Metro
The Painted Canvases: ‘Zero’ As a 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
We’ll be painting Japan in 1945, after the Second World War, as an image of a Zero on a detailed canvas, but her narrative doesn’t finish there. The Second World War began in 1935 and concluded in 1945 as a consequence of the United States of America’s political and military engagement, which officially embraced the doctrine of isolationism. Her role before the war was purely economic, allowing her to accumulate financial muscle for herself in order to establish what was required for her worldwide reputation. During the war, Germany, Italy, and Japan sought to establish a “tripartite strategy” in order to gain hegemony over all countries on the planet. Germany, under Adolf Hitler, desired total control of Europe; Italy, under Benito Mussolini, desired total control of Africa; and Japan, under Emperor Hirohito, desired total control of Asia. However, Adolf Hitler of Germany and Benito Mussolini of Italy were eventually defeated, while Japan was ordered to step down in order 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 by the war. As a result, by unleashing the “Weapon of Mass Destruction” on Japan, America assumed the burden of joining in the Second World War both politically and militarily. Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan’s two main economic centers, were completely devastated, resulting in the loss of countless lives and assets. The impact of the United States of America’s bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on the Japanese continues to this day to demonstrate the breadth of the devastation of once popular and lush territory into deserts (Zero).
At the anniversary of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings in the early 2000s, Japan’s Prime Minister said, “If they gave Japan enough time to move her people, they could bomb Japan any way they wanted, and even if they put Japan in the desert, they would rebuild Japan to the world’s second-largest economy in a short time.”
Japan is an example of a country that does not have enough steel to create bonnets, enough silicon to produce side mirrors, or enough rubber to produce steering wheels, but is the world’s largest exporter of automobiles. Where am I going with this? Japan came from zero to be responsible, despite the difficulties and pains of ascending the ladder of becoming a worldwide hero among countries of the globe, against all chances of being smashed to zero. Every zero, if diligently worked on, has the ability to bounce back. The riches of every country, therefore, will be discovered in-between its people’s “ears,” i.e., the contents of their brain and character of their being (applicability capability)!
Life is the irrefutable, mysterious (powerful) gift given to man by God, containing a plethora of hidden secrets…
It is up to us (man) to maximize its use, but only man’s actions poison it! There is always a reason to do something and a reason not to do it. This is known as an “excuse.” It is God’s responsibility to deposit riches and treasures in the shape of skills, potentials, or gifts into our earthen vessels, but it is up to us as people to dig very deeply with real light for their revealing, utilization, and maximization for our own benefit for His (God Almighty) glory.
Nigeria as a country fits into the above-mentioned framework in order to re-orient her leadership and followership, particularly the youth, via this evident truth in the ultimate reality of being and living. It is important to emphasize unequivocally that Nigeria’s wealth is not in the Niger-Delta (South-South region), nor is it anyplace in the ground, nor is oil our riches, nor is it any of the natural resources that we have around us, but it is the people that you can see around you, exactly where you are… We are Nigeria’s riches because we have the elegance, splendour, and capability to harness and use those mineral resources, as well as one another, to satisfy the Creator’s certain requirements! The so-called natural resources that we so desperately seek beneath the earth are not the “actual resources,” but the untapped “divin-istic wealth” of those who died before their time with their riches in them…These people did not perish in vain! A functional resource (s) is the quality treasure (s) encoded in a living, physically sized being known as “man”, positioned in-between his two ears (his brain)! These assets that God bestowed upon him are limitless since he was formed for special objectives of addressing requirements and providing potential (beyond the norm) for people, corporations, and nations. The human brain is a perplexing (yet powerful) biological system that allows us to link our hearts to the supernatural. We must thus be resolute and prepared to die empty by depleting the resources that God Almighty has placed inside us for the glory of God Almighty and the development of people and the environment.
When a man prays to God for money, God showers him with thoughts that will change his destiny, then connects him with other individuals who were made to chart causes that are earthly or supernaturally connected to the fulfillment of the intended purposes of these ideas. These folks are known as “destiny’s assistants!”
The more we ask God for answers, the more God sends another man in the shape of new-borns who carry divine solutions through divine order or inspires, discloses, and illuminates another adult man with the appropriate and needed ability to fulfill the solution in an active and visible manifestation! The more a man fails as a result of earthly distractions or causes, the more He sends another man to replace him and carry out His ideal intentions. God is never taken aback by man’s flaws or gaps. He always has backup plans in place to complete the delivery mission(s).
We strive to maintain the mindset that “we are the wealth of our generation(s), situated in specific geographical locations for the divine purpose(s) of performing a divine mandate all to the glory of God and for the relief of humanity from grieves, agonies, and pains.” Your nation(s) depends on your endowments to thrive; without you, there will always be gaps in that specific area of your calling(s) due to your unwillingness to surrender to it! I now charge you to rise to your divine calling(s). Only then do you have a chance to become a LEGEND (hero)! You, can take charge (control) of your talents only if you can imagine them. Do not become a zero! ” It is a man’s talents that will pave the road for him… he will stand before monarchs (kings), not mere (ordinary) men! This is an undeniable fact: without your constructive contributions, your country would stay at zero! To achieve the goal of their quality state, any group or person from any country or community must answer the call(s) of destiny! You cannot change the environment in which you live unless you first change yourself.
You can get up, yes!
You need to rise up!
Be inspired!
Take responsibility!
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 Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Bayo Ojulari, has acknowledged growing complexities in the effort to revamp Nigeria’s state-owned refineries.
