meant to resuscitate the Nigerian economy following the adverse effects the Covid-19 pandemic has had on it.

There were contained in the package, plans to set up solar panels for rural areas, provide employment opportunities for the youth via the N-Power initiative, provide private organizations and corporate institutions who have been grossly affected with financial support and also provide funds for farmers amongst other plans.

The Federal Executive Council on Wednesday approved the plan submitted by the NESP and things have kick started for implementation of the plan as the N-Power website has been opened for young persons to apply.

While speaking on the Liberating Nigeria online show following the submission of the plan, Debo Onifade, authort of the book Liberating Nigeria: a guide to winning elections and reviving our country and convener of www.liberatingnigeria.com an online political forum, had asserted that the plan was vague. He noted that the Vice President didn’t state how the funds were to be distributed, didn’t state factors that will determine the poor and the grossly affected that will benefit from the funds. He said the more than 64 pages plan didn’t say exactly what the Nigerian populace needed to know, stating that all of the funds would rather end up a largesse for government officials if implementation plans are not clearly stated out.

He said the plan didn’t also state if funds spent in setting up the solar panels will be recuperated back from the community or it was being set up for free.

READ ALSO : HOW YOUTHS CAN WIN ELECTORAL POSITIONS

Onifade described the approval of the funds as disappointing and lacked objectivity. He said the government didn’t take time to critically look into the document to determine it’s feasibility. According to him, the document should have been summarized into 2 pages for easy read of the public and also made available to the general populace as against only the few elites who have access to it.

Meanwhile, in his article published on major Nigerian newspapers and a top American News platform, Onifade has adequately explained how Nigeria can take advantage of the US-China trade war for the benefit of the country and Africa at large. He said the country should begin to outsource skilled young professionals to the US, seeing that we have youths who are eager to learn technical and technological skills, the government should provide platforms that will skill up these young people and make them fit to compete with other countries for US jobs.

According to him, the US now outsource from India and other eastern countries, so Nigeria ought to take the lead of countries outsourcing labour from Africa to the United States. The country should decentralize power, modernity and skills from just Lagos and Abuja but begin to focus on other states in the country like Ogun, Osun and other seemingly rural areas.

He thinks this will help to better regulate the price at which Nigerian youths render their services. It would help reduce the cost of labour and project us better as having the needed capacity for labour to the United States and other Western countries.

The post FEC Approval of #2.3trillion NESP, a disappointment- Onifade appeared first on LiberatingNigeria.

As part of ways to respond to the overwhelming clamour from young people getting involved in governance, to take power from the old or traditional politicians, the President, Muhammadu Buhari signed the #NotTooYoungToRun bill into law, the bill which sought to reduce the ages of elective positions gave a number of young persons the chance to run for positions in governance.

On the 31st of May, 2018, the president assented to the bill which reduced the age of running for House of Assembly and House of Representative from 30 to 25 years old, Senate and Governorship position from 35 to 30 years old and office of the president from 40 to 30 years old. The bill signed into law gave notable young persons like Fela Durotoye, Omoyele Sowore, Adamu Garba and others the courage to run for the office of the president.

Although, there were controversies at the time and people asked questions like, are young people ready to do politics? Do they have what it takes? Have they learnt? These were the questions that Debo Onifade answered in his book Liberating Nigeria: a guide to winning elections and reviving our country. Speaking at the 2020 Webinar series organized by Liberating Nigeria, an online political forum and jobs.delon.ng, an online job portal for job seekers, graduates and students seeking opportunities.

He said that young politicians whom he refers to as new breed politicians can only be ready to occupy political positions when they are ready to learn from the so called old or traditional politicians. His ideas though seem like totally opposite what young people aspire for comes at a  time when youths are seeking to push old people out of government to take over, Onifade proposed a collaboration between youths and the old people. Well, this he said is because new breed politicians need to learn the tactics of politics.

According to him, politics needs to be learnt from people who have years of experience, he urged young people to learn politics so they can know how it is done but it’s quite unfortunate that young people are not ready for this. He thinks new breed politicians are too proud to learn, they feel they know it all and that is why they keep failing at it.

He mentioned that there’s nothing wrong having a godfather as a young politician as it helps to be better positioned to win an election and new breed politicians need godfather’s influence to make it in election, that they only need to get to the position and put the will or interest of the people first. That he said doesn’t mean fighting with the godfather.

