Happy Easter Monday to you all, may the blessing of Christ resurrection be upon us in Jesus name 🙏

God wanted a people to Himself, a people that were in covenant. It's always been God's desire Exodus 25:8, "make me a sanctuary that I may dwell therein." God has always wanted to habitate with you. He wants real intimacy with you- a Father-son-relationship!

The NATIONAL PRAYER ALTAR *MARATHON PRAYERS* Monday 7th March - Sunday 13th April 2025 *GOVERNMENT UPON HIS SHOULDERS* _For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace_ (Isaiah 9:6). The Bible passage above is a messianic prophecy about the character and attributes of Jesus Christ. As the Head of the Church, which is His Body, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven while His Body is on the earth. The Son of God reigns over all creation, both visible and invisible, and has committed the government on earth to the Church, His body, for _"the government shall be upon his shoulder…"_ The shoulder is a part of the body; it is not part of the head. It is the divine responsibility of the Church, the Body of Christ, to provide the president, governors, senators, and all the various appointees or electoral officials that exercise governance in the land. This is the calling of the Church. Governance is the responsibility of the Body of Christ, however, the exact opposite is witnessed in Nigeria. Rather than provide governance, the instrument of the State is used to oppress, afflict, and persecute the Church. Could we then say that the word of God is not true? Far from it. The problem is not the word of God, it is the Church, and the problem of the Church is its leadership. Christian leadership is required to mobilize and harmonize all the potentials of the Church to provide temporal and spiritual leadership for Nigeria. Everything the Church needs to provide government in Nigeria has been given to the Church. Christians constitute the largest demographic group in Nigeria. They are the most educated, the most civilized, and the most enlightened. They constitute the largest group of professionals, academics, intellectuals, scientists, technocrats, skilled workers, and marketplace entrepreneurs. Even the wealth of Nigeria, be it oil, gas, ports, waterways, and the bulk of the arable land, is in Christian owned areas of the country. Unfortunately, Christians are currently an endangered species in Nigeria. Those who kill them are not prosecuted. Many prayers have been said, and are still being said, for the protection of Christians as well as for divine intervention for peace to reign in the land. So far, heaven has remained silent. God might be waiting for His people to do the very things they are calling on Him to do. It is a spiritual fact that if solution to a problem is available on the earth, God will not provide it from heaven. For the same reason, if an information is available on the earth, God will not give it from heaven. Revelation is God telling a man what no one can tell him on the earth. God only provides from heaven what man cannot provide on the earth. That is why God gave humans brains, to think and apply the solutions of God on earth. The major problem with Christianity in Nigeria is that many Christians have been put into neutral gear by some church leaders whose only message is "miracles" and "divine breakthroughs." Some churches do not teach members to think; they only teach them to expect miracles. The Church in Nigeria is not operating in dominion because it does not raise disciples. The Church has a generation of leaders whose specialty is raising spiritual babes whom they refer to as their “children”, and who also refer to those brothers as “daddy in the Lord”. This practice amounts to a violation of the Lord’s command in Matthew 23:9 _"And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven."_ It takes “sons” to exercise dominion. Nigeria is groaning in expectation of the manifestation of the sons of God (Rom. 8:19). Unfortunately, most churches keep producing babes in Christ who find it difficult to dominate their environment and establish the Kingdom of God in the land. One major shortcoming of most Christian assemblies is the failure to teach about the Kingdom of God. Christianity is basically about the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. Both Jesus and John the Baptist started ministry in Matt. 3:2 and Matt. 4:17 proclaiming, _"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."_ In Matt. 6:33, Christians are commanded: _"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."