OPINION: TINUBU, CLEOPATRA AND THE FEMME FATALES
When her father, Ptolemy XII, died in 51 BCE, Cleopatra and
her brother, Ptolemy XIII, co-ruled until she was forced to flee, about 50 BCE.
Aided by Julius Caesar, her lover, she returned to power upon her brother’s
death in 47 BCE. She ruled with her brother-husband, Ptolemy XIV, and then with
her son Caesarion.
She came to represent, as did no other woman of antiquity,
the prototype of the romantic femme fatale.
A femme fatale is an attractive and
seductive woman, especially one who is likely to cause distress or disaster to
a man who becomes involved with her.
The term originates from the French phrase femme fatale,
which means 'deadly woman' or 'lethal woman'. A femme fatale tries to
achieve her hidden purpose by using feminine wiles such as beauty, charm, or
sexual allure.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu of Nigeria seems to have female
fatales aplenty. Their best qualifications for the positions they occupy must
have been their postage stamp faces and postcard appearances.
One thing they also have in common is their disregard for
law and order. They have no respect for other arms of government including the
National Assembly.
How could they?
When they were nominated and appeared before the National
Assembly for screening, party biases and settlements were the considerations.
Many were virtually asked to “bow and take your leave”. The legislators were
busy calculating the settlements and admiring the made-up faces and plastic
smiles.
Tinubu’s National executive ended up with the likes of Betta
Edu on the Humanitarian desk, Mojisolaoluwa Kehinde Alli-Macaulay jn the Nigeria
Social Insurance Trust Fund and Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye in charge of Women
Affairs.
These femme fatales were put in charge of choice portfolios;
desks that touch on the lives and wellbeing of Nigerians. These are positions
that should have been reserved for people with milk of humanity in them. The
President should have looked for men or women with respect for laws of the land,
integrity and accountability.
Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, the woman affairs minister under
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government has been accused of spending unrelated
expenditures which include N45 million for a New Year party, N20million for
sanitary pads and N1.5million for vehicle fuel.
In her response, she said, “How many vehicles? I travelled
with the staff in the bus, two security vehicles, one DSS and one police, my
vehicle, the backup, and the other one. About six vehicles went all the way to
Anambra State for a job and we came back. What is N1.5m for those cars?
Everybody knows how much fuel cost since I came in.”
“But when I was explaining, they (lawmakers) won’t even give
you a chance to explain. They will tell you to just say a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ How
can I say yes or no without an explanation?”
The probe followed a petition from contractors, and also
sought clarification on funds appropriated for the African First Lady’s mission
and the whereabouts of the N1.5billion meant for contractor payments.
When asked whether her ministry disbursed public funds on
First Lady’s projects, Kennedy-Ohaneye said: “I won’t answer what is not within
my purview… I’m not an accountant to know how much cash they have in their bank
statements. All I can see is the appropriation paper, the budget. And it was
right there in the budget of last year. It was there.”
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“I can’t answer that, because I don’t know who requested, it was supposed to go to procurement. No First Lady called me. I called. I called. I never say a First Lady called, I called to say this is what I saw on the appropriation paper. That was what I said.”
“Let me not be misquoted. Let me not be misquoted. I never
say it was meant for the First Lady. I said when I saw for First Lady’s
mission, that was the name of the corporation. I don’t know whether it has been
used or not. We directed them, anything that will be done is supposed to go
through procurement, the normal process.”
The legislative Committee further asked the procurement
officer in the Women Affairs Ministry to explain to lawmakers how the money was
spent but before he could provide detailed response, the minister chipped in,
saying:
“I am not getting very comfortable anymore. Because I don’t
even understand this question.”
As the drama ensued, Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Kafilat
Ogbara, said due to the altercations between the Minister and the lawmaker, the
hearing was adjourned indefinitely.
She described the attitude of the Minister as rude and insulting to the parliament and said the committee would report to the House that the minister was uncooperative and had no regard for the legislature.
That was the Minister Tinubu put in charge of Women Affairs.