Although the Port Harcourt refinery began processing crude oil again on November 26, it was later shut down in May for maintenance.
Meanwhile, rehabilitation work is still ongoing at the Warri and Kaduna refineries.
Speaking in an interview with Bloomberg on the sidelines of the 9th OPEC International Seminar in Vienna, Austria, Ojulari said NNPC is in the process of reassessing its refinery strategies, with plans to conclude the review by the end of the year.
“So refineries, we made quite a lot of investment over the last several years and brought in a lot of technologies. We’ve been challenged,” he said.
“Some of those technologies have not worked as we expected so far. But also, as you know, when you’re refining a very old refinery that has been abandoned for some time, what we’re finding is that it’s becoming a little bit more complicated.
“So we’re reviewing all our refinery strategies now. We hope before the end of the year, we’ll be able to conclude that review. That review may lead to us doing things slightly differently.”
When asked whether the review could result in selling the refineries, Ojulari said a sale remains a possibility.
“But what we’re saying is that sale is not out of the question. All the options are on the table, to be frank, but that decision will be based on the outcome of the reviews we’re doing now,” he said.
Ojulari also addressed the cost of oil production in Nigeria, stating that operating expenses range between $20 and $30 per barrel.
“For the cost of crude production, there’s a capital cost and there are the operating costs,” he said.
“The operating cost right now in Nigeria is hovering over $20 per barrel, which is quite high.
“Part of that is because of the investment we’ve had to make in terms of security of our pipelines, which as you know, today we have 100 percent availability of our pipelines. That came out of significant investment.
“So we believe with time, with stability, that cost will start going down, but for now it’s somewhere between $25 and $30 a barrel.”
Looking ahead, Ojulari said NNPC aims to increase Nigeria’s oil output to 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd) by the end of the year.
By Eric Elezuo
A group, Centre for Justice Mercy and Reconciliation (CJMR), has called on the governor of Ekiti State, Abiodun Oyebanji, and other well meaning Nigerians, to come to the aid of a female inmate at the Ibara Custodial Centre, Rashidat Abdul, who is reported to be in critical health condition, and needs urgent medical attention.
The deteriorating health of the said inmate, was reported by officers at the Custodial Centre to the Centre for Justice Mercy and Reconciliation (CJMR), a grassroots organization focusing on human rights and access to justice for those deprived of their rights on death row and in detention.
Speaking with The Boss, the Coordinator of the group, Hezekiah Deboboye Olujobi said, “Upon seeing the woman’s health condition during our visit to Ibara, we pleaded that she be transferred to a hospital where she could receive the necessary medical care. Despite concerns about the financial burden, we took this step of faith to save her life. She is now admitted to Ogun State Hospital, Abeokuta.”
Narrating the genesis of the inmate’s ordeal, Olujobi added that “Rashidat Abdul was sentenced to death by the Ado Ekiti State High Court. She appealed the judgment, but her appeal was unsuccessful. The court convicted the entire family based solely on the testimony of one individual relying on third-party information, without the presence of the alleged witness in court. It is also important to note that her son had just sat for his WAEC examination before their arrest.
“We submitted appeals to the Ekiti State Board of Mercy in September last year and again in March 2025, but these pleas have yet to receive the attention of the Ekiti State Governor. We have conducted a thorough review of the court records, including the brief of argument before the Court of Appeal, and we can see the innocence of this woman and her husband. While the appeal is still pending before the Supreme Court, we are appealing to the human and Christian conscience of the Attorney General of Ekiti State, Hon. Dayo Apata, to look into this case. God delights in true justice and mercy; God hates oppression, so must we.
“The critical state of this woman’s health calls for urgent attention from concerned individuals in Nigeria and abroad. The officer in the prison maintains transparency in this matter, and we are committed to doing the same.
“This morning, 9/7/2025, I received a message from the officer informing us that the funds we deposited have been exhausted. There is an urgent need to purchase injections costing ₦10,000 each daily, conduct X-rays and a series of tests from time to time, engage a caregiver and physiotherapist, provide feeding, and buy supplements to aid her recovery. Additionally, payment for the hospital bed space is required, along with a stipend for transportation for the security personnel on guard and other logistics.”
The group therefore, is appealing to the governor of Ekiti State, Oyebanji and other well meaning Nigerians to come to the woman’s aid so as to preserve her life.
“We kindly ask for your support to respond to this urgent call. Although Rashidat is a Muslim, our service to humanity transcends religion.
“We understand that some who have been deceived in the past may find it difficult to trust those genuinely committed to serving others, and those involved in fraudulent activities may be reluctant to support genuine efforts.
“However, this is the very mission our Lord Jesus Christ has called us to fulfill. We earnestly seek your support.
“Thank you for your kindness and generosity,” Olujobi pleaded on behalf of Rashidat and the group.
For donations and more information, please visit the website: [https://www.cjmr.com.ng](https://www.cjmr.com.ng)
Account Details:
Centre for Justice Mercy and Reconciliation
Zenith Bank
Account Number: 1012189729
Phone: 08030488093
During the price hike, marketers stated that the product was sold at N960 and N980 in the far north because of the distance.
However, as crude prices fell below $70 last week, the pump prices of PMS also declined. Crude prices had crashed because Israel and Iran stopped bombing each other, alleviating fears of a supply disruption in the Middle East.
As of Tuesday, many filling stations sold petrol below N900 per litre in Lagos and Ogun States.
PUNCH Online reports that the filling stations sold petrol at rates ranging from N875 to N890 a litre.
A marginal drop is expected in the price of the product at the pumps.