Mr Onifade further urged religious leaders to begin to participate in politics and electoral processes by endorsing candidates. He said, the task of taking over governance as young people or new breed politicians lie in the hands of every young person and “good” people like religious leaders for their influence over a large number of people.

READ ALSO : JUNE 12 REMEMBRANCE: A CLARION CALL TO NIGERIAN YOUTHS

Many a times, we have seen pictures of leaders of top churches in Nigeria with political candidates or aspirants taking pictures and all without being articulate on if they support the candidate or not. Onifade opined that religious leaders (churches and mosques) should begin to openly endorse candidates for elections. He said all they need do is prove the candidates, reach a decision who has a better plan for the people and hold them to their words. This he says is a great way of canvassing votes for new breed politicians with good intentions.

Addressing the issue of religious leaders getting scared of losing members or followership and consequently losing fame, he noted that it was nothing to fear for, he mentioned that a large number of people believe in them and will always respect their opinion. Even if their chosen candidate failed to meet up with expectation, there was nothing to be scared about, he said the leader only needs to learn from it and move on sighting cases when religious leaders have made a mistake and yet didn’t lose his members, so there was no cause for alarm.

Religious leaders are great stakeholders in the fight to revive our country Nigeria and the only way we can take back our country from the hands of its oppressors is by winning elections, how then do we win elections if we don’t have a large number of votes in our favour as young persons, knowing fully well that Democracy is a game of numbers. This is why we need religious leaders to endorse new breed politicians as candidates for electoral positions, he reiterated.

Many young persons seek a platform where their voices can be heard and their thoughts can be aired, this is why Debo Onifade has created the Liberating Nigeria political forum for discussions such as this, register and join at liberatingnigeria.com.

The post HOW YOUTHS CAN WIN ELECTORAL POSITIONS appeared first on LiberatingNigeria.

This happening was a significant one in the lives of Nigerians especially the South West region also known as the Yorubas because Abiola was a kinsman. So, June 12 became an important date to the West and it is celebrated every year to mark the effort and remember the legacy of the man. In honour of Abiola is a Polytechnic in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital named after him, Moshood Abiola Polytechnic. The past administration had made move to name the prestigious University of Lagos after him but the students and other stakeholders kicked against it.

In 2018, President Muhammadu Buhari decided to further honour the day by announcing it as the new Democracy Day instead of the initial May 29, the earlier recognized democracy day. It pleased the west to know that the president though being a Northerner is identifying with them although, there were speculations that it was in a bit to persuade the West to vote him for second term.

While speaking at the Liberating Nigeria online show on June 12, Debo Onifade lauded the government’s initiatives and emphasized that it will enable the younger generation gain knowledge of what happened on the said day and enlighten them on how the people stood together to fight military rule, thereby encouraging them to further participate in electoral processes through which governance can be taken from the hands of the traditional politicians and given to new breed politicians.

On the speech made by the president to mark this day, Onifade opined that the statement made by the president insinuating that his administration has so far ensured the rule of law and security of lives and property was untrue. He said it is either the president is not aware of happenings in the country or he has just decided to claim ignorance.

He added that the president cannot claim to have provided security when boko haram is still ravaging the country in the North East and we still have records of banditry, kidnapping and all sorts of life threatening crimes. He then suggested that the president should relieve service chiefs of their duties as they are not meeting up to expectation and should negotiate with the boko haram terrorists if that is what it will take to stop their dastardly act.

The present administration has always reiterated fight against corruption as top in its priorities but there are observations that this fight has been a fight against the opposition party as an individual who was once found guilty of corruption becomes innocent as soon as he joins the ruling party. Onifade however, thinks that the government has been doing well in its fight against corruption.

Though he agreed to the fight against corruption being a fight against the opposition party, he said he considers it much more as the country being in a state where the population is categorized into the oppressor and the oppressed. The oppressor being the politicians are not separated by religion, tribe, or any other classification but the oppressed who are the people are easily separated and disjointed by tribe, religion, and the likes. Onifade made this assertion while analyzing the issue of former Governor of Abia State, Orji Uzor Kalu who was found guilty of money laundering running into billions of naira and sentenced to 12 years imprisonment by a Federal High Court in Lagos State. He was later discharged  and acquitted by a court who asserted that the judge who made the ruling was no longer a judge  in that jurisdiction and so Kalu should be set free from prison.

