By Yemi Itodo

Some people want us to believe what the Binance Executive said, simply because he’s a white man. That’s mental slavery!

There’s no magic on earth that would make me believe an outsider more than my own brother, until the matter is proven beyond every reasonable doubt.

How do I trust or choose a man whose background I don’t even know; someone who is being tried for defrauding Nigerians; accused of being used to finance terrorism in Nigeria; someone who escaped from the prison, despite the sophisticated apparatus of our security; above my own brother, whose background I know, who grew up with me and who we all went out in 2023, to queue behind him and elected him to represent us?

Beyond this, the institution of National Assembly is the only democracy legacy and an emblem of true democracy. Because, during the military regime, there was Executive and Judiciary as arms of government, the only difference is the absence of Legislative arm of government which is National Assembly, which makes this government a democratic government.

Then, one white Man who is already known for fraud internationally, will just come out to make spurious, sweepy and unsubstantiated allegation against our cherished symbol of democracy, and I would join him to rubbish my own identity?

I’m not standing in for anyone and I’m not exonerating anybody. I would even prefer the National Assembly set up an ad-hoc committee to thoroughly investigate this allegation and unearth whatever it is.

I’m happy the matter is already in court. I’m also happy the Federal Government is handling it with the American Government and this will lead to a successful conclusion of investigations.

Let all hands be on deck. Let the National Assembly too set up an ad-hoc committee, so we would be having both the executive, legislature and judiciary handling this weighty allegation.

Until the reports of these investigations are out, those accused remain innocent, until the guy man advances evidences against them at various panels to prove them guilty.

Let us not be too quick to crucify our own. Let us not contribute to the mantra being sponsored by enemies of Nigeria that we are all corrupt. At least, not everybody. Let’s learn how to trust ourselves, for once.

Let me submit by warning those who want to make political capital out of this or use this avenue to settle personal scores, to think twice before selling their own to outsiders. For when you sell your brother to outsiders, even the buyers will be scared of you.

If crocodile could not spare its own eggs but eats it, what would it not do to the flesh of another animal? Remember, he who trades in gravels, will receive his payments in stones.

*(Itodo contributes this short piece from National Assembly, Abuja).*

*By Tunde Olusunle*

It was a relay of calls competing for access to me Thursday February 6, 2025. Messages tagged “Breaking News” were equally discernible as they streamed onto my WhatsApp page. I would subsequently get to know that Christopher Adewole Jemitola, erstwhile aide-de-camp, (ADC) to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, had sadly and unexpectedly passed, just minutes ago. Those who know that I served as an aide to Obasanjo during his two terms in office, from 1999 to 2007, knew I would have known Jemitola. Our offices were in the very same one-storey building housing the seat and office of the President. The ADC and senior non-uniformed security aides to the Commander-in-Chief were on the ground floor. Those of us who manned the “Secretariat of the President,” the very next door to the nation’s helmsman, were upstairs. We often began our days together from the President’s residence, chaperoning him with his other aides, through the walkway linking his home and office, and vice versa. We were components of what is described as the “main body” of the President’s aides. We attended official events with him and flew on the presidential jet with him as well.

Jemitola was preceded on the job by Solomon Uangbaoje Giwa-Amu, who was Obasanjo’s ADC from 1999 to 2003. Giwa-Amu pulled me aside on the sidelines of the 2002 edition of the United Nations General Assembly, (UNGA), in New York. The bespectacled Giwa-Amu, famous for the red beret of the “military police,” the corps to which he belonged in the army was then a full Colonel. He recounted it had been worthwhile working with Obasanjo, meeting a broad spectrum of people and gaining invaluable experience the barracks would never have availed him. He said the President wants to continue with him into his second term because of the “father-son” relationship they had developed. Giwa-Amu, however, said he was personally minded about his mainstream career as a soldier. He said he desired to speedily return for reintegration into the military system, to mitigate envy and misgivings by his colleagues.

I functioned as master of ceremony for quite a number of state events, including dinners and receptions the President hosted for his visiting foreign colleagues. Obasanjo added that to my schedule beginning from a reception he hosted in honour of the former Gambian President, Yahya Jammeh. Renowned for his thriftiness, Obasanjo believed that professional comperes charged too much for their services. He believed many of them were not as articulate as I am, and more importantly, he wouldn’t have to pay for my services. Giwa-Amu loved my cadenced delivery and measured wit. He looked out frantically for me the day he was decorated Colonel in the chambers of the Federal Executive Council, (FEC). I was, unfortunately, otherwise engaged, especially because I had workstations both in the State House and the Federal Secretariat.