_ Many church leaders inundate believers with messages of earthly wealth and prosperity. In the process of scrambling with the children of the world for the mundane things of the earth, Christians lose the righteousness of the Kingdom of God. If Christianity in Nigeria would be victorious, the obsession of many churches with mammon must cease, or in the alternative, a new generation of leaders must rise to lead the Church. So long as a generation of greed and vanity-infested leaders are in control of the Church, Christians will continue to suffer defeat and oppression in the country. There must be a return to Christlikeness in the Church. Jesus reigns over the universe, and at His name every knee shall bow. The method Christ used to conquer Satan is the same method that will work for the Church. Christ proclaimed, _"My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work"_ (John 4:34). In John 14:30, Jesus said, says, _"for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me,"_ confirming His holiness and separation from the world. How many Christians can make the same affirmation? On the physical level, there must be conscious plans to take the kingdom of Nigeria and hand it over to Jesus Christ. The Kingdom of God will not be established in Nigeria merely because people prayed, but because, as Christians, they also worked, for _"Faith without works is dead."_ (Jam. 2:26). As pointed out in a previous prayer call, no one wins an election because a prophecy was proclaimed over him or because anointing oil was poured upon his head. You win elections because you have political structures. Naturally speaking, the politician who does not pray but builds political structures will win an election over a Christian who prays but has no structures. Christians should not be deceived that a miracle would take place and a Christian without a political structure would win an election. Angels neither vote nor count votes. Therefore, the candidate must be in control of those human beings who vote and those that count the votes, while he still prays. God intervenes in human affairs when they have tried their best, but it is not enough. Rather than build Christian political structures, Christians in politics unfortunately hire the political structures of the Muslims. It is Muslims who control the existing political structures in Nigeria. This is the reason Christian politicians become helpless after getting into political office and they are unable to stand or speak for Christian interests. Many Christians blame Christian politicians for the failure to defend Christian interests, but they seldom ask which structure put them into the office. If the government would be on the shoulders of Jesus Christ in Nigeria, the following points should be noted. 1. Christians must realize they have a divine mandate to provide a righteous government for Nigeria. until they do so, the land would continue to mourn and suffer. God will not do what man is supposed to do. 2. leadership is crucial. Christians must agree to follow a leadership structure that will be the point of convergence. The various Christian groups must unite under one political leadership in the Church. In a previous prayer call, it was stated that the body established by the five Church groups in 2001 for this purpose is the Christian Social Movement of Nigeria (CSMN). 3. Christians must be prepared to fund their political structure. This can easily be done if each Christian agrees to contribute a token amount every month. The political process in Nigeria was intentionally designed to be very expensive, so that only the rich can participate. 4. training of interested candidates must commence. It is still not too late to prepare candidates for the 2027 elections. It is indispensable for Christian candidates to have basic understanding of the principles of the Kingdom of God, before they enter a political office. The National Prayer Altar is making that arrangement 5. Christians should obtain their Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC), and Party Registration Card (PRC). While the PVC will enable them to vote on election day, the PRC will enable them to influence decisions of political parties. It is those with PRC that will decide which candidate would run and who should be a delegate at the party primaries. _Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves._ (Matt. 10: 16). God bless Nigeria. *PRAYER POINTS* 1. Isaiah 9:6 Thank God for the divine mandate upon the Church to provide government for Nigeria. Pray that this revelation shall become real to every Nigeria Christian. 2. Ps. 133 Pray for a fresh anointing of unity upon the Church, so that the Christians would work as one to fulfil the mandate of providing leadership for Nigeria. 3. Rom. 16:17-18 Pray that Christians shall be diligent and determined to resist those who will seek to divide the Church from fulfilling the divine mandate of providing righteous government for Nigeria. 