Orji Uzor Kalu on leaving prison arrived at the National Assembly and was seen merring and jubilating with the senators. Onifade reiterated the need for good people to be involved in politics which has always been his focal point for advocacy and led him to establish a political forum www.liberatingnigeria.com,  where young persons can air their views, share their opinions and be actively involved in politics and policies.

He also posited that the government and minister of health should meet the needs of the doctors who are threatening to go on a strike instead of begging them not to. Doctos are at the fore front of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic and their sevices are needed at this critical time, therefoe, their needs should be met to enable them cary out their services efficiently. Their salaries should be paid on time, PPEs should be made available and most importantly life insurance should be provided for them. He said it is quite sad that doctors and other health workers have to threaten to go on strike before their needs are met.

Meanwhile, Onifade kicked against the plans of the Lagos State Government to open places of worship anytime soon. According to him, number of cases of the virus is on the rise and not declining so, he doesn’t see any reason why religiousous organizations should be opened at this time. He urged everyone to continue to stay safe and avoid large gatherings as much as possible as  the county might not  be able to handle the situation should it escalate to the extent at which  it has become in other counties.

The post JUNE 12 REMEMBRANCE: A CLARION CALL TO NIGERIAN YOUTHS appeared first on LiberatingNigeria.

There were instances of him, taking decisions against his interest and denying him chances of having a say in his governance. He also proclaimed that he would win a second term election without the help of the party chairman.

It therefore didn’t come as a surprise when the Edo State APC declared Obaseki unqualified to participate in the party’s primaries let alone the governorship election, citizens were quick to jump into conclusion that this happened because of the issues he’s having with his godfather. The governor has however defected to the opposition party, PDP and though he had issues with other candidates who refused to step down for him at the beginning, things seem to have fallen into place for him now.

Shortly after this, the APC chairman got suspended from office by a court sitting and the party was faced with the decision of appointing an acting chairman. Court orders began to fly left and right as the party claimed to have appointed Late Abiola Ajimobi, former Governor of Oyo state weeks before he died as acting chairman, the national deputy chairman also raised claims that a court order had affirmed him as the right person to take up the position of the acting chairman.

In a bid to resolve these issues the president called for a National Executive Meeting of the party on Wednesday and the following resolutions were made:

The NWC was dissolved

A caretaker committee was set up with the Governor of Yobe, Mai Mala Buni as it’s chair

The caretaker committee was also saddled with the responsibility of organizing a convention for the party within 6months.

Following these resolutions, lots of allegations crepted on social media that the NWC was dissolved all in a bid to oust Oshiomole off his position.

Speaking at the Liberating Nigeria online show, Debo Onifade, author of the book “Liberating Nigeria: A Guide to winning elections and reviving our country” and convener of Nigerians top online political forum www.liberatingnigeria.com applauded the efforts of the president at resolving the in-house issues the party faced but reprimanded Obaseki for engaging in a face-off with his godfather.

He asserted that as much as he encouraged young politicians like the governor to get into government and do good, he doesn’t support turning against people who helped them get to the position. He said Obaseki could have found a better way of pacifying Oshiomole while ensuring that he put the people’s interest at heart. On plans of having Oshiomole and Tinubu ousted out of the party, Onifade stated that he doesn’t see that happening, he described Tinubu as godfather of the party and as only trying to lay low and set things right for his 2023 presidential ambition.

Onifade opined that he doesn’t see Obaseki emerging winner of the forthcoming elections because the ruling party’s candidate Osagie Ize-Iyamu is popular amongst the people and has garnered a lot of support from members of his party unlike Obaseki at the PDP.

The forthcoming elections becomes a fight between a ruler wanting to retain his position and an aspirant who wants to take the seat, however, the decision of who wins the governorship seat lies in the hands of the people.

The post EDO ELECTION: OBASEKI TO LOSE SEAT? appeared first on LiberatingNigeria.

Debo Onifade who is the convener of Liberating Nigeria, a political forum where young persons can air their views and share their thoughts on politics and policies pointed out various defects in the proposal which he described as vague and infeasible. He said unlike the American stimulus package proposal which was in just 4 pages and contained vital information for public understanding, the VP’s proposal was too long and didn’t contain important information that the public needed to know but rather details that should have been kept privy to the public.