Tall, fair-complexioned, unobtrusive, Christopher Jemitola was a permanent fixture behind Obasanjo during his second term as President. He was professional, courteous and humble, the archetypal “officer and gentleman.” Whenever our paths crossed, communicated majorly in Yoruba which he spoke flawlessly. This was despite the fact that he wasn’t from a core Yoruba-speaking state. Not knowing who was older between both of us, he related with me with the kind of deference which presupposed I was the older party. I went to his residence abutting the President’s one morning and told his batman to inform him I wanted to see him. The batman returned to inform me that Jemitola said everyone desirous of a meeting with him should come over to his office. I stood my ground and gave my call card to the soldier to give to his boss. Jemitola emerged from the bathroom and was still mopping his body with his towel, apologised and listened to me. The information was beneficial to him and he was most thankful.

Those of us who served in the Obasanjo government went our separate ways after May 29, 2007. Jemitola returned to the Nigerian Army and was deployed to the Nigerian Embassy in Brazil as Defence Adviser. Giwa-Amu before him had served in a similar capacity at the Nigerian Embassy in Washington DC, between 2003 and 2007. Within that period, Giwa-Amu attended the US War College. Upon Jemitola’s return from Brazil, he was deployed to the position of Director of Defence Information, (DDI), at the Defence Headquarters, (DHQ). We thereafter saw each other fairly frequently on Sundays because we worshipped at the same parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, (RCCG) in Abuja. He was always his usual self, with zero affectations, no fawning aides holding his Bible for him, generous with his handshake, just himself.

Jemitola was promoted to the rank of Major General in 2014. Following the appointment of Tukur Buratai as Chief of Army Staff by the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, in 2015, Jemitola was deployed as Commander, Corps of Signals, Headquarters, Lagos. Not too long after, he was reassigned as the Chief of Policy and Plans, (COPP), of the Nigerian Army. Such was the career mobility of Jemitola during his years in active military service. Following his retirement from service a few years ago, Jemitola made forays into post-regimental life, serving as Senior Advisor for Military Communications at Pinnacle Communications Ltd, in 2019. The outfit, a digital switchover licensee is headquartered in Asokoro, Abuja. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Related Offences Commission, (ICPC), invaded the offices of the organisation January 22, 2020, weeks before the Chairman of the company, Lucky Omoluwa passed, February 18, 2020.

Major General Christopher Jemitola and his predecessor, Brigadier General Solomon Giwa-Amu, coincidentally, both hailed from Edo North in Edo State. That Obasanjo happily worked with both of them without parochial consideration of their origins reinforced the pan-Nigerian globality of the former President who eternally placed substance and quality, above primordial concerns like ethnicity and creed. Jemitola was from Ososo in Edo State, while Giwa-Amu was from Sabongida-Ora. As though the ability to play the game of squash was a prerequisite for being ADC to Obasanjo, both gentlemen played the game well. Indeed, they typically began their days, sparring with Obasanjo in the squash court annexed to the presidential residence. By tragic coincidence, Jemitola and Giwa-Amu both died in the month of February. Giwa-Amu died on Monday February 18, 2008, in an automobile accident between Abuja and Kaduna, following a tire burst to the vehicle in which he was riding.

He was to deliver a lecture at the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, (AFCSC), in Jaji, Kaduna State and reportedly opted to ride in the Toyota Coaster bus conveying other officers and men to the lecture, while his staff car, drove behind. Of all the 18 occupants of the said bus, Giwa-Amu was the singular casualty. Gabriel Giwa-Amu, an attorney and brother to Solomon Giwa-Amu, sustained inquisition into this riddle for several years. Yes, there was a deep cut in Solomon Giwa-Amu’s head, according to family members, but there was no physical wound of any kind on his body.

There were suspicions that Giwa-Amu’s ever rising profile, troubled not a few interests in the army. Recall his fears about possible peer jealousies to which I earlier alluded. He was just 49 when he passed. He would have been 66 this year and would have been long retired from active service. I attended his final rites of passage and interment in his private residence, in Sabongida-Ora. He had four children with his beloved wife, Judith. Jemitola turned 63 on Christmas day last December 25. Like many retirees, golfing appealed to him. He could play the game anytime of the day, keep fit and stay in the company of friends. He slumped and passed at the IBB Golf Club, Abuja the morning of Thursday February 6, 2025, after playing the game. He had two children, Caleb and Iman, with Josephine, his erstwhile wife.

