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Food for Living: Stand Out
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
It’s a fact of life that everyone desires to be the best in whatever they do. Nobody wants to take the second position. Also, everyone loves the best person in any field whether it relates to health, law, artisanship, or pastoral calling. Let’s take for example; if you are sick, won’t you go to the best doctor that has the capacity to cure you? Will you say because he’s black, white, has an accent, or doesn’t look like you, for that reason, he/she won’t treat you? I guess your answer is as good as mine if you truly want to live. The reason you will require the best doctor is that you know he/she has been pronounced the best in that field. What does that tell you? It simply means he or she is unique. If you’ll agree with me, the beauty of life is originality. Or if you have a legal case that can land you in prison, won’t you go for the best lawyer if you can afford him/her? The same principle is applicable if you are interested in a skilled worker, you will go for the best without sentiment.
If you truly want to make an impact in life, you must stand out from the crowd. Standing out from the crowd is not easy, especially when you have many people struggling for your attention. But the truth is that, if you truly want to see your dreams come true, you must dare to succeed by thinking like a rational entrepreneur. According to Oscar Wilde, “Be yourself everyone is taken”.
When you decide to stand out, you’ll have many voices telling you no, hold on, you can’t make it, what are you thinking, etc. But if you really know yourself, you wouldn’t care much about what other people say because their voices and opinion don’t define you. Yes, you will hear them, but at the end of the day, you’ll be rational in making the final decision when you compare their advice and you know and feel inside of you. Trust me, if the whole world is telling you, you can something, and you know you can’t do it, you’ll fail, but if the whole world is telling you, you can’t do it and you know you can do it, you’ll succeed because he that is in you is greater than he that is in the world.
The blessings of standing out are priceless. What most people don’t know is that you can stand out without making noise, and you can command respect as opposed to seeking attention when you create a niche for yourself. When you decide to stand out, you’ll make news, not noise; you’ll attract respect as opposed to attention; you’ll appreciate love as opposed to romance; you’ll be strategic as opposed to being erratic; you’ll persuade people to believe in your ideology as opposed to arguing with them; you’ll not dominate people, rather you’ll empower them with self-confidence; you won’t follow the bandwagon because they may not be right, and most especially, you’ll seek loyalty, not royalty.
In order to stand out, you must be courageous because people may not believe you, they might even call you names or laugh at you, that’s okay. Just know that according to Mokokoma Mokhonoana, “plants are more courageous than almost all human being, an orange tree would rather die than produce lemons, whereas instead of dying the average person would rather be someone they are not.” Most people are lazy to fight for the cause they believe in.
Global achievers who have distinguished themselves stood out for what they believe. They were once victims of greater circumstances, but they never gave up. They stood their ground for their convictions. A typical example of such a great leader is the former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela fought against the apartheid laws in South Africa and he was even imprisoned for twenty-seven years. One major reason why he won the election was that the electorates believed in the cause he was fighting for.
Standing out makes your life easier, it helps original people to identify with you, but when you try to fake your personality, your true helpers will have a hard time locating you. When you stand out, your true color shines. According to Israelmore Ayivor, “If you want to miss your crown, follow the crowd. If you want to wear the crown, go alone and be yourself.”
It should be noted if you don’t stand for something, you will die for nothing. Can you imagine, if you are to leave the world today, what will you be remembered for? In this contemporary age of technology, it is very easy to decipher what a person stands for by just using a simple google search. You can also use social media to find out someone’s interest.
When you stand out, you’ll be regarded as a specialist in your field. When you stand out, you’ll endeavor to be consistent in your thoughts, words, actions. But you when you decide to play to the gallery, it won’t take time for your true colour to manifest when the vicissitudes of life hit you.
If you are passionate about a cause, you can use social media to build a platform, you can have a website, you will find it easy to collaborate and build a partnership with like minds, you’ll be authentic in your message and what you represent. This is because no one thinks exactly like you. Do you know if you decide to dance on social media, teach, entertain people, or even preach on social media, you’ll attract the right audience provided you are international and deliberate? This is one reason some people attract attention on social media; they are living their best authentic lives.
Today, I ask you, what are you willing to stand out for?
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He’s a mindset coach and public speaker. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the author of the acclaimed book Design Your Destiny – Actualizing Your Birthright To Success and President of gloemi.com. He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Chief Dele Momodu, has said no political permutation will save President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election, insisting that widespread hunger and hardship will determine the outcome.
Momodu stated this on Thursday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today, anchored by Seun Okinbaloye.
According to him, Nigerians across all regions and ethnic lines are united by economic hardship, which no amount of money or political calculation can overcome.
“The common factor now is the hunger in the land. No permutation can beat hunger. The Yorubas are suffering, the Hausas are suffering, the Igbos are suffering, everybody is suffering,” he said.
He argued that President Tinubu cannot buy the entire country, even if he was able to deploy money effectively in Lagos State politics in the past.
“Tinubu believes he can buy the whole of Nigeria, but my personal belief is that if he could buy the whole of Lagos, I doubt if he can use money to buy the whole of Nigeria,” Momodu stated.
The Ovation Publisher said Nigerians had become wiser and would collect any money offered to them during elections but still vote according to their conscience.
