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Opinion: Zero As a Nation, Hero As Great Nation
By Tolulope A. Adegoke
“It takes rising up to the call(s) of destiny for any group or individuals of any nation or community(s) to reach the destination of their quality state! You cannot change the world that you live in until you change yourself from within! You can get up, yes! You must get up! Be inspired! Be responsible!” – Tolulope A. Adegoke
Here, we shall be painting Japan of the year 1945 after the Second World War as a picture of a Zero on the descriptive canvass of a nation, but her story didn’t end there. The Second World War started in 1935 and ended in the year 1945 as a result of the political and military intervention of the United States of America who formally adopted the policy of Isolationism. Her involvement before the war was mere economic participation; through which she was able to accrue financial strength for herself in building what was needed for her global recognition. During the war, Germany, Italy and Japan wanted to form a “tripartite policy” so as to have hegemony over all nations of the world. Germany under Adolf Hitler wanted to have total control over Europe; Italy under Benito Mussolini wanted to control entire Africa, while Japan intended to take over the whole of Asia. However, Adolf Hitler of Germany and Benito Mussolini were eventually conquered while Japan was ordered to step down so as to end the war, but she remained adamant (stiff-necked); The United States of America saw this as a threat to their global intentions because Britain and France had been weakened as a result of the war. America, therefore, took the responsibility of participating in the Second World War politically and militarily by launching the ‘Weapon of Mass Destruction’ against Japan. Japan’s two largest economic cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed to the ground which recorded countless of lives and properties that were lost. The effect of Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing by the United States of America is still real till date on the Japanese to show the extent of the destruction of the former popular and fertile land into deserts (Zero).
In the early 2000s of the 21st century, the Prime Minister of Japan at the anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing said: “If they gave Japan enough time to move her people, they can bomb Japan anyhow they like, and even, if they put Japan in the desert, they would rebuild Japan to the second-largest economy in the world in a short time.”
Japan is an example of a nation that does not have enough steel to produce bonnets, they do not have enough silicon to produce side-mirrors, and Japan does not have rubber to produce steering-wheels but Japan is the highest exporter of cars in the world. Where am I driving at, Japan rose up to be responsible from Zero, despite the odds and pains to climbing the ladder of being a global Hero among nations of the world against all odds of being crushed to a Zero. Every Zero has a bounce-back power if dutifully worked upon. The wealth of any nation, therefore, will not be found under the feet of its people but in-between their “ears” i.e. the contents of their brain and character (applicability capacity)!
Life is the undeniable mysterious (powerful) gift given to man by God embedded with so many hidden treasures…its usage (maximization) is up to us (Man), but only the deeds of men pollutes it! There is always a reason for doing something and a reason not to doing it…it is called ‘EXCUSE’. It is God’s duty to deposit valuables, treasures in the form of talents, potentials or gifts into our Earthen vessels, but it is left to us as individuals to search very deep with the true light for its unveiling, utilization and maximization to our own advantages for His (God Almighty) glory.
Nigeria as a nation fits into this context described above in order to re-orientate her leadership and followership, especially the young ones via this blatant truth in the utmost reality of existence and living. It is important to state clearly that the wealth of Nigeria is not in the Niger-Delta (South-South region), the wealth of Nigeria is not anywhere in the ground, neither is oil our wealth, it is none of the mineral resources that we have around us, but it is the people that you can see around, right where you are…We are the wealth of Nigeria, because in us lies the grace, splendour and prowess to harness and utilize those mineral resources and one another to meeting the sure demand of the Creator! The so-called natural resources that we so much crave for under the ground are not really the ‘true resources’, but the remnant i.e. the left-over qualities of the untapped ‘divin-istic treasure’ of those that died before their time with their treasure in them… These ones did not die empty! A working resource(s) is the quality treasure(s) that is encrypted in a living bodily sized being called Man, located in-between his two ears (his brain)! These treasures that were given to Him by God is unlimited because he was created for specific purposes towards meeting needs, thereby delivering possibilities (beyond the norm) of Peoples, Corporates and Nations. The human brain is a mysterious (powerful) biological machine through which we can connect our heart(s) to the supernatural. We must therefore, be determined, and be prepared to die empty by exhausting the treasures that lies within us for the glory of God Almighty and the betterment of mankind and its environment).
When a man prays to God for money, God gives him a downpour of ideas that would turn his destiny around, then connect him with fellow men who were created to chart causes that are Earthly or supernaturally related to the fulfilment of the desired purposes of these ideas…These people are called helpers of destinies!
The more we pray to God for solutions, God sends another man in form of babies who are carriers of divine solutions via divine order or inspires, reveals and illuminate another grown man with the relevant and required capacity to fulfil the solution in an active and visible manifestation! The more man fails due to Earthly distractions or forces, He sends another man to replace and function in His desired intentions. God is never in a shock as a result of man’s failures or loopholes…He always has alternatives prepared to continue the missions of delivery(s) of purpose(s).
We ensure that we per time carry within us this mentality that ‘we are the wealth our generation(s), located at a specific geographical area for the divine purpose(s) of fulfilling a divine mandate all to the glory of God and for the reliefs of men from grieves and agonies and pains. Your nation(s) needs your endowments to be engaged for her to prosper, without you there will always be loopholes in that specific area of your calling(s) as a result of your refusal to yielding to it! I charge you now, to rise up to your divine calling(s). And it is then; you can end up a LEGEND (Hero)! You can only take control (charge) of your gifts…Do not die a Zero! It is the gifts of a man that will make a way for him…he shall stand before kings and not mere men! This blatant fact is this; your nation will remain a Zero without your positive impacts! It takes rising up to the call(s) of destiny for any group or individuals of any nation or community(s) to reach the destination of their quality state! You cannot change the world that you live in, until you change yourself from within!