4. Matt. 6:10 Pray that the government of the Kingdom of God shall be established upon Nigeria. 5. Titus 1:10-13 Pray that God will silence all ministers of the gospel who preach prosperity at the expense of Christlike discipleship. 6. Lam. 3:37 Cancel every utterance or confession to the effect that ungodly and wicked politicians shall continue to rule Nigeria in 2027. 7. Rev. 12:10-11 Plead the blood of Jesus to counter and nullify every sorcery, satanic ritual, and enchantment to retain the throne of Nigeria in the hands of Satan. *JOIN US AT THE DAILY PRAYERS FOR NIGERIA* Which started since 18th April 2022 TIME: 9.00 – 10.00pm daily WAT (Nigeria time) VENUE: ZOOM https://zoom.us/j/96806190505?pwd=K2RqcUN3YjRwQzEzRDZaMUt2N1ZsUT09 Meeting ID: 968 0619 0505 Passcode: 024184 *LINK TO MARATHON PRAYERS ZOOM ROOM* https://zoom.us/j/94064259957?pwd=bm13eDlSNTMrZWhVdTl5bmNRRlBHQT09 Meeting ID: 940 6425 9957 Passcode: Altar repent@csmnigeria.org *PLEASE SHARE*

https://canng.org/images/docs/can-constitution.pdf

https://gazettengr.com/exclusive-nigerian-lawmakers-accept-25000-bribe-as-tinubus-allies-scramble-to-stem-mass-abstention-secure-crucial-quorum-for-rivers-proclamation/ *EXCLUSIVE: Nigerian Lawmakers Accept $25,000 Bribe As Tinubu’s Allies Scramble To Stem Mass Abstention, Secure Crucial Quorum For Rivers Proclamation* _Lawmakers said the offers poured in around 6:15 p.m. on Wednesday as it became increasingly difficult for the president’s aides and legislative allies to whip the needed votes._ -by VICTOR OLORUNFEMI AND AMBALI ABDULKABEER MARCH 20, 2025 LAWMAKERS at the National Assembly came into a payola windfall overnight as administration officials raced to stave off a humiliating defeat of President Bola Tinubu’s emergency proclamation in Rivers, Peoples Gazette has learnt. Eleven lawmakers, comprising seven senators and four representatives, confirmed separately to The Gazette that they were offered up to $25,000 to support Mr Tinubu’s invocation of Section 305 of the Nigerian Constitution to dismantle democratic institutions in Rivers, including firing elected Governor Simi Fubara and all state legislators, and impose government by military ordinance statewide. “Members are reluctant to even show up to the parliament,” a lawmaker told The Gazette Thursday morning. “Some of them, especially those from Borno, received messages from their governors that they should not support the emergency rule in Rivers.” At an executive session of the House plenary on Thursday morning, only 113 members out of 360 were present, falling short of a simple quorum of 120 members. To stem the impending humiliation, cash bribes were immediately discussed by the president’s loyalists, including Senate President Godswill Akpabio, sources told The Gazette. After interviews with 14 members across both chambers, 11 confirmed receiving offers for bribes. Seven who confirmed receiving offers said they were paid $25,000 between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, while four received $15,000 within the same period. Two lawmakers said they heard about or received offers but rejected them. Only Senator Seriake Dickson told The Gazette he received no offers, much less rejected. He is a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party and a major opponent of the president’s decision. The lawmakers said they picked up the offers at different locations across the Nigerian capital, Abuja, but were insured if they came from the same source. The lawmakers said they started being approached around 6:15 p.m. on Wednesday, as it became increasingly difficult for the president’s aides and legislative allies to whip the needed votes to ratify the emergency rule by Thursday afternoon. Mr Tinubu announced the emergency on Tuesday night, citing escalating political tension between Mr Fubara and lawmakers loyal to Nyesom Wike. The president immediately installed Ibok-Etuk Ekwe Ibas, a retired naval chief, to administer the state for six months. The announcement sparked an immediate uproar, with legal scholars and everyday Nigerians condemning it as unconstitutional and potentially harmful to national cohesion. The president has 48 hours to get the backing of the parliament for the proclamation to stand, even though the Constitution was silent as to the president’s ability to sack an elected government of an autonomous state. Wednesday was the first chance lawmakers had to ratify the order, but both chambers fell short of the needed members. In the House, only 80 lawmakers of 360 showed up, constituting less than the 120 needed to form even a simple quorum. The Constitution requires two-thirds, or 240 House members and 73 of 109 senators, to ratify the president’s action.

