Fawaz Adebisi

Earlier today, popular Islamic singer, Rukayat Gawat-Oyefeso passed away. Her death, having been announced by her relative and senior special assistant on new media to Lagos governor, Jubril Gawat, has sparked sad reactions online.

In a post by Jubril, he mourned the passing of Rukayat and since his announcement, the deceased’s fans have continuously prayed for her.

According to a report by TheCable, Rukayat died after a brief illness on Tuesday.

TheCable stated that this was confirmed by a source close to the family.

The deceased’s demise have also been reported by many notable outlets and personalities, giving authenticity to the report.

Rukayat is succeeded by two children, Ibrahim Aremu Oyefeso and Mazidah Adunni Oyefeso and a husband, Shakiru Oyefeso.

She is the first daughter of Rasaq Gawat, the popular TV presenter and cleric who went missing twelve years ago and has not been found until this moment.

Media reports revealed that the late artiste on September 14, 2024, did a 12-year remembrance for her missing dad, the popular Islamic presenter and broadcaster, Aremu Gawat, whose whereabouts remained unknown since July 2012.

Delving into the Islamic music scene in 2015. She rose to fame after releasing songs about the mysterious disappearance of her father ‘Aye Le’.

Gawat continued to enjoy stardom in the Islamic music industry with several hit projects and awards.

In 2016, the singer won City People Magazine’s ‘Best Female Islamic Musician’ award. She also clinched the ‘Best Islamic Artiste’ category at the 2017 City People Music Award.

She has been laid to rest in Ogun state after her Janazah was observed in Ojota, Lagos State where she died.

During the prayer, monitored via TikTok live, it was said that the final prayer and burial would take place in Ijebu Aiyepe, Ogun State on Tuesday at noon.

Fatimah Idera

For almost ten years, Mr. Tiamiyu Tajudeen, an electrician based in Oke Andi in Ilorin Kwara State, has struggled with uninterrupted darkness, which has stalled his vocation, which relies heavily on power supply.

Consistent power outages resulting from the unavailability of transformers have made his services costlier than he would have wished.

“You can’t compare electricity with alternative power. Our not having electricity has greatly affected my pricing because my work here has been 99% reliant on generators for years,” he told this reporter.

When this reporter visited the area in June 2024, residents and business owners explained that they have only had light roughly three times a year for the past five years.

Another resident of Oke Andi, Kamoru Bello, whose daily life had been affected by the blackout, explained that he can’t remember the last time he used his television or any household appliances that would have made his life better.

“It is like I am no longer in this world because I certainly don’t know what goes on in and around me. I can’t charge phones, I can’t work remotely, and fuel prices are unbearable for alternative power.

Pictures of the transformers

“It has been so long since we have had light. Those who have light to use stabilizers, fans, and machines in their homes might have issues and bring them for repair at the rewinder shop, but for those who don’t make use of their appliances, they won’t,” Tiamiyu added.

Electricity plays a huge part in our everyday lives especially our daily routines which rely heavily on the use of electricity.

Electricity not only plays a big part in our daily lives at home, but it is extremely important for all the things that go on in the world around us that we depend on the likes of communication, transportation and several others as this power generally comes from electricity.

Mr Tiamiyu at his shop photo credit: Fatimah

…The Shady Contracts

It is hard to quantify how improved the lives of residents in this community would have been if the N44.5 million awarded for the Installation of Transformers at Oke Andi, Ita Nmo, and other communities in Kwara State in 2022 were duly spent.

The Ministry of Power approved the contract and put its supervision under the Rural electrification Agency(REA).

No new transformer has been supplied or installed for the community’s use. When the load was much on one of our transformers which made it blow, we then contributed some funds to fix it ourselves.

The Federal Government consolidated project was awarded to Scotben Nigeria Ltd. Checks on the corporate affairs commission portal reveal that the company name cannot be found. A further search on NG-Check.com revealed that the company was established and registered on 28 August 2013 and that Sunday Ajayi and Egbet Nathaniel are the directors. As it is a private limited company located in Abuja, several searches revealed it not to be active online as well as the names of the directors.

Screenshot of the dormant contractors details.

The former senator representing Kwara central, AbdulRaheem Yahaya Oloriegbe, who facilitated the project, was called and sent several messages and emails, but none were responded to.