The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation
was in the news earlier in the life of the Tinubu administration over controversy
with reference to the payment of Federal Government’s N585.198 million into a
private account by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty
Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu,.
The Accountant General of the Federation, Oluwatoyin Madein,
has countered the claim by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Betta Edu, over
the payment of N585.2 million of government funds into a private bank account
of an official.
This followed a leaked memo titled ‘Mandate For Payment’
which Edu sent to the office of the Accountant General of the Federation
seeking the transfer of the sum of N585, 189, 500 (Five Hundred and Eighty Five
Million, One Hundred and Eighty Nine Thousand, Five Hundred Naira) for
“payments for programmes and activities of the Renewed Hope Grant for
Vulnerable Groups”.
The project is under Mrs Edu’s ministry.
The transfer contravenes various sections of Nigeria’s
Financial Regulations 2009 meant to prevent fraud and other forms of corruption
in government business
This implies that Mrs Edu’s humanitarian affairs ministry
went ahead to pay the N585.2 million into one Ms Oniyelu’s private account,
against Mrs Madein’s advice. The act was in violation of Nigeria’s law.
Reacting to the development, Kperogi, in an essay he shared
Saturday through X handle, said if Tinubu did not fire Edu immediately, the
President would have lost the morals to fight corruption.
Edu was suspended by the president and invited by the EFCC.
She was questioned and sang like a kenery. She mentioned names of people in
high places and especially some close to the President. Nigerians’ expectation
that heads would roll met a letdown.
The former APC National Women Leader in her thirties was
soon walking the streets, thanks to a bail arrangement. Things went quiet and Nigerians were
beginning to forget about Betta Edu. That was until she popped up again writing
letters and attending occasions as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and
Poverty Alleviation.
Neither the President nor the Presidency has seen the need
sanction Dr. Edu or order the arrest of this femme fatale. She is
indeed untouchable, even by the President.
The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund didn’t get a better
deal.
President Bola Tinubu's recent appointment of Mojisolaoluwa
Kehinde Alli-Macaulay as the Executive Director (Operations) of the Nigeria
Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) ignited significant controversy and public
outcry across Nigeria. This appointment came amidst allegations and public
backlash over Alli-Macaulay's involvement in a scandal where she allegedly
diverted COVID-19 palliatives intended for public distribution to use as gifts
at her birthday party.
The Nigeria social insurance trust fund (NSITF) is an
institution established by the Nigerian government to provide financial and
insurance services to employees in Nigeria.
Mrs Alli-Macaulay who represented Amuwo Odofin 1 in Lagos at
the time was exposed for diverting COVID-19 palliatives meant to alleviate the
suffering of poor masses during the COVID-19 lockdown and rebranding the
palliatives as her birthday souvenirs in 2020.
A petition by Mrs Alli-Macaulay’s constituents called for
her recall on grounds of poor constituency representation and theft of
palliatives meant for the masses during the pandemic.
The controversy surrounding Alli-Macaulay dates back to
October 2020 when photographs of the event went viral, depicting how relief
materials meant for her constituents were repackaged into birthday party packs.
This revelation led to widespread condemnation and demands for accountability
from the public.
Despite these allegations, President Tinubu proceeded with
the appointment, citing Alli-Macaulay's previous role as a lawmaker and
Chairperson of the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee on Women Affairs,
Poverty Alleviation, and Job Creation.
The controversy continues to unfold as Nigerians monitor the
developments and await further actions or responses from relevant authorities
regarding this contentious appointment and the allegations against
Alli-Macaulay.
The Tinubu administration has turned deaf ears to the feelings
of Nigerians about these women of doubtful credentials and antecedents put in
very sensitive positions. What beats the imagination most is that these women
were put in charge of things related to the wellbeing of the poor masses and
vulnerable people.
These femme fatales
are truly powerful and above the Nigerian laws. They are more powerful than the
notorious “cabals” Nigerians always mouthed. They are untouchable. They are no
more mere mortals like the rest of us.
Not even the President has power over them. They are the FEMME
FATALEs.
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