Politics
Remi Tinubu: Trauma of living in US exile made me born-again
Oluremi Tinubu, senator representing Lagos central, says she became a born-again Christian while she was in exile with her family in the United States.
She stated this in an interview she granted Television Continental, as the senator celebrated her 60th birthday on September 21.
According to her, the trauma of being alone in the US, with little kids and without her husband made her to become born-again.
She said when she became the first lady of Lagos at a young age, adding that she had to seek God’s guidance to handle the responsibilities that came with the position.
“Like I said, if you get into a position you never envisage in your life time that you will ever occupy, you believe it is a privilege and God must have made you to become that. So you have to go back to God and ask ‘how do I do this,” she said.
“Thank God before I became the first lady, we were in self exile for almost five years and when you have problem, the only person you run to is God. So while I was in the US, I went to church, that was when I became born-again.
“I went into exile as an Anglican, came out as a Pentecostal. I remember I was looking for God from one church to another, it was very difficult. When I came back, l had amnesia, I lost my memory, it was traumatic for me and that’s why I don’t like attending social gatherings because people walk up to me and I don’t recognise them anymore.
“It was traumatic for me because I was around 34, first time of being separated from your husband, and then you are stuck with two children with a lot of responsibilities.
“My husband couldn’t come see us until 18 months after. They locked them up for a while during the Abacha period and to see us, they have to go through neighbouring borders and the only passport he had was a diplomatic passport that couldn’t get him to UK because there were sanctions on diplomats because of June 12.
“He had to get to a neighbouring country to get their passport to come see us. Through that passport, he came to see us once every six months. But for me to raise the children to go to school, they were very young, it was traumatic for me. So to come back and become a first lady, it was something else.”
Tinubu also said she had never experienced any conflict with her husband as regards their different faith.
“When I met my husband, I didn’t know it was a big deal. We’re from the Anglican Church. Then, a lot of Christians married Muslims. It was my sister that introduced us,” she said.
“One of the things that was profound for me, when we both went to see my dad, my dad asked him ‘are you a Muslim?, that was the first time I heard that. You’re a Muslim, I hope you won’t prevent my daughter from going to church and he promised not to.
“The point is he is quite respectful of my faith and if someone respects you it is quite right you show the same respect. He respects my faith, I respect his so there is no conflict.
“He doesn’t stop me from praying even if some pastors come around. He also has a lot of pastor friends that I met through him.
“My husband is very liberal when it comes to faith, being married to a Muslim I never had any problem. But when it is time for me to put on Hijab during his events, I’ll do that but that doesn’t change my faith.”
Politics
Tinubu moves to retain Shettima as VP for 2027
Tinubu moves to retain Shettima as VP for 2027
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is reportedly determined to retain Vice President Kashim Shettima, shutting out proposals to replace him with any of six northern politicians currently being touted within the ruling party.
Tinubu, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), is expected to run for a second and final tenure in 2027.
Sources within the Presidency have confirmed that Tinubu has no intention of dumping Shettima, despite persistent lobbying and strategic moves by some power blocs in the North.
Among those allegedly considered as potential replacements are former Zamfara State governor, Senator Abdulaziz Yari; National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; Governor of Niger State, Mohammed Bago; Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani; Governor of Gombe State, Inuwa Yahaya; and former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara.
Party insiders claim the President has come under pressure to reshuffle the ticket for strategic political balancing. Supporters of Ribadu argue that positioning him as Vice President would prepare him for a northern presidential bid in 2031, while Yari’s close relationship with Tinubu and his consistent defence of the administration are said to fuel his consideration.
Similarly, Dogara, a northern Christian, is being projected as a religious counterweight to appease Christian blocs and temper the concerns surrounding the continuation of a Muslim-Muslim ticket.
Meanwhile, the governors — Bago, Sani, and Yahaya — are reportedly favoured by some party leaders for what they describe as “brilliant performance” in their respective states, which has boosted the party’s popularity at the grassroots level.
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However, insiders in Aso Rock insist that President Tinubu is unmoved by these suggestions and sees no reason to abandon his trusted deputy.