…Resident Narrate Their Ordeal

Mubarak Sanni, a mechanic/appliance service technician and a resident of Oke Andi, said he had squandered a lot of money on buying petrol at a high cost to test the appliances he had worked on, which had led to an increase in his prices.

“The last time they brought light was four months ago; this year, we have been given light just once. We need new transformers, which can help relieve the workload of the old ones. There are several times I will succumb to using my i better pass my neighbor (generator), which cannot even carry some engines.

“Our transformers is faulty because it the one that brought light to the community , the last time the transformer blow, we the community members are the one who contributed money to repair it,” he revealed

Transformers at Oke Andi

He noted that they will be very glad if a new transformer is installed in Oke Andi communities as well as a stable light is given to improve their business and put an end to insecurities in their community.

Bloomberg reported that an average home in Nigeria spends $12 billion on alternative and self generated power for about nine hours daily to operate their businesses.

The World Bank noted that only 57 percent of the country’s 200 million population have access to electricity. While just 31 percent of people living in the country rural areas have access to electricity.

According to a report, statistical data further shows that over 40% of households in Nigeria own and use generators for their daily electricity requirements. This implied that the impacted households spend about $14 billion annually on generator fueling due to insufficient power supply from the National grid.

One woman in her prime Mrs Ghazali Zaynab who sells drinks at Ita Nmo lamented on how the power outage contributed to her business loss.

“I had several drinks in my fridge to sell but there is no electricity, and I don’t have a generator as an alternative.This darkness contributes to hunger and poverty among we the residents, as I found it hard to sell my goods and feed my children,” she lamented.

The Ministry of Power was also sent mails and several calls were put across to the contacts available on their website but none was responded to as at the time of filing this report.

The Rural electrification agency was also sent an FOI and was responded to on mail that they will get back to this reporter but no responses was gotten from them as at this time.

…Expert weighs in

In an interview with an energy and electricity expert, Mr. Olubunmi Martins, the CEO of G3 Roundtable, explained that the power sector is one of the most fragile but susceptible to corruption in the country.

We now run a no government system in the power sector where residents have to buy and install transformers.For this particular project in question, according to you, you have tried to get both the government and the contractors to speak but they aren’t through. What this tells us and everyone that cares to listen is that they have either not disbursed funds or the company is not a functional one.

“According to him, the realistic solution to this neglect is for the community to constitute a Community Development Association (CDA) to negotiate with the DisCos on the issue of Transformers because this project won’t see the light of the day.”

This story was produced with support from the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under the Collaborative Media Engagement for Development Inclusivity and Accountability Project (CMEDIA) funded by the MacArthur Foundation.

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Israel Adeleke

Egbaland, the ancient city of Abeokuta in Ogun State, Nigeria, holds a unique place in history.

Long before Nigeria’s independence, the Egba people established their own sovereign state, the Egba United Government.

Remarkably, this independent nation existed from 1893 to 1914, predating Nigeria’s amalgamation.

However, Let’s stop it there, I am not here to talk about the EGBA’S history rather thier cherished anthem.

So let’s delve into the rich heritage of the Egba people and their cherished anthem.

EGBA’S ANTHEM 

Verse One

Lori oke o’un petele

Nibe l’agbe bi mi si o

Nibe l’agbe tO mi d’agba oo

Ile ominira.

Emi o f’Abeokuta sogo

Un o duro l’ori olumO

Maayo l’orukO Egba ooo

Emi Omoo Lisabi

Chorus:-

Maa yO, maa yO, maa yO o,

L’ori olumO,

Maa yO, maa yO, maa yO o,

L’ori olumO.

Verses Two

Abeokuta ilu Egba

Nko ni gbagbe re

N’ o gbe O l’eke Okan mi

Bi ilu odo Oya

Emi o mayO l’ori olumO

Emi o s’ogo yi l’okan mi

Wipe ilu olokiki ooo

L’awa Egba ngbe

Chorus:-

Maa yO, maa yO, maa yO o,

L’ori olumO,

Maa yO, maa yO, maa yO o,

L’ori olumO.

The Egba Anthem celebrates Olumo Rock, symbol of Abeokuta’s strength and pride.

As ‘Omo Lisabi’ (children of Lisabi), the Egba people continue to honor their heritage through this anthem, echoing across the hills and valleys of their beloved land.