Saturday Essay *TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE* by Moses Oludele Idowu I want to begin with History. Most people have heard the phrase : - "Too little, too late,"- but very few know the origin of that phrase and what it was actually created to serve. In the 1930's - 40's the world moved on precariously and dangerously, tethering and staggering on the path of self-destruction. The wicked were on the march and full of courage and conviction while the righteous majority were racked with indecision, fear, selfishness and utter indifference. The forces of tyranny were on the wings making dramatic gains while there was no courage or political will on the other side to challenge them. Just as it is now in our nation. Nazism was already establishing its tentacles in Germany with Hitler surrounded by the adoration of a nation of culture that has lost its way. Fascism was taking hold and consolidating itself in Italy with Mussolini daring anyone to cross his path. In Asia the Japanese, the Red Dragon, was building a formidable arsenal and stronghold, a military - industrial complex to form the tripod of evil. Against all these formidable forces the Free World had nothing except Appeasement from Britain, Indecision from America and a Soviet Union shackled by an ideology that is good on paper but never worked on ground, struggling with a large restless population it was unable to feed. Thus against Germany's Nazism, Italian Fascism and Japanese Militarism which constituted the Axial Powers, the Free World had no answer or nothing to meet them. There was little courage and even much more little leadership in the Free World to confront the rampaging hordes of wickedness threatening to enslave the world. It was in this very season that the phrase "Too Little, Too Late' was coined to show the lack of leadership and courage in the Free World. That phrase represents "the poverty of courage and creative leadership", of combat men and materials to face the rampaging hordes of naked outright fascistic terrorism assaulting the world. Just as it now is in our dear nation. No leadership. No courage. No conviction. Except among the fascists. In 1938 it was Czechoslovakia and Austria where Hitler marched and swallowed in the face of British Appeasement. In 1939 it was the turn of Poland. Hitler took over Poland with spoken words, without firing a shot. He was an orator. In 1940 it was the turn of France, Belgium and Holland. And finally on Sunday morning December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, America got the message. In the following Spring 1942 in the Philippines Japanese Militarism came with full force and wiped out an entire torpedo fleet causing the fall of Beaten and Conequidor and forcing Gen. MacArthur to retreat to Australia - all the men of the tiny fleet wiped out. America got the message. Indecision is a decision. Refusing to fight and confront the enemy and a threat is itself a decision to submit to his tyranny. Britain at last got the message: You don't appease the devil or a monster; you confront him. From 1938-41 there was too little courage and leadership in the world to face the threat. By the time the Free world would now come together to confront the enemy it was too late. 60 million souls had to perish to stop the tripod of evil led by Adolf Hitler. But if the threat had been confronted in 1938 more lives wouldn't have been wasted. Military experts estimated that at the most, 30,000 lives might have been lost to stop Hitler in 1938; but it was not done. So the war that Chamberlain feared eventually came and now 60 million lives had to perish. Too little, too late. These were the lessons of the World War but do we really learn? History is not only a faithful record of the past, it is also a prophecy of what is coming. Today I see the same thing, the same processes at work in our nation. The same forces, the same strategies and shenanigans. And just like in the Free World of the 1930's there is no leadership, courage and conviction. While the forces of enslavers, tyranny are growing in their actions and bravery the forces of freedom are in disarray and unsure of even what action to take. Last year the NBS gave us to know that banditry and kidnapping are the most lucrative trades in Nigeria before the report was pulled down by hackers. The wise will understand. At least we all can now see that insecurity has worsened. Farmers are now in danger and their farms in more danger. Few weeks ago the Afenifere Youth leader was captured on his way to Abuja around Akoko, one of the most dangerous spots and staging post of bandits and kidnappers. He wasn't released until his wife paid N17 million naira. Few days ago the same bandits or herdsmen went to a community farm in Ondo State and killed 20 persons. The video was shown to all. The latest video that touched