So sad Nigeria has lost the sheer quality, the multidimensional reservoir of institutional memory embedded in the persons of Major General Christopher Adewole Jemitola and Brigadier General Solomon Uangaboje Giwa-Amu. Their wisdoms would, without doubt, have served Nigeria positively, especially in the security and military ecosystem to which they devoted decades of their shortlived lives. People like them should be resource persons in the many academies, centres, colleges and institutes of the Nigerian military. They should today be Emeritus instructors in: Civilian/military relations; Sustenance of military professionalism in a democratic dispensation; Ensuring inter-service collaboration between sister security departments in a democracy, and so on. We pray God to grant sweet repose to their souls, even as we entrust their families to the eternal care of God the Almighty.

*Tunde Olusunle, PhD, Fellow of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA), is an Adjunct Professor in the Centre for Creative Writing, University of Abuja*

By Sonny Aragba-Akpore.

By Wednesday December 11,2024 the National electricity grid had recorded 12 collapses within the year thus accounting for an average of one per month.

Apart from millions of customers whose homes and offices were cut off electricity supplies, many corporate organizations including telecommunications network providers, manufacturers among others had to cope with the situation making do with their more reliable alternatives which had become more regular than the national grid.
With a paltry 5,000 megawatts of electricity supply by the generating companies (gencos), for the nearly 250 million population, millions of people including corporate bodies have resigned to fate.
Resort to alternative sources of power supplies including renewable energy, solar and heavy duty generators have become a way of life.
Only recently, government officials announced that a tariff hike of upto 65% was underway,a situation the Manufacturing Association of Nigeria (MAN) frowns at saying this will further compound costs of doing business in general.
Director-General of MAN, Mr Segun Ajayi-Kadir, expressed serious concern in a statement issued in Lagos saying the frequent increases do not meet quality of service.

Ajayi-Kadir stressed that electricity is a crucial input in manufacturing, significantly affecting production costs and product prices.
He emphasised that no nation could achieve substantial industrial development without ensuring energy security.

According to him, any increase in tariff will harm the competitiveness of Nigerian products and businesses.

He warned that the such would worsen production costs, intensify inflationary pressure, and further reduce consumers’ disposable income.
Ajayi-Kadir added that it would increase manufacturers’ unsold inventory, erode profit margins, raise unemployment, and force more private businesses to shut down.

“It was due to the critical role of energy security in Nigeria’s industrial aspirations that the power sector was privatised in 2013. Unfortunately, this privatisation has not delivered the expected results.
But for telecommunications operators,it’s a tale of woes as power supplies account for about 40% of the operating expenditure (OPEX) as critical as equipment because even if equipment is available and no electricity supply to power them,quality of service suffers especially when there is down time.
Nigeria’s unstable electricity grid significantly contributes to telcos’ need for backup diesel generators, further increasing their energy expenses.
Recent reports indicate that Nigerian telecommunication companies (telcos) spend a significant amount on electricity, with estimates suggesting their monthly energy bill can reach up to N56 billion primarily due to reliance on diesel generators to power their network towers, as they often face unreliable grid access; many telcos are now actively exploring renewable energy options to reduce costs.

A major portion of telco electricity expenses is attributed to diesel consumption to power their base stations, with some reports stating that large operators like MTN can spend over N30 billion per month on diesel alone.
To mitigate high energy costs, many telcos are actively investigating and implementing renewable energy solutions like solar and wind power to reduce their reliance on diesel.

For telcos to be Successful and profitable there should be operational efficiency especially of the infrastructure companies or owned infrastructure.

About 40%, if not more , of the operational challenges of the infrastructure companies or operator owned and managed infrastructure is in the cost of energy : diesel or gas, or renewables.
Analysts reason that how the industry is able to survive the cost and access to energy supply, especially for the infracos in a safe and sustainable manner, is the solution that must be tackled in the long run for sustainability of the industry in its oprations, user experience and profitability.
One analyst said there are several generic intervention initiatives by government, local and foreign development agencies and financial institutions, including some commercial banks in the energy sector, especially aimed at promoting renewable energy supply and usage in support of the operational and cost efficiencies of the target sectors.