Recall earlier that the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, dismissed rumours of a cold war between Tinubu and Shettima.
“It is only when the President is elected at the party’s primaries that he would announce a running mate,” Onanuga said, adding that the conversation around a vice-presidential change is premature and unfounded.
Meanwhile, a top Presidency source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Vanguard that the President values Shettima’s loyalty, competence, and political influence.
“President Tinubu will not risk dropping Shettima in 2027. The Vice President is an asset to him. First and foremost, he has a formidable structure. Remember he was the first to support President Tinubu before the All Progressives Congress,” the source said.
The official recalled how Shettima stood firm during internal APC plots to derail Tinubu’s 2023 presidential ambition.
“There was a conspiracy among some party members to stop Tinubu from contesting the party primaries but Shettima stood solidly with him and openly supported him,” the source noted. “You can also remember the time he described the former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo an ice cream seller and he was even the Director General of the Tinubu’s campaign and formed the nucleus for his election. Since his emergence as the Vice President, he has been loyal to his boss. Remember loyalty is one of the cardinal considerations in politics.”
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On Shettima’s leadership qualities, the source added: “He has not failed in any assignment given to him by Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. President Tinubu is one of the smartest politicians around and he knows what he wants.”
The Vice President is also lauded for his nationalistic stance and crisis management skills. One example frequently cited is his intervention in the North-South ethnic tension when some northern youths issued a quit notice to Igbo residents.
“He rallied round the Southeast leaders to ensure issues were sorted out amicably,” the source said.
Presidency sources further believe that the attempt to unseat Shettima is being driven by political lightweights.
“Some persons who do not have any political structure and cannot win an election in their wards are behind the scheming to drop Shettima because of their selfish interest,” the source claimed.
Another factor believed to be strengthening Shettima’s position is the close working relationship between the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, and the Vice President’s wife, Hajia Nana Shettima.
Their collaboration under the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI) — a pet project of the First Lady — is said to have generated considerable goodwill for the administration, especially among women and vulnerable groups across the country.
Hajia Shettima is considered a key pillar of the programme and is often seen at public functions alongside the First Lady.
“Senator Oluremi Tinubu is very comfortable working with Hajia Shettima,” a source said. “That closeness is part of the synergy giving the federal government goodwill and support across many parts of the country.”
Tinubu moves to retain Shettima as VP for 2027
Politics
Keyamo mocks Atiku, El-Rufai, says new ADA party lacks strength to challenge APC
Keyamo mocks Atiku, El-Rufai, says new ADA party lacks strength to challenge APC
Keyamo mocks Atiku, El-Rufai, says new ADA party lacks strength to challenge APC
Politics
Atiku, El-Rufai, Amaechi move to register All Democratic Alliance
Atiku, El-Rufai, Amaechi move to register All Democratic Alliance
Opposition leaders led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and the immediate past Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai have finally called off their fraternization with the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and African Democratic Congress (ADC) ahead of the 2027 election.
The group, Nigeria National Coalition Group (NNCG), yesterday opted to go solo by applying to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for registration as a new party.
All Democratic Alliance (ADA), as it wants to be known, has as its protem Chairman Chief Akin Anderson Rickets, Chairman of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) when Amaechi was Minister of Transportation.
Other notable politicians said to be part of ADA are Peter Obi, Aminu Tambuwal, John Oyegun, Rauf Aregbesola, Abubakar Malami, Babachir Lawal, Uche Secondus, Osita Chidoka and Nnenna Ukeje.
The decision to seek registration as a party was reached at a meeting in Abuja on Thursday.
INEC acknowledged receipt of the application yesterday.
Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister Festus Keyamo mocked the party’s promoters for their inability to forge the coalition they had set out to do initially.
“This is just a simple application for party registration. There is nothing like a ‘coalition’ here,” Keyamo said on X.
“It is an unnecessary hype the promoters have been struggling to create all along. It is just a psychological warfare on Nigerians – a weak attempt at mass appeal,” he said.