me was that of herdsmen harvesting cassava in a Southeastern region to feed to their cows. That is where we now are. Soon they will come to the cities and towns and to your houses to feed your foodstuffs to their cows and do what they like with your children and wives. Just wait. A monster is not stopped by persuasion, pleading or reason. Or even the appeal to Law. He is stopped only by what he believes in : Force. When Hitler went to Czechoslovakia and Austria no one stopped him. The consequence: he proceeded to Poland, then to France... Belgium. Before, the bandits were in the forest but now they operate from the highways. Now it is the farms and villages. Soon it will be your houses and right inside your towns. In 2018 I warned the Yorubas about these and what to do. In 2020 I warned the entire Southerners ( and especially Yorubas) what steps they should take urgently. ( See *Something Has Happened to the Yoruba, 7 Dangerous Delusions Among Southerners* ) If they have heeded the lessons then it wouldn't have escalated to this level. Then there was little courage and leadership in Yoruba land. The politicians would not say anything not to jeopardise their chances. Bola Tinubu would not say anything because his eyes were on 2023 just as he won't say anything now because he is also focused on 2027. Human lives were expendables in 1941 when Macarthur retreated allowing a fleet to be wiped out; they are too now as the rulers keep silent in the face of tyranny. I saw the report sent out by the Afenifere Youth leader asking for action now. He said the land has been encircled. So it is just now you are discovering that? Poor you. Why didn't you join me to magnify the call in 2018, 2019 to 2023? It is late now. It is now you know that your forests are surrounded? It is now you know that you are encircled? Because it happened to you? This is the first phase. They need to impoverish your people first by collecting their money through kidnapping to fund their jihadist army. They need to destroy your harvest to create famine so you won't be able to fight when the D- Day comes. They need to instill fear into you to even step out of your house. Before they move to the last and final phase: attack or genocide. It happened in Turkey to the Armenians while the world was busy with the First World War and no one was watching. It could happen again. These are the ways of the tyrants and they are on course. All these were clear to me as far back as 2018. I knew this won't go away. I knew it would get worse. Now time has been lost. Now unity of purpose is lacking. Where is the leadership today in Yorubaland? Where is courage and proactive thinking in the nation? Indecision, self-seeking, personal glory, love of pleasure... indifference. The Oyo House of Representatives member, Mrs Sadipe declared the other day that in her constituency farmers could no longer go to farms because herdsmen have wrecked havocs everywhere. Didn't Yorubas hear her? Has there been any plan of action both then and now? That is the modern Yoruba: no balls, no action, empty and loud- mouthed, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God. They are waiting for their traditional rulers. The traditional rulers are waiting for the governors. Governors are waiting for Tinubu. Tinubu is waiting for 2027... Some are waiting for Yoruba nation to defend themselves against attacks in their own land. Soon you will end up where you are headed. Few days ago the forces of tyranny made another gain, dramatic gain on our watch. The "Supreme Court of judicial bandits" in a judgement decided that a farmer Sunday Jackson who in an act of self-defense killed a Fulani assailant must die for - of all things - murder. Our judges said he should have fled rather than killing a Fulani man. They expected a man who eas wounded and stabbed on his leg to flee. This judgement would have been funny if it were not so pathetic. In John Bunyan's allegorical work, the masterpiece of all time, "Pilgrims Progress" we see how Christian and his companion were accosted when they got to Vanity Fair in the City of Vanity where they were arrested and brought before the judge of the Land whose name is Lord Hate-Good who sentenced them and confiscated their properties. Democracy is now Vanity Fair and Nigeria is now the City of Vanity. Lord Hate- Good is no more on the pages of imaginative Literature she now sit atop a Judas-iary backed by activist judges who make their own laws rather than interpret them. Judas loved his own nation more than his master and chose to betray the latter for the former; the judases in our Supreme Cult preferred to obey their puppet masters and let a nation go to blazes. They have therefore out- judas even Judas. You now understand and can now make meaning all the curious judgments that has been coming from that Cult. Why number 4 had to be