He cited the Osun State governorship election as a case study, noting that, despite the huge funds allegedly deployed, the people voted for Governor Ademola Adeleke.
“And a lot of people will take the money like they took it in Osun State. People’s eyes are wide open now. They brought a lot of money to Osun State, but they still lost the election to Ademola Adeleke,” he said.
Momodu also recalled that Tinubu lost Lagos State to Mr Peter Obi of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, which he said proves that incumbency and financial muscle do not guarantee victory.
He maintained that President Tinubu would not win in 2027, claiming that many Nigerians could not imagine a second term for the administration.
“If you ask an average Nigerian today, do you trust Tinubu to conduct a free and fair election? 90 per cent will say no. Nobody trusts Tinubu, including his own supporters,” Momodu said.
On the detention of former Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, Momodu described him as a “prisoner of conscience” who is being persecuted because of his political influence.
“Nasir El-Rufai is a lion. They caged him because he is a lion. Even when a lion is caged, it is still a lion. They want him locked up until after 2027 because they fear his influence,” he said.
He disclosed that El-Rufai’s appointment as Deputy Chairman of the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council was in honour of his sacrifice and resilience.
“It is a way of honouring his sacrifice because his travails are quite political in nature. That is why Nasir has become a prisoner of conscience. He is in the hands of a government that he helped to midwife,” Momodu added.
He said the 2027 election would be a referendum on hunger, hardship and governance, and not on political permutations.
Meanwhile, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital Communications, Engagement and New Media Strategy, O’tega Ogra, has faulted Momodu’s comments.
Reacting to the interview, Ogra accused the opposition of embracing “perpetual negativity” and opposing government policies without objective assessment.
He said Momodu’s assertion ignored ongoing reforms and improvements recorded in key economic indicators, including foreign reserves, power generation and inflation management.
Ogra urged opposition figures to offer constructive criticism rather than painting a picture of total failure, stressing that President Tinubu would ultimately be judged by his reforms and track record.
The Tribune
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has denied asking Nigerians living in the United Kingdom to abandon relatives who depend on them for financial support, saying his message about hardship in Nigeria was distorted by political opponents.
Obi said he appreciates Nigerians in the Diaspora who make sacrifices to support their families at home, stressing that his concern is the country’s dependence on remittances to meet basic needs.
In a statement titled; “My Message Has Been Twisted”, posted on X on Tuesday, the former Governor of Anambra State clarified that he never asked Nigerians abroad to stop supporting their loved ones.
“I deeply appreciate Nigerians in the diaspora who work tirelessly and make enormous sacrifices to support their families back home,” he said.
“Their remittances pay for school fees, hospital bills, rent, and feeding expenses. Their patriotism and sacrifices deserve our profound respect. I never asked them to abandon their loved ones.”
Obi said his message was aimed at drawing attention to the economic conditions forcing millions of Nigerians to rely on relatives abroad for their survival.
“My concern is that Nigeria should not remain a country where millions depend on relatives abroad for basic survival,” he said.
“Our goal must be to build a nation that provides jobs, affordable healthcare, quality education, and economic opportunities for its citizens.”
He accused political opponents of misrepresenting his comments, insisting that his position is about addressing the causes of hardship rather than discouraging financial assistance to families.
“Political opponents may twist my message, but the truth remains clear: I am not asking Nigerians abroad to abandon their families. I am advocating for a Nigeria that will no longer abandon its own people,” he said.
The clarification followed backlash over comments Obi made during a town hall meeting with Diaspora supporters in Manchester on Sunday.
In a video that went viral, Obi urged Nigerians in the UK to think twice before giving money to relatives and others at home who ask them for financial assistance, arguing that such support could ease hardship without addressing its underlying causes.
“You have people at home in Nigeria today who are begging you for money. Tell them no!” he said.
Obi attributed the country’s economic difficulties to poor leadership, urging Nigerians abroad to encourage their relatives and friends at home to vote for leaders who would prioritise productivity and economic opportunities.
The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, has dismissed the EFCC’s appeal and affirmed the ₦12 million compensation awarded to Dr. Monday Ubani, SAN, for his unlawful 21-day detention in 2019. The court also awarded ₦300,000 in costs against the Commission.
Ubani was detained after securing administrative bail for a client accused of jumping bail. Despite a court order directing the EFCC to release him conditionally or charge him with any alleged offence, the Commission failed to comply, prompting his lawyer, Chief Professor Mike Ozekhome, to institute a fundamental rights action in his favour.
On January 5, 2022, the Abuja High Court, presided over by Justice Sylvanus Oriji, ruled in Ubani’s favour. The EFCC appealed, challenging the trial court’s jurisdiction and the amount of compensation awarded.
In dismissing the appeal, the Court of Appeal rejected both arguments, holding that the compensation was justified and that the EFCC’s investigative powers do not permit arbitrary detention or disobedience of court orders.
The judgment reaffirms that law enforcement agencies remain subject to the Constitution and judicial authority. It also underscores the protection of fundamental rights, the limits of law enforcement powers and the consequences of unlawful detention.
Beyond the financial award, the decision highlights the responsibilities of sureties and the obligation of security agencies to obey court orders, making it a potentially significant reference in future fundamental rights litigation.
