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Bad Governance: Mbaka Asks Buhari to Apologise to Nigerians
Ejike Mbaka, a Catholic priest, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to apologise to Nigerians for bad governance.
In his homily on Sunday, the spiritual director of Adoration Ministry, Enugu, Nigeria (AMEN), said the recent #EndSARS protest was not just against police brutality but also bad governance.
“The living government needs to apologise, and they should also apologise for the errors of past governments,” he said in a message entitled, ‘Impure heart’.
The Catholic priest was Buhari’s cheerleader when he contested for president in 2015.
In an address entitled, ‘From good luck (in mockery of former president Goodluck Jonathan) to bad luck’, he said Buhari was the “saviour” Nigeria needed and asked Nigerians to vote for him.
Shortly after the president was elected, he hosted Mbaka in Abuja, describing him as a “man of courage”.
In his latest sermon, however, Mbaka said the president has surrounded himself with “criminals” and “hooligans”.
“Buhari, who could have been a solution to this, succeeded in encircling himself with criminals and hooligans, people who do not just tell him lies, but rather, they magnify lies and feed him!” he said.
“This is not about #EndSARS or IPOB. Nobody is fighting any government, we are fighting bad governance. “This country can never be the same again!
“Did you expect these young men to keep watching the country being swindled and looted dry by the so-called leaders?
“Some of the young men, who are now fast getting old, had started working for the criminals in authority, hooligans in power, since they were very young.
“I know that by the time some of the leaders listen to this message, they will begin to attack Fr. Mbaka. But that is their headache, not mine. One day, enough will be enough. Look at crime upon crime.
“The people that you have not given jobs, you have not given food, you have not given security, housing, power; and they have no food to eat nor water to drink; no quality hospital and no good roads, among others, and they had endured all the while.
“Just one day that they came out to say they are not happy, you began to kill them. And after killing them, you carry their corpses and dump inside rivers and valleys? Nigeria can never be the same again!”
The priest added that the “hooligans in power” think that “the world is their home,” accusing them of looting Nigeria’s common wealth.
“They have acquired houses and other possessions in Abuja and other areas within and outside the country, with our wealth, but they cannot be wise to build good industries to provide jobs for our growing youths. That is my worry,” he said.
“Our leaders seem to be reaping the seeds that they had planted. When somebody that you had not given job comes out to say that he is hungry and angry, it was you that attracted such protest, in the first place.”
TheCable
World-renowned boxer Anthony Joshua on Monday survived a ghastly road accident in Makun, Ogun State.
Eyewitnesses report that the incident occurred along a busy highway of the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
The vehicle carrying Joshua, a Lexus Jeep with the number plate, KRD 850 HN, reportedly collided with a stationary truck under circumstances that are still being investigated.
Joshua reportedly sustained minor injuries, while two persons were said to have died on the spot.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has cautioned that any attempt to hurriedly re‑gazette Nigeria’s new tax laws could undermine parliamentary oversight and set a dangerous constitutional precedent.
Atiku’s warning follows public scrutiny over reports that the Tax Reform Acts signed by President Bola Tinubu differ from the versions passed by the National Assembly. Lawmakers, including Abdussamad Dasuki, raised concerns that the alterations could pose serious legal and constitutional risks, noting that they were not backed by any constitutional framework.
In a statement on X, Atiku said the directive to re-gazette the Acts effectively confirms “that the gazetted version of the Tinubu Tax Act does not reflect what was duly passed by the National Assembly,” calling it “a grave constitutional issue.”
He emphasized that under Section 58 of the 1999 Constitution, a bill only becomes law after passage by both chambers, presidential assent, and gazetting.
“Gazetting is merely an administrative act of publication. It does not create, amend, or validate a law,” Atiku said, adding that any post-passage insertion, deletion, or modification without legislative approval constitutes forgery rather than a clerical error.
Atiku further warned that rushing a re-gazetting while legislative investigations are ongoing “undermines parliamentary oversight and sets a dangerous precedent,” stressing that the only lawful approach is “fresh legislative consideration, re-passage by both chambers, fresh presidential assent, and proper gazetting.”
The former vice president clarified that his position is not opposition to tax reform but a defence of constitutional order.
“This is a defence of the integrity of the legislative process and a rejection of any attempt to normalise constitutional breaches through procedural shortcuts,” he said.
The Federal government has denied wrongdoing, insisting the laws will take effect as scheduled on January 1, 2026, while the National Assembly has directed the issuance of Certified True Copies of the Acts to ensure clarity and accuracy.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, the Labour Party (LP) Presidential Candidate in the 2023 elections, Mr. Peter Obi, is set to formally join the African Democratic Congress (ADC) on December 31, 2025.
The development would put to rest months of speculation about where the former Governor of Anambra State would pitch his tent in the coming elections.
Reports claim that Obi would be defecting with serving senators and other lawmakers elected on the platform of the LP, as well as remnants of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) in the South East region.
Specifically, Obi would be defecting alongside the Senator representing Anambra Central, Victor Umeh; that of Anambra North, Tony Nwoye; Abia South, Enyinnaya Abaribe; PDP chieftain Ben Obi; and members of the Obidient movement in the region.
It is not clear if the Abia State governor, Alex Otti, is part of the planned movement to the ADC.
The governor was recently approached by the PDP to join the party and re-contest his current position in 2027.
Further reports quoted Obi’s spokesperson, Valentine Obienyem, as confirming the planned defection of his boss to the ADC.
“Yes, it is true,” he reportedly said on Sunday.
Senator Umeh said the event would hold in Enugu, adding that it would involve all Obi’s supporters across the South East region.
“They will come from Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi and Imo states to join those in Enugu, where this exercise will hold on 31st December,” he reportedly added.
Sources hinted that Obi, who has not hidden his intention to appear on the ballot in 2027, would contest the presidential ticket of the ADC.
On his part, Chief Chekwas Okorie, reportedly said that the expected formal defection of Obi to the ADC is a healthy development that could reshape the thinking and permutations of the 2027 general elections.
“I imagine that he would be defecting along with most of his associates and followers. I believe that a fortified and strong ADC will add value to the opposition and assuage the general fear of a possible one-party option to Nigerians come 2027. The APC, ADC and possibly the PDP locking horns in the 2027 democratic encounter promises a vibrant and robust electioneering campaign that will provide Nigerians the required options to make informed choices in electing their preferred leaders at all levels. I imagine that the APC leadership will return to the drawing table to map out the strategy to confront the emerging challenge. Nigerians are in interesting times,” Okorie stated.
National President of Njiko Igbo Forum (NIF), Rev Okechukwu Obioha, vouched support for Obi to ensure he reaches the pinnacle of his political career. He, however, cautioned that the ADC should not compromise merit and integrity in the choice of its presidential candidate, stressing that Obi remains the “hope for the restoration of the country on the path of greatness.”