elevated to become number 1; why a candidate who did not contest an election had to be rewarded with a ticket to represent his party and why it is punishable, contrary to the Law of God and Nature, for a man to defend himself on his own land and within his own space. You now understand why all enemies and perceived enemies of the Fascist Regime has been receiving unfavorable judgments from Lord Hate-Good's Court. The latest are Peter Odili and Sanusi Lamido Sanusi. You will see worse things in the coming days. Fascism is now on the march in our nation. Not just fascism but Islamofascism. The only organised forces and mobilized forces that I see today in Nigeria; the only coherent and raging power and the greatest threat to freedom today are the forces of fascism and Islamofascism in all their disguises, mutations and progression. They have taken over the Judas-iary. They control the Legislature - a body full of nihilists, moral anarchists, scavengers, drug addicts, sex- slaves, fraudsters with a sprinkling of few principled men too few to make any change. Need I talk of the Executhieves, the source and ocean of all pollution, defilement and unutterable vileness of the fountain of a nation? It took Nigerians 8 years to know that Buhari is not a democrat, how long will it take for Nigerians to discover that our man is more of a monarchist than a democrat? Fascism is on course. All the arms of government are now taken. They owned and control the press - the corrupt and compromised press. They largely control the civil society and its "hacktivists" - that are all over the place but no where on ground. And they owned and control the religious elements of major religions. This is the very kind of climate conducive for control and domination; and to the fascistic takeover of a nation and any society. Democracy is dead. First it was in Lagos where security was withdrawn from an elected speaker to a deposed speaker and a legislative decision overturned by the whims of one man sitting in Abuja. Now it is the turn of Rivers State where an elected governor, legislators, and all symbols of democracy, warts and all, have been disabled and a malleable legislature worse than even a footmat has rubber-stamped it by voice vote. And Madam Hate- Good's Judas-iary will equally affirm the illegality if the courts are approached. Fascism is on course. Osun State could be the next. And nothing will happen. In the 1930's - 40's there was the tripod of Tyranny struggling to enslave the world. In 2025 Nigeria there is the tripod of evil working to ensnare freedom and compromise Nigerian Secularity. There is the Fascistic Authoritarianism of APC Government, the Sharia ideology of Fulani Oligarchy presently on course in some Northern states and thirdly, there are the Rogue Elements ( similar to Hitler's Green Berets and Skinheads) consisting of Fulani bandits, herdsmen, terrorists, thugs, agberos etc., which the APC has never really fought and always treated with soft spots and respect. One ideology unites all of them at the top - Islamofascism. And they are working for the same goal at the end. The Nazis started with burning books but later they burnt bodies and humans. The Islamofascists of our nation started with breaking beer bottles and shutting hotels. Now they are shutting schools. Tomorrow they will shut churches and recreational centers and could arrest you one day if your beards are not long enough. In 2018 I predicted this using the exact words. Has it not happened to us now? In the 1930-40 there was a Roosevelt, a Churchill and a Stalin who finally rose up to challenge the rampaging forces of Fascism. In our nation today we have no Stalin, no Churchill, no Roosevelt, no Generals Patton or MacArthur. NANS is lost to reactionary forces. NBA is a toothless bulldog. NUJ is sick and nigh to death. NLC has lost its ideological bearing. ASUU - radical ASUU is wounded in the field of battle and now war- weary and nurturing its wounds. NMA and NSE ( doctors and engineers) rarely dabble into politics preferring to face their private matters. The Opposition is in disarray assuming there is anything that could be called by that name. PDP is not different from APC. LP is still in the womb of formation. The religious bodies are weak. CAN is morally weak. PFN has no ideology that can power a national liberation or frighten a demagogue. It was Martin Luther who said, "He is a man who can speak forcefully to men." Such was Luther himself. Such was John Wesley, George Fox, William Wilberforce, John Calvin, Garrick Braide, William Harris, Joseph Babalola.... Alas, Nigerian Christianity has not a single man in the mold of such men listed above at this hour. I can't find a single one on the horizon. The only weapon and only thing left for Nigerians now is the Social Media which is also under assault of regulation and monitoring