You can get up, yes!
You must get up!
Be inspired!
Be responsible!
Learn and Apply. Thank you!
Watch out for the Book titled: “The Power of an Empowered Zero” (From Zero to HERO) by Tolulope A. Adegoke. Foreword by Dr Yomi Garnett (CEO/Chancellor, Royal Biographical Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania U.S.A., U.K., Abuja, Nigeria.) Edited by Ola Aboderin.
The Oyo State High Court has granted the Peoples Democratic Party approval to proceed with its elective national convention scheduled for November 15–16, 2025, in Ibadan, the state capital.
The court also directed the Independent National Electoral Commission to attend and monitor the exercise, Channels TV reports.
Delivering the ruling, Justice A. L. Akintola issued an interim order permitting the party to continue its convention plans without obstruction.
The decision came after an ex-parte motion filed by Folahan Adelabi against the PDP, its Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum; Governor Umaru Fintiri, who heads the National Convention Organising Committee; and the INEC.
In his ruling on Monday, Justice Akintola held that the claimant presented a compelling case that warranted immediate judicial intervention.
“The motion ex-parte has merit and succeeds as prayed,” the judge ruled, granting temporary reliefs that safeguard the party’s schedule and direct all parties to allow the convention to proceed as planned.
The judge subsequently adjourned the hearing of the substantive motion for an interlocutory injunction till November 10, 2025.
The interim order, issued on November 3, 2025, was sealed by the Oyo State High Court and endorsed by its Principal Registrar, S. O. Hammed.
The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has released the passport of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan following outrage over what she described as an unlawful and politically motivated seizure of her travel documents at a Nigerian airport.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, was reportedly stopped by immigration officers on Tuesday morning, who withheld her passport without any official explanation.
The lawmaker, visibly frustrated, went live on social media to protest the action, accusing Senate President Godswill Akpabio of ordering the seizure.
“I have committed no offence and there is no order from the court to withhold my passport and deny me travelling. The last time this happened, the officer in charge told us that the Senate President, Godswin Akpabio instructed them to withhold my passport and prevent me from travelling because he said each time I travel out of the country, I spoil the country’s image by granting interviews out in international media.
“Please, can you tell them to release my passport and this embarrassment should stop? You have no right to withhold my passport.
“You have no right to deny me exit and entrance into my country. I have not committed any offence and this must stop. No, this must stop.
“As a matter of fact, I think I have to sue you for continuously embarrassing me. No, don’t tell me sorry. Can I please have my passport? You can’t keep doing this to me all the time,” she said.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, who was recently celebrated her second year in office, described the incident as a continuous pattern of harassment.
She noted that her passport had previously been seized under similar circumstances, only to be released after intervention from someone influential.
The female Senator said, “I’ve been standing here for the past 20 minutes. Why are you doing this? What have I committed? The last time it had to take someone influential to call you to release my passport. That was what allowed me travel.
“Now again, you’re withholding my passport while I’m making calls. Is Godswin Akpabio so important? Why is he overruling boundaries? Godswin Akpabio, the Senate President, has instructed the Comptroller General of Customs to deny me exit, to withhold my passport. This is wrong.
“Yes, I know I have two federal government cases against me, of which the president of Nigeria instructed the AGF to cancel the cases, to withdraw the cases.
“This president, Bola Tinubu, actually spoke with Godwin Akpabio to terminate all the cases against me because he admitted, he agreed that they were politically witch-hunting cases. So there is no reason why my passport should be withheld at the international airport.
“There is no reason why. You have no right to do that, madam. You have no right. You are taking laws into your hands. There is no court order. I have not missed any of my court appearances.
“I have attended all my court sessions. I am not a flight risk. I am not a risk to my country. So why are you treating me like a criminal? Can I have my passport, please? Thank you very much. Sometimes I think you just have to be a rebel to get things right. Then you keep asking Nigerians to be good citizens.
Minutes after her public protest gained traction online, the NIS reportedly bowed to pressure and released her passport.
“If I had not gone public, would you have given me my passport,” she added.
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Would You Rather I Travel with My Enemies’ Children, Wike Defends Traveling with Sons to Official Assignment
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has reacted to viral photos showing his sons accompanying him on local and foreign trips, saying he has the right to carry them along.
He argued that his sons, as master’s degree holders, need the exposure.
“What law says that my sons shouldn’t travel? Let the FCT say where they paid ₦1.
“What official matter? Did they sign any document? It doesn’t need to be a personal trip.
“What’s wrong? So, I can travel with anybody from the FCT. I can travel with anybody in Nigeria. I have that right.
“Oh, come on, they have to know how Nigeria is. They have to learn about government,” Wike said on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday.
Asked whether he was teaching them to become politicians, he said, “No, that’s not correct. My first son is a lawyer. He said, ‘No, I’m not going to practice. I want to be a farmer.’
“I said, ‘What do you mean by this? He said, ‘No, this is what I want to do.’ I said, ‘Okay’. What do you do?
“They’ve gone for training in Spain. They’ve gone for training in Lisbon.
“My second son finished from King’s College — a master’s degree in Economics. He said he wants to be in real estate.”
The former Rivers State governor also said he is happy that his sons behave responsibly and give him comfort.
“I’m so happy that I have children who have given me comfort, who have not given me problems.
“Assuming they were somewhere smoking. You would have said, ‘Oh, look at these children now. Who are they? I will not travel with my enemy’s children,” he added.
Wike has been spotted with his sons at official events, including the commissioning of projects in the FCT.
Last week, he was criticised by some Nigerians for taking them to a summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