He said Nigerians no longer trust anything that has to do with money or financial transactions in the government as they believe that it will only end up a means of embezzlement for government officials, so, the VP should have put this into deep consideration before reeling out such a proposal. A government should not give a #2.3trillion expense package and expect the public to accept it without stating explicitly what it will be used for.

According to him, the stimulus package contained giving out a certain amount of money to the less privileged and the poor but didn’t state how the beneficiaries will be determined. If it was meant to serve as palliatives for a set of people, what criteria would determine people that qualify for it? On giving billions of the package to set up solar panels for rural communities, Onifade said only a specific region that is the North will benefit from this as it is a well known fact that solar panels only work effectively in the North, will the south then be marginalized? What happens to rural communities in the South? He asked.

He added that as much as he is not entirely kicking against the setting up of solar panels for rural commuties, the document did not state if there is a laid down strategy to recuperate the funds back into the national purse and didn’t state if it will be given out with no refund from the commuties which he considers waste of national resource.

Speaking on the nomination of two-time Minister of Finance in Nigeria, Dr Okonjo-Iweala’s nomination for Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Onifade expressed displeasure at the federal government CS move and described it as unfair to Mr Yoniv Frederick Agah whom President Buhari had earlier nominated. He said the government should have stuck with Agah considering that he has been with the organization and would understand the workings of the organization better and also, seeing that Iweala has a lot of engagements at hand already.

He opined that Dr Iweala is simply being too ambitious and has the back up of the West who want to use her emergence as compensation for the Nigerian government should Mr Akinwunmi Adesina of the African Development Bank encounter a fall out in his election for second term.

He then expressed displeasure at the fact that African countries cannot hold opinions or make appointments and nominations without interference from the west. This is the same issue that has plagued the AFDB, Mr Adesins is currently facing challenges in his bid for second term as the West brought up series of allegations against all of which he has responded to and proved himself innocent, although past and present leaders of African countries are solidly behind him, he is finding it difficult with the West who also have shared in the AFDB. This goes to show how much needs to be done for Africans to be totally independent of the West if we indeed want significant progress in the continent.

Onifade stated his thoughts on the recent political brouhaha facing political parties especially the ruling party All Progressives Congress regarding the forthcoming elections in Ondo and Edo states. Like he had pointed out in his book, he asserted that it was wrong for a young politician to engage in a face off with his godfather, he said the Edo state governor, Godwin Obaseki could have handled the situation better rather than shaming his godfather, he however believes that he will get the PDP ticket as the other aspirants will step down for him,

Meanwhile,  it is quite glaring that the two major political parties in Nigeria only consist of the same people who simply move from one to another, with the manner and simplicity at which Obaseki moved from the APC following his disqualification from the governorship race to the PDP and with likely winning of the ticket to run for election. This is why young people need to get into politics and understand it’s processes and procedures so we can flush out the old or traditional politicians out of the system and take over for visible development.

Young people need to participate in elections, use their voting right to elect new breed politicians who have the right policies and manpower to move the country from the present situation to where it ought to be.

The post COVID-19: OSINBANO LED NESP N2.3T STMULUS PLAN NOT TRANSPARENT appeared first on LiberatingNigeria.

2020: Vanguard Newspaper Nigeria

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/04/top-nigeria-politics-forum-liberating-nigeria/

2. Onifade new book discusses Nigeria’s liberation

2020: Vanguard Newspaper Nigeria

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/01/onifades-new-book-discusses-nigerias-liberation/

3. Onifade’s new book calls on youth to engage in Politics for New Nigeria

2019: Tribune Newspaper Nigeria (Nigeria’s  Oldest Surviving Private Newspaper):
https://tribuneonlineng.com/onifades-new-book-calls-on-youth-to-engage-in-politics-for-new-nigeria/

4. Book on Nigerian Politics calls on young Nigerians to unite to liberate the country

2020: Vents Global Magazine

http://ventsmagazine.com/2020/02/18/book-on-nigerian-politics-calls-on-young-nigerians-to-unite-to-liberate-the-country/

5. Does Debo Onifade hold the key to liberating Nigeria?

2020: Syncityng.com – Twitter hangout zone for African Literature

http://syncityng.com/2020/02/14/does-debo-onifade-hold-the-key-to-liberating-nigeria-in-conversation/

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