by the fascists in the Legislature This is how an empire is lost; this is how civilization disappears from the radar. All the 26 civilizations studied by Professor Arnold Toynbee this was how they disappeared. They lost their spiritual initiative their zest, moral quality and creative element within their culture. General Obasanjo said the other day that the traditional rulers have been taken over by drug addicts, fraudsters, sex- slaves.. The last pillar of culture and Cultural Renewal is lost. That is how nations die. This is how a nation goes into slavery. This is how freedom is lost. It is not just because of the actions of the wicked but also because of the inactions, cowardice, lack of leadership and courage of the righteous majority. It is easy to lose freedom; it is not difficult to enslave liberty. Hitler disabled democracy within one month and few days in one of the most cultured nations on Earth. It is easy to lose liberty. Now the forces of Fascism are united and have bared their fangs. They are marching on and what or who will stop them? What do we have to stop them? Where is the courage? Where is the leadership? Have you heard even the Nigerian Governor's Forum to say anything against an illegality perpetrated against one of their own? In 1938 courage was too little, by 1945 it was too late. In 2015, 2023 Nigeria it was too little. Will it be too late too for us? TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE. Have a wonderful weekend. Follow me: Facebook: Moses Oludele Idowu WhatsApp: 08034697670 X:@MosesOludele ©️ Moses Oludele Idowu March 22, 2025 All Rights Reserved

The Chess Game of 2027 Power Politics in Nigeria by apostle | Mar 15, 2025 | Uncategorized | 0 comments The Chess Game of 2027 Power Politics in Nigeria By Bolaji O. Akinyemi. The chess game is played on a board of 8×8 grid of 64 squares; the goal is to checkmate your opponent’s king, put him under attack until he is eventually captured. The chess game presents a classical analogy of Nigeria’s political landscape and the buildup to 2027 presidential elections. The key players in chess game are king, queen, rooks, knights, bishops and pawns. Each player represents critical jobbers in Nigeria’s political arena as follows:- the President or Head of State is the king who holds the highest power. Influential politicians and power brokers who support the President represent the queen. The defense and security forces that maintain law and order to protect the President constitute the rooks. The Bishops are the traditional rulers cum religious leaders who wield significant influence. The Knights are the bureaucrats including intellectuals and professionals who provide strategic guidance. Finally, the electorates and everyday citizens who are often caught in the middle of power struggles are represented by the pawns. In Nigeria, power has historically rotated between the two blocs of the north and the south upon which Nigeria was created as a single country. The north and south blocs make initial moves to establish their strongholds and influence. Each side engages in a delicate strategic moves to gain power advantage over the other. This might involve forming alliances, making concessions, or using propaganda to sway public opinion. The final outcome of the moves by the blocs leads one side to emerge victorious, having successfully checkmated the other side as an opponent. That was the kind of game spearheaded and advanced in 2015 by the Tinubu-led APC to edge out King Jonathan from power to see Buhari to power; and, in 2023 to push Christian presidential candidates out of political power ascendancy as CEO of Nigeria. In Nigeria’s context, this might mean one bloc gaining dominance over the other whenever a bloc achieves repeated checkmate in trapping the king of the opponent that could not escape. In Nigeria’s political landscape, checkmate might represent a situation where one side of the blocs has gained greater dominance, in power ascendancy leaving the other side with fewer chances of ascendancy. However, just as in chess, checkmate is not always a permanent accomplishment. New opportunities can arise, and the game can start anew. In Nigeria’s case, this might involve a shift in power dynamics leading to a change in the governing administration, or a reevaluation of the country’s political structure. This is where we are! as the permutations for CEO power ascendancy in 2027 are steered. The swing of the democratic pendulum of power between the conventional two blocs also represents the swing of balance of Religion, particularly for the two leading religions in the country, being Christianity and Islam. In this regard, the pattern of primordial ethnic factors becomes noticeably relevant. This has always been in favour of the Fulani ethnic group by the expropriation, nay, subjugation of the value of the