“These well-intentioned initiatives have been customised in some instances
such as the government policy of energy for the health sector (energise health) or energy for education (energise education) initiatives.”
“These commendable policies work to provide renewable energy solutions to institutions such as primary health centres, Universities, University Teaching Hospitals and Federal Medical Centres that are generally limited, discretionary, tied to yearly budgets of government, most times apply to federal institutions, and lack maintainance and sustainability instruments.”

Telecommunications sector contributes more than 15% to Nigeria’s GDP and is entirely private sector driven but has an impact on all growth and development direction of the country and because it is perceived as a private sector commercially profitable business there has never been any deliberate intervention to address the critical component of the cost and quality of energy supply to the sector.

Perhaps because of its ubiquitous nature and lack of knowledge of the structure of the sector, there was never an attempt to isolate and address this subject.

Yet the ability of the sector to continue its impact on national growth and development is tied to availability and affordability of energy sustainably.
The country’s telecoms sector, with around 154 mobile subscribers, needs a significant amount of energy. It relies on over 40 million litres of diesel per month, and 34,862 towers in 2022 were dependent on diesel generators due to unreliable grid power.

As more people come online, telcos need more power. Monthly internet usage increased by 579.39 percent from 125,149.86 terabytes (TB) in December 2019 to 850,249.09 TB in September 2024. The amount of energy needed to power data traffic is around 0.17 kWh globally.

However, GSMA noted that it is 0.24 kWh per GB, reflecting the lower energy efficiency of networks on the continent.
According to the Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), diesel accounts for 35 percent of telecoms’ operating expenses. In October, the average cost of a litre of diesel was N1441.28, meaning telcos spent at least N57.65 billion.
As of the end of 2022, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said there were 34,862 towers and 127,294 base stations in the country. According to industry sources, each base station has two generators. The telecoms industry spent N2.09 trillion on operational costs in 2022, based on the last data uploaded by the NCC.

Gbenga Adebayo, Chairman of ALTON, confirmed the current diesel consumption, stating, “It will be over that now.” According to Harmanpreet Dhillon, Airtel Nigeria’s chief technical officer, the telco spent N28 billion on diesel in May 2024.

During a media roundtable, Dhillon said that the company was exploring hybrid solutions—lithium batteries and solar—to lower its energy bill.
Experts recently noted that companies could save up to 30 percent on energy costs by adopting renewable energy solutions and other technologies.

“The biggest constraint in the telecom industry is high energy cost. If the government had continued to fulfill its part of the bargain it made in the early 2,000s to provide 18 hours of electricity, the heavy logistics and the capital we spend today from powering sites would not be there,” said Adebayo of ALTON.
By January 13, 2025, Nigeria could boast of 23 power-generating plants that are connected to the national grid. These plants are known as generation companies (GenCos).

Some examples of GenCos in Nigeria include Egbin Power Plc: Located at Egbin Power Station, Egbin Town, Ikorodu, Lagos State
First Independent Power Limited: Located in Trans-Amadi Port-Harcourt, Afam, Omoku, and Eleme
Geregu Power Plc: Located on Itobe Ajaokuta expressway, Kogi State
Other power companies in Nigeria are Mainstream Energy Solutions Limited, Sapele Power Plc (SPP), and Transcorp Power Limited.

They are managed by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) a body responsible for managing the electricity transmission network in Nigeria. The TCN is fully owned and operated by the government.

In 2024, the power generation capacity in Nigeria was 5,528 megawatts (MW). This was an increase of 30% from the average generation capacity of 4,100 MW in 2023.

There are 11 distribution companies in Nigeria.These include Enugu Electricity Distribution Plc. (EEDC): One of the 11 distribution companies in Nigeria
Jos Electricity Distribution Company Plc: An indigenous electricity company that distributes and sells electricity ,
Kano Electricity Distribution Plc (KEDCO): A distribution company in the north-western geopolitical zone of Nigeria ,
Yola Electricity Distribution Company Plc (YEDC): A distribution company that supplies energy to Adamawa, Taraba, Borno, and Yobe states
BEDC Electricity PLC is a distribution company that supplies electricity to a wide range of customers in Southern Nigeria

These companies are supplied with electric energy by the transmission companies on a daily basis.