Without concluding the probe of suspended minister Betta Edu and publicising its findings, lessons learned, and corrective actions taken, the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, announced the expansion of the conditional cash program to 12 million Nigerians from the previous 3 million. The Tinubu government is moving on as if nothing happened. But something horrendous happened.
Growing up, I wanted to be Bob Marley. Nothing more, nothing less. I bought every one of his cassettes I could see. I read and memorized the lyrics of his songs from those Onitsha market printed booklets that mangled the words of the reggae musician. I went as far as buying his interviews. Though it was challenging to understand Patwa, I enjoyed listening to Bob. When I discovered I did not have Bob Marley's voice or the vision, I decided to be Obi Egbuna, the George Bernard Shaw of our shore. I'm still working on that one.
Without him, I would not have attended the Federal University of Technology, Akure (FUTA), where I studied engineering. I would have stayed at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), and graduated as an industrial chemist or a pharmacist. Without FUTA, there probably would not have been Dr. Damages. I would have been at best a pharmacist, dispensing medications, or at worst a chemist mixing chemicals in a factory. Without him, my whole story would be significantly different. But my story is what it is today because of his interventions.