Hausa resources of population, language, history, religion, marriage, couture and culture. As a result, the Christian dominant electoral factor in the north gets ignored and is often lost in the power game for lack of a platform of aggregation, cooperation and collaboration with their brethren in the other side of the south bloc, and to some extent, a lackadaisical deployment of tenacity in political engineering. Regrettably, CAN is unable and unsuitable to be the platform for negotiating the interest of Christians resident in the north bloc. The north has always produced Muslim CEO of Nigeria while the Christian CEO often comes from the south bloc. Just like with Christians in the north, the Muslim minority in the south bloc has always been at the disadvantage of power games. The swing of the power pendulum is often between north and south blocs in a pattern already established at independence. The north bloc tends to forth a Fulani Muslim to emerge as the CEO of Nigeria; whereas, in the south bloc, a Christian often emerges for the CEO job irrespective of his ethnic group. In breach of convention, the emergence of a Muslim Tinubu from the south bloc is an aberration of the pattern of the north-south swing of the power pendulum. Worst still, a Tinubu Muslim/Muslim Ticket has deepen the breakdown of the existing convention of power swing pattern to a combustible degree; it shouldn’t be encouraged in 2027 in order to sustain the fragile balance of power between the traditional north-south blocs. Bear in mind that the Tinubu power incumbency has already created a religious bias against the south bloc and incongruously in favour of the north bloc, being that he’s not Fulani; this has cryptic implications for national interest, political stability and cohesion. On a bloc-wise basis, the incumbency of Tinubu is a marginal plus that is heavily encrusted against diversity, equity and inclusion in a plural polity.; it undermines a tested arrangement that supports the traditional swing that stirs a feeling of unity in the country. So getting to basics means getting 2027 in the hands of a Christian from the south bloc. It’s curious how Tinubu cracked into CAN under a south bloc leader to advance his Muslim/Muslim Agenda, and, to ignore north bloc Christians to achieve a resurgence of the 1993 Muslim/Muslim presidential Ticket in the 2023 elections in Nigeria. Going forward to 2027, the dynamics of a deft game of power has been activated with the resignation of El-Rufai from the ruling APC to join SDP as part of three vital shuffles; the relocation of Buhari to kaduna to provide on-ground proximity to his trusted team that include El-Rufai. The third shuffle is that of Peter Obi who visited a PDP governor Bala Mohamed in Bauchi; either Obi or Mohamed is likely to switch camp for an Obi presidential ticket in 2027. The Bauchi visit of Obi is a presage of the expectation for a Christian president in 2027 to get back its unbiased reckoning with the south bloc in the power game. Without any iota of prejudice, the most potent option for the south bloc to produce a Christian president in 2027 is the Goodluck Jonathan candidacy pairing with a suitable north bloc Muslim. On a balance of opinion, the north bloc will trust this arrangement knowing the termination of a four year tenure is inevitable upon which the political power pendulum can seamlessly return to the north bloc. The Obi/Mohamed game may be a consideration for the enraged relegation of the Fulani from the preeminent position in the power matrix of Nigeria. As a corollary, the likelihood of Tinubu’s political maturity to embrace one term and field his all time ally in Prof Yemi Osibajo with whom many in the north bloc may find respite if the agreement to be content with one term can be reached. The permutations of Jonathan, Obi and Osibajo are hinged on the premise that the south bloc Christian base had held the CEO position of Nigeria for a paltry total of 13 years; 8 years of Obasanjo and 5 years of Jonathan. Comparatively, the north bloc occupied the CEO position of Nigeria for a whooping total of 21 years as follows; Balewa in 6 years, Shagari in 4 years, YarAdua in 3 years and Buhari in 8 years. By the conventional understanding of the game of Nigeria’s political power struggles, we can gain insight from the permutations of the complex dynamics at play and the strategic maneuvering that is needed in the pursuit of power in 2027. The game changer however may be a Tinubu embrace of constitutional reform based on the 1963 republican constitution before 2027, and by which case, he will conveniently distabilise the argument linked to conventional pattern against his continuation for a second term in office in 2027. This of course is where we are, and it critically depends on who is at the board playing on behalf of Christians in Nigeria for a win