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Food for Living: You Are the Remote Control of Your Life
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By Henry Ukazu
Greetings Destiny Friends,
In less than two weeks, the year 2020 will fizzle out, paving the way for the grand entry of the year 2021. Without mincing words, the year 202O came with its share of mixed feelings; to some it was a blessing and to others, a total disaster.
One thing about life however, is its unpredictable nature; sometimes it offers opportunities, and at other times, it disappoints. Howbeit, no one can deny the fact that it gives you back what you give to her. Life is just like a computer; it is garbage in, garbage out.
As the year gradually comes to an end, it still remains a two way traffic where some are regretting and some are celebrating. At stocktaking time such as this, we need to ask ourselves how well we spent the last eleven months. Did you try to add value to your life in any form? Did you learn any new skill? Did you join any professional association or organization? Did you network with any resourceful mind? Were you able to graduate despite challenges? Did you begin any business, school or work? The list is literally endless. What most people fail to understand is that in life, there’s a seed time and harvest time. While most people are lamenting like Jeremiah in the book of life, others are rejoicing and harvesting. You can’t do nothing from January to November and expect a sudden miracle in December.
We are the architect as well as the masterpiece of our own lives. Nobody can design our life more than us. We have the remote control of our lives. We are the compass of our lives; we are the rudder of our lives. But it’s sad to note that sometimes, we give up on our most precious asset – choice. We all have the power to decide the music and tone of our life and not the one the world plays for us. When you refuse to live your life, you are inadvertently giving other people the opportunity to live your life for you.
Do you wish to know how powerful a remote control can be? A remote control plays many roles, it changes the channel of a television, it controls the volume, it pauses the music, it can rewind and fast-forward. It can even record. A remote control literally plays the role you assign to it, all it requests from you is to make sure it has a functional battery. Let’s juxtapose the remote with our life. Sometimes, we put our life on hold due to setbacks and life challenges. Do you know that nobody likes to associate with people who give excuses, people who are poor, people who have little or no value to offer, etc. No matter what your storyline is, please stand up, dust yourself up and move on. Trust me, nobody cares about your drama.
We all have experienced those hurtful, frustrating, offensive, manipulative people in our lives, and we have the control to change the channel to something else. Question: Are you willing to use your remote (brain) to focus on proactive ideas?
How can you remote-control your life?
Learn to change the channel by looking at the good things of life, quit looking at the pains you felt, change the channel to joy by remembering the good things that happened to you.
Forgive Yourself and Forgive Others
As human beings, it’s normal to always remember the harm that was done to you as opposed to the gains. There was a story of two friends (Mr. A & B) who were travelling. They had a misunderstanding along the way, Mr. A slapped Mr. B, Mr. B wrote it on the sand; Mr. A slapped me. As they approached a river, Mr. A crossed the river, but Mr. B was a having a difficult time and was losing balance, Mr. A quickly assisted him and when they got to the shore, Mr. B wrote on the rock, Mr. A saved my life. Mr. A asked Mr. B why he wrote on the sand when he was slapped, and when he helped him cross the river, he wrote on the rock, Mr. A replied, when someone hurt you, write it on the sand because the water will wash it away , but when someone does you a favour, write it on the rock or in your heart where you won’t forget it.
Be Grateful
As humans, we always fall into the habit of reliving sad memories instead of good memories. We fail to understand that emotions hold us back, especially when we look back. Instead of having those sad memories how about you remembering all the miracles you experienced and the difficulties you overcame. For example, when you had no money, when you had no job, when you were lonely and desolate, when you were sick or received a bad medical report, which God healed you of, when you were saved from a terrible accident, when you had a baby despite several miscarriage etc. Moral: Quit having a memorial event in your mind and celebrate each victory and make it a memorial anniversary by telling your children the stories of God’s goodness.
Guard Your Space
As the owner of your remote, you can decide who comes into your space. Decide what behaviors and lifestyle you can accommodate. By so doing, you are remote controlling your life to the channel you wish to see. This helps to give you sanity of mind.
Boundaries are not set with the intention of changing other people. They may change how people interact with you, but they are more about enforcing your needs than attempting to change the general behavior and attitude of others. To make these boundaries work for you, you need to understand your needs and what you are looking at changing.
In conclusion, imagine your brain as the remote control of your life. What do you store in your brain, and what channel are you willing to watch?
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He’s a mindset coach and transformational coach. 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
The tales of woe over the deplorable state of roads in Edo are not limited to commuters in transit on the linking highways in the State, as residents of Benin City, the capital, also groan as most intra-city roads have become deplorable.
Most hit are roads within the Government Reserved Areas (GRA), which were constructed decades ago without any visible rehabilitation work done by successive governments in the state.
But more appalling is the condition of the Oba Ovoranmen Square, otherwise known as Ring Road, which, in recent months, has become an eyesore with potholes and deep craters, with the residents of the metropolitan city calling on Governor Monday Okpebholo to rescue the city centre.
From the Mission Road, Oba Market Road and Plymouth Road entries to the Ring Road, it has become a herculean task for commuters using the square as they meander through the numerous potholes that have almost rendered the city centre impassable.
The situation is indescribable, especially in the early hours of the day when workers struggle to get to work and late in the evening, when the workers and traders close for the day.
Besides, commercial drivers that were previously barred from dropping and picking up passengers at the Kings Square have turned the place into a motor park, just as the rains have not helped matters either, as vehicles break down in the potholes that are usually covered by erosion.
