsed, he didn’t retreat. He fired his sidearm until the slide locked back. By then the scene must have looked like a scorched earth with bodies strewn across each other, blood and dust mixing with bullets and shrapnel as the constant staccato of gunfire mixed with Islamic chants by the evil killers of his colleagues rent the air, getting closer, and closer by the mili second?

The last thing Oseni Braimah felt wasn’t the sting of the bullet, but the “cold weight of a betrayal that started a thousand miles away from the battlefield in an air conditioned suite in the villa and freezing office in the MOD.” The desire to gaze upon the faces of his beautiful wife and kids once more must have driven him to jump into the last remaining MRAP vehicle in order to save himself and the wounded left alive to try to salvage their dire situation and protect us the citizens who slept underneath the covers while simultaneously living in order to fight another day?

But alas….it wasn’t meant to be…”oga the MRAP has no fuel and the engine is faulty?” What manner of government allows a red neck to be in charge of a command with such a logistical nightmare? The Nigerian government of course. Better to turn our brightest and bravest into sitting ducks in borno for the bandits as long as the allowances can be exchanged in zone 4 for dollars but not sense!

The next morning, the DHQ would release a statement praising his “heroism” and “the military’s successful repelling of the attack.” The mansions in Abuja would remain quiet, their walls thick enough to drown out the sound of the desert wind while also buck passing in order to avoid any form of official scrutiny. Maybe tomorrow morning the mong from bourdillion would hurriedly fly into an airfield in Maiduguri for 10 minutes to extol the virtues of my red house brother and his fallen comrades in arms as he did in jos? He would make his usual regurgitated speech about “never again or we will crush these bandits?” He may also demand that they bring omos twin brother and his grieving wife and kids for a photo op? To show that he cares? Typical.

Mr President , your high command and your useless Boko Haram trainee ministers and the safari suit wearing boy scout from kaduna . You have all sacrificed an innocent man’s life and that of his brave platoon with your incompetence, blinding stupidity and lack of political will to face this menace head on. Nigerians are now on par with somalians as regards to insecurity and it is all happening under your bleary-eyed watch.

The betrayal of all the remaining red necks and their subordinates rests on your shoulders. May all of you responsible for the current state of this nations capitulation choke on your wealth and die off in penury after being haunted by the visions of all those who have been sent to the upper room by your inaction greed and lack of foresight.

As for “Le deux, tallest, Omo bee and the general?”…..I wish you a peaceful journey
I will see you when it’s my turn . Rest in peace……Salute.

[“The final betrayal of a red neck” is a SEMI BIOGRAPHICAL EPITAPH written by me based on the events of the last 24 hours of oseni braimahs life, as a dedication to his bravery and that of his men, the current inefficiency affecting our nations military offensive against terrorists in nigeria, the debilitating federal corruption as well as our 32 year association via our journey through the hallowed halls of CSSKD”]

© God of words productions. 2026