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Rickets, a former commissioner for Information in Cross River State, in a letter attached to the registration application form, said: “We respectfully write to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, requesting the registration of our association, the All Democratic Alliance, ADA, as a political party.
“This is sequel to the decision taken by the Nigerian National Coalition Group to sponsor our association for full registration.
“The name of the party shall be All Democratic Alliance with ADA as our acronym and ‘Justice for All’ as our slogan.
“The National Secretariat of the party is as stated at the bottom of the association’s letterhead used in this application.
“We have also herewith attached our logo describing in details the symbolism of our party colours and their configuration and the corn (Maize).
“We have further attached our manifesto encompassing details of our party ideology, and our constitution providing the legal framework that defines our identity, structures and organisation, regulates our affairs and guides our actions in alignment with Section 40 and 222 of the Constitution, Section 75 of the Electoral Act (2022) and global democratic principles and objectives.
“Please find attached the following documents: our party flag depicting our name, acronym and slogan, manifesto, constitution and minutes of meeting.
“While we eagerly await further action from the commission on the next step forward towards attaining our desired goal, please accept the consideration of our highest respect.”
Amaechi and Dr Umar Ardo who was Special Adviser on Research and Strategy to Vice President Atiku Abubakar during the Obasanjo Presidency, in a joint statement traced the formation of the group to a May 6, 2025 meeting in Abuja.
That meeting, according to them, laid the groundwork for the NNCG which is now seeking transformation into ADA.
On Thursday, the group approved a manifesto, logo, party constitution and choice of A.D.A.’s protem national chairman and national secretary.
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Picked as protem national secretary was a former member of the House of Representatives from Awe/Doma/Keana in Nasarawa State, Abdullahi Musa Elayo.
The group said it would now begin to mobilise prominent opposition figures under its banner towards altering Nigeria’s political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The next steps that the interim leadership is now working on include opening a national secretariat, new offices and bank account and commencement of effort to operate within the framework of the party’s newly approved constitution and in accordance with the 2022 Electoral Act.
Members of the new political party see themselves as game-changers with clear intentions of consolidating support from disillusioned voters and disgruntled elements across various existing parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) which is currently battling internal rifts and leadership disputes.
“This development is a bold response to the loud yearning by Nigerians for a credible third force,” said Dr. Umar Ardo, Secretary of the Platform Committee, in a brief chat after the meeting.
Keyamo, reacting to the registration application, said: “This is just a simple application for party registration. There is nothing like a ‘coalition’ here.
“It is an unnecessary hype the promoters have been struggling to create all along; it is just a psychological warfare on Nigerians – a weak attempt at mass appeal.
“No recognised existing political party or parties are part of this. If they are thinking of recreating what the APC did in 2013, then this is nothing but a pedestrian joke; a complete mockery of that seismic political coalition that birthed APC in 2013.
“A few individuals exercising their constitutional right to form a new political party cannot be described as a ‘coalition’ or even a ‘merger’. This is not different from several political associations springing up every day for the same purpose.
“After all the razzmatazz, it boils down to the fact that a new political party is just attempting registration by a few Nigerians; it is a disappointing anti-climax to all the preceding pomp and pageantry.”
Under the Guidelines for the Registration of new political parties issued by INEC in 2014, a political association intending to register as a political party shall first apply to the commission for the Guidelines and Regulations.
The application must be made on the commission’s FORM PAI in 50 copies and shall be accompanied by documents showing, among others, the name of the proposed party, the names, signatures and addresses of the chairman and secretary of the association filling the form, evidence of payment of the prescribed non-refundable administrative fee of N1 million in bank draft to the commission and 50 copies of the association’s draft constitution and manifesto.
Upon the receipt of the application, INEC is required to verify the claims contained therein such as whether the membership contravenes any of the provisions of the guidelines; whether the association has officers in at least 24 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory.
Registration will be confirmed if the commission is satisfied that the association has fulfilled all the conditions prescribed by the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended) and the guidelines.
But where the commission is not satisfied, registration is denied.
Amaechi recently accused the commission of blocking the registration of new political parties.
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