In the GRA, Ihama Road by the House of Assembly Quarters remains impassable whenever it rains, while the Boundary Road towards Airport Road and Adesuwa Grammar School Road suffers the same fate whenever the rain falls.
Giwa Amu, Gapiona and other adjoining roads are also at the mercy of erosion as there are no drainages to take the overflow of water out of the GRA.
Gardens built around the King’s Square by former Governor Adams Oshiomhole have overgrown with weeds, even as hawkers are seen all over the place, turning all the walkways into extensions of their stores.
The National Museum, which used to be a point of attraction from any point of the King’s Square, has now become unkempt, overgrown with grass.
Some residents, who spoke with journalists over the deplorable state of the Ring Road, described its current state as a bad tale ahead of the Oba of Benin’s 10th coronation anniversary.
A resident, Mr. Osaro Idemudia, said: “We are not happy with the way the Ring Road is looking. Bus drivers are supposed to take passengers at the Central Park. Look at dirt everywhere.”
Another motorist, James Igie, said that “Kings Square represents the image of the State, and called on the government to attend to the situation promptly.
“It is sad that the Oba Ovoranmen Square is allowed to look dirty. This is not good, and we hope the government will address the situation.
For Solomon Aibangbee, a businessman, “in the last two weeks, the state of the roads in Edo State has been in the news all over the world. Passengers and motorists spend days passing through Edo State because of bad roads.
“As if that is not enough, you now add the roads within Benin City to the problems. Is Ring Road also a federal Road? I ask because that is the usual excuse we hear.” Aibangbee bemoaned
The Managing Director of Edo State Road Maintenance Agency, Engr. Felix Ibhade, said there are plans to fix the Ring Road.
Ibhade added that Governor Okpebholo had said that he would not want to do palliative work on the road but a full-scale asphalting rehabilitation.
“So we are on it. Our constraint is the rain because the majority of the roads we have given amelioration, the rain washed them up. So we are waiting for the rain to subside. That is the beauty of the town, and we don’t do it and after one month it will wear out. We will work in collaboration with the Ministry of Works because it is not going to be an easy job,” Ibhade admitted.
On his part, the Managing Director, Edo State Parks and Gardens Agency, Pastor Stanley Ighodaro, assured that Governor Okpebholo has shown commitment to beautify Benin City centre and other parts of the State.
The Federal government has released funds to clear the eight-month backlog of the Consolidated Academic Tools Allowance (CATA) owed to eligible academic staff in federal universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across the country.
The payment covers the period from January to August 2026, in what the Federal Government described as a further demonstration of its commitment to implementing approved agreements and improving the welfare of personnel in the education sector.
Minister of Education, Dr. Maruf Tunji Alausa, disclosed the development on Wednesday after inaugurating the Ministerial Committee on Accreditation.
A statement issued by the Director of Press and Public Relations in the Federal Ministry of Education, Folasade Boriowo, said the funds had been released for the payment of eligible academic staff across federal tertiary institutions.
According to the statement, all federal universities, polytechnics and colleges of education have been notified to commence payment to qualified academic personnel.
Alausa said the disbursement was being implemented in line with the 2025 Federal Government of Nigeria–Academic Staff Union of Universities (FGN-ASUU) Agreement, underscoring the government’s position that commitments reached with stakeholders in the education sector must be implemented.
The minister described the release as evidence of the Federal government’s commitment to implementing approved agreements while prioritising the welfare of education personnel.
While announcing the release for academic staff, Alausa also disclosed that the government was making arrangements for the payment of the corresponding allowance to non-academic staff in federal tertiary institutions. He said funding for the non-academic staff allowance was expected to be made available within the coming weeks.
The minister linked the payment to President Tinubu’s broader commitment to improving the welfare of workers in the education sector.
Alausa reaffirmed the administration’s determination to improve staff welfare, infrastructure and the overall quality of education under the Renewed Hope Agenda.
The 2025 FGN-ASUU agreement provides the framework under which the current CATA payment is being implemented, according to the Education Ministry.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has urged the Oba of Lagos, Oba Rilwan Babatunde Osuolale Aremu Akiolu, to caution politicians against divisive conduct as campaigns for the 2027 general elections intensify.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, made the appeal on Tuesday when he led officials of the commission on a courtesy visit to the monarch at Iga Idunganran on Lagos Island.
The visit was part of activities marking the conclusion of INEC’s South-West Zonal Readiness Assessment and Staff Interactive Session.
Amupitan urged the Oba to deploy his influence as a traditional ruler and father to politicians across party lines to encourage issue-based campaigns and discourage personal attacks, hate speech and inflammatory rhetoric.
He said: “We urge you, as a father to all politicians regardless of their party affiliations, to counsel them to focus on issues rather than insults. Let them debate policies, not personalities”.
The INEC chairman described traditional institutions as important pillars of peace and social cohesion, stressing that their influence was critical to ensuring a peaceful electoral process.
According to him, while INEC is deploying technology to strengthen the electoral process, technological innovations alone cannot guarantee peaceful and credible elections without the cooperation of citizens and traditional institutions.
He appealed to the Oba of Lagos and the Lagos Traditional Council to support the commission in mobilising residents to participate actively in the electoral process.
Amupitan said the National Register of Voters was fast approaching 100 million, adding that managing the electoral process across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory required not only technical preparedness but also the cooperation and moral support of traditional institutions.
According to him, traditional rulers remained enduring anchors of their communities, whose influence extended beyond political parties and electoral cycles.
The INEC chairman sought the monarch’s support in encouraging eligible residents to complete their voter registration and collect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).
