All Set for Elsie Ajayi Ikoli’s Burial in Lagos

 

Thousands will gather in Lagos on Friday to bid farewell to Madam Elsie Ajayi Ikoli.

 

The woman of courage, good character and wealth died on September 2, 2025 in Lagos.

 

Her funeral activities will begin with Service of Songs and Night of Tributes on Thursday, November 27, 2025 at The Citadel, 274 Kofo Abayomi Street, Victoria Island.

 

A statement released by the Ernest Ikoli Foundation praised Elsie Ajayi Ikoli for her strength, hard work, prudence, zeal and care for the family.

 

“We are prepared for the last journey of Madam Elsie Ajayi Ikoli. Her body will be taken from the Lagos University Teaching Hospital on Friday, November 28, 2025 to 26 Eric Moore Close for the Lying-in-State. The children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are expected to pay their last respects to her.”

 

The statement emphasized the admirable achievements of Elsie Ajayi Ikoli in the business community and her impressive services in the Lord’s Vineyard.

 

“A funeral service will take place at The Salvation Army Church, 11 Odunlami Street, Lagos Island from 10:00am. Elsie Ajayi Ikoli will be laid to rest at Ebony Vault, Ikoyi’’ the statement signed by the Executive Vice Chairman of the Ernest Ikoli Foundation, Chief Anthony George-Ikoli, said.

 

“The celebration of the life of Elsie Ajayi Ikoli will begin from 2:00pm at The Hall Event Center, 16 Musa Yar’Adua Street, Victoria Island while the dignitaries will join the family of Nigerian politician, nationalist and pioneering journalists, Ernest Sissei Ikoli at The Salvation Army Church, 11 Odunlami Street, Lagos Island on Sunday, November 30, 2025 for the thanksgiving service’’ the statement added.

 

 

Credit: Henry Ovie

 

MWUN Protest At Onne Debunks Alleged Extortion And Lack of Drivers Welfare

 

By Bon Peters

 

Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) Haulage District Eastern Zone, Onne, Rivers State has staged a peaceful protest at Onne to debunk what the union described as an alleged malicious and unfounded allegations of connivance and extortion levelled against the Union by  a group they refer to as dissidents  within their fold who according to them felt aggrieved over the commencement of Electronic Truck call- Up system otherwise known as E- Call Up at Onne  Port.

 

The peaceful protest which started at the Federal Ocean Terminal (FOT) Round-About with a motorcade on Monday morning Nov 17, 2025, proceeded with fanfare and dance to the Federal Lighter Terminal (FLT) Onne and ended at the Notore Roundabout

 

The protesters, whom majority of them adored in white unionist attire, were also seen singing solidarity songs and dancing to the admiration of passersby.

 

Addressing journalists at the (FLT) Gate, NPA Onne, Port complex, the protesters led by their leaders said their motive for the protest was to put the record straight regarding a malicious and unfounded allegations levelled against them by a group known as Active Containers and Cargo Truck Drivers Association to the effect that MWUN colluded with NPA to extort their members through multiple taxation, lack of drivers warfare among others. Even as the group said they were no longer part of MWUN

 

Debunking the allegations, the Executive Chairman, Haulage District of Maritime workers Union Eastern ports, comrade Ugwu Adolphus said he would not have wasted his effort and that of other MWUN executives to react to the ranting of such an unknown group but to put the record straight.

 

"The purpose of our coming here today is to put the record straight and to debunk insinuations and malicious allegations spreading on social media that Maritime Workers Union haulage district connived with Nigerian Ports Authority to defraud drivers through E- Call up”

 

"I want to tell you that there is nothing like extortion here, Rather the Maritime Workers Union under my leadership as the executive chairman, has been doing everything to see that our drivers are well taken care of, especially with the commencement of the Electronic  Truck call- Up system.

 

Continuing, Comrade Ugwu said “When the E-Call Up system was first introduced, we communicated our concerns to the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), highlighting that Onne Port’s unique operational conditions made the system unnecessary, as congestion is minimal here.

 

When the authorities insisted on its implementation, neither I nor the union had the power to halt a federal government policy.”

 

"But let me tell you some individuals approached me demanding that I should stop the E-Call Up rollout.”

 

“I told them that my influence was limited to the union’s scope hence we cannot override federal government directives,” he added.

 

The union leader dismissed claims and insinuations that MWUN colluded with NPA to extort truck drivers.

 

“The allegations of multiple taxation and extortion are false. Our union fees range from N5, 000 to N10, 000, all receipted and applicable nationwide.”

 

Addressing concerns over lack of welfare for workers, Ugwu said, “I challenge anyone to provide evidence of neglect. Our members receive medical treatment when sick; we fund hospital bills, provide befitting burials, and support those with permanent disabilities. "

 

Speaking further, Ugwu insisted those allegations were baseless and only arose due to the implementation of the E-Call Up system.”

 

He stressed that MWUN has no involvement in the E-Call Up program hence it was a brain child of the federal government and Nigerian Ports Authority.

 

"What they are doing is to give us bad names in order to hang us, but it will never Work " Ugwu enthused

 

Also speaking, the unit Chairman, Truck owners of Maritime workers Union, Comrade Uche Ogbu reiterated that their union was that of integrity, personality and responsibility.

 

He insisted that the essence of their union was to protect the rights and privileges of their members especially drivers which he noted they have done by negotiating a very robust haulage fare for the drivers in the Eastern Zone, wondering why some disgruntled elements should go about spreading rumours.

 

He added that the motive behind such fake information was to muscle down the power of the executives vowing that such would not happen .

 

He said E- call-up, was a government policy and that MWUN would never work against it.

 

“Union can't stop government policy but to negotiate."

 

On the E-call Up amount, Comrade Uche Ogbu said Onne at the moment is paying about N15, 000, unlike Lagos.

 

Ogbu however, lampooned those causing confusion insisting that they would fail.

 

For the unit Secretary, Truck owners of MWUN, comrade Casmir Anukanti, "part of the protest is  to pass a vote of confidence in the Ugwu -led administration"

 

Anukanti said Comrade Ugwu has done so much that nobody could dwarf his achievements through cheap blackmail.

 

With a voice vote, the union therefore passed a vote of confidence in Ugwu.

 

The protesters who met with the Traffic Manager NPA Mr. Surajudeen Abolade who represented the Port manager, Onne Port complex, Mr. Abdulramon Hussain said they were there on a solidarity match, urging NPA, to disregard any misgivings from a group they referred to as non-existent.

 

Responding, Mr. Surajudeen Abolade said he was happy to receive them on behalf of the port Manager, saying that the Nigerian Ports Authority is committed to creating an enabling business environment.

 

He promised to take their message to the port manager while urged them not to cause any breach of law and order that might affect their business and that of other port users.

 

Some Truck drivers who spoke to journalists described those who accused MWUN of extortion and lack of welfare as disgruntled and ungrateful insisting that Ugwu -led   Haulage District of Maritime workers Union of Nigeria has done tremendously well.

 

They said any driver accusing Ugwu and his EXCO of not being taken care of, should come with a proof.

 

They however warned those they referred to as mischief makers to engage in other things than resorting to cheap blackmail.

 

Why Nigeria Must Act Now or Face the Consequences: The Wake-Up Call of the U.S. Religious Freedom Accountability Bill 2025

By James Ezema

 

In the corridors of Washington, the United States of America, a bill is moving that could redefine Nigeria’s relationship with the world—and force the country to confront the monsters it has long denied.

The Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025 (S. 2747), introduced in the U.S. Senate on September 9, 2025 by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), may appear to be just another foreign policy measure. Yet beneath its legislative language lies a damning moral verdict on Nigeria’s failure to protect its citizens from systematic religious violence, kidnapping, and lawless bloodshed.

If passed, the bill—now before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and mirrored by H.R. 5808 in the U.S. House of Representatives—will permanently designate Nigeria as a "Country of Particular Concern" (CPC) for “systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.”

This is not a symbolic gesture. It carries the weight of sanctions, visa bans, asset freezes, and restrictions on U.S. military and development aid—a potential earthquake in Nigeria’s diplomatic and economic landscape.


A Law Rooted in Blood and Denial

The proposed law amends the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to compel U.S. authorities to target Nigerian officials—governors, judges, and security chiefs—who enforce blasphemy laws or tolerate religiously motivated violence. It also invokes the Global Magnitsky Act to sanction perpetrators of religious persecution and rights abuses.

The timing is significant. On October 31, 2025, President Donald Trump redesignated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern,” reviving a classification controversially dropped in 2021 by President Joe Biden.

According to data cited by the bill’s sponsors, over 125,000 Christians have been murdered since 2009, 52,000 churches destroyed, and 12 million people displaced. In just the first 220 days of 2025, 7,087 Christians were massacred—an average of 32 per day—while 7,800 others were abducted. These figures come from sources such as Intersociety, Open Doors World Watch List, Europarl.europa.eu, Christianity Today, and Newsweek.

Yet, as the bill and its supporting documents reveal, the crisis transcends Christianity. Moderate Muslims, ethnic minorities, and secular communities have also been targeted. Nearly 60,000 liberal Muslims have reportedly been killed since 2009 for rejecting extremist ideologies.
This isn’t a Christian war—it’s a Nigerian nightmare.

The Dangerous Culture of Denial

Despite overwhelming evidence, Nigeria’s political class remains trapped in a cycle of denial and deflection. Officials routinely dismiss reports of religious persecution as “exaggerated” or “Islamophobic.” They prefer euphemisms—banditry, farmer-herder clashes, or communal disputes—over acknowledging the religious motivations driving much of the violence that have claimed the lives of innocent Christians and non-radical Muslims in different parts of the country.

This denial is not only dishonest; it is dangerous. It ignores the blasphemy laws still enforced in twelve northern states, where individuals such as Yahaya Sharif-Aminu face death sentences for alleged insults to Islam. It erases the memory of Deborah Yakubu, lynched in 2022 by a mob in Sokoto.

By downplaying these atrocities, Nigerian leaders risk validating the narrative driving the U.S. legislation—that the government has tolerated or enabled religiously motivated killings. Worse still, such denial betrays the victims—the families of the slain, the kidnapped, and the displaced—whose pain has been met with silence and spin.


Kidnapping, Organ Harvesting, and a Nation at War with Itself

Religious persecution in Nigeria now intersects with a sprawling criminal economy built on kidnapping, ransom, and terror. Reports show over 7,800 faith-related abductions in 2025 alone. Kidnapping-for-ransom has become a multibillion-naira enterprise, often targeting clergy, schoolchildren, travelers, and farmers.

Emerging allegations of organ harvesting have deepened the horror, explaining why kidnap victims are killed even after ransom payments. Survivors recount abductions where victims vanish forever, and mass graves discovered in Kaduna and Plateau hint at an unspoken evil beneath the surface of Nigeria’s insecurity.

The massacres continue unchecked. In Yelwata, Benue State, 200 Christians were slaughtered in one night. In Sankera, Plateau State, 280 people were hacked to death in April. According to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), fewer than one percent of perpetrators of such atrocities ever face trial.

This is now an institutionalized impunity in the minds of the world and Nigeria must be intentional to change the narrative through a proven track of diligent prosecutions of perpetrators of violent crimes irrespective of their faith, tribe or social status and remaining proactive to avert further killings. The best proactive move is to begin immediate arrest of sponsors of violent crimes in all parts of Nigeria and deliberate policies to end poverty and youth unemployment.


Sanctions, Isolation, and the Cost of Inaction

If the U.S. bill passes, Nigeria could face a “public ledger of shame.” Each year, American agencies would publish lists of Nigerian officials sanctioned for complicity in religious persecution. Northern governors enforcing blasphemy laws could see their U.S. assets frozen. Security chiefs might face travel bans. U.S. arms deals and defense cooperation could be suspended under expanded Leahy Laws.

Meanwhile, the Leahy Laws are U.S. federal statutes that prohibit the American government from providing military assistance—such as training, weapons, or funding—to any foreign security force unit credibly accused of committing gross human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, torture, rape, or enforced disappearances. Named after Senator Patrick Leahy, these laws ensure that U.S. tax dollars do not support or equip abusive military or police units abroad. They apply separately through both the State Department and the Department of Defense, covering all forms of U.S.-funded security cooperation.

Under the Leahy framework, any unit found responsible for such abuses becomes ineligible for U.S. assistance until the government of that country takes effective steps to hold perpetrators accountable. The laws have frequently affected nations facing human rights scrutiny—including Nigeria, especially under the President Goodluck Jonathan administration, where U.S. support to certain army and police formations has been suspended due to alleged abuses during counterterrorism and internal security operations. In effect, the Leahy Laws represent Washington’s commitment to promoting accountability, human rights, and ethical security partnerships worldwide.

Therefore, the economic shock could be devastating. Nigeria currently receives more than $500 million annually in U.S. assistance. A CPC-driven cutoff would cripple humanitarian programs, counterterrorism efforts, and investor confidence—at a time when over 8,000 civilians have already been killed this year.

Diplomatically, Nigeria risks alienating its Western allies, potentially pushing it toward China or Russia, whose economic overtures often come with the price of silence on human rights.


A Path Forward: Reform, Not Retaliation

Nigeria must act now—honestly, decisively, and transparently. This is not the time for rhetoric but for reform.

First, the blasphemy laws in the twelve Sharia-implementing states must be repealed. They are unconstitutional under Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution and seen to violate the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

Second, the government must prosecute perpetrators of violence—whether jihadists, militias, or complicit officials. The National Human Rights Commission should be strengthened and funded to investigate religiously motivated crimes. Special terrorism courts and intelligence-led prosecutions must replace the 1% conviction rate that has made impunity the norm in Nigeria since 2009.

Third, Nigeria must confront the root causes of radicalization—poverty, unemployment, corruption, and environmental stress—through equitable resource allocation and inclusive development. Interfaith peacebuilding, community policing, and cooperative security task forces involving both Christians and Muslims can rebuild trust in the Middle Belt and other conflict zones in the country.

The Nigerian government must also investigate kidnapping and suspected organ-harvesting networks using international forensic and intelligence cooperation. Transparency, not defensiveness, is the path to redemption.

Finally, Nigeria should engage Washington constructively—inviting USCIRF and independent monitors for fact-finding, co-authoring progress benchmarks, and providing verifiable evidence of improvement. Denial has only deepened distrust; openness could restore credibility.


From Denial to Deliverance

To Nigeria’s leaders and their defenders, let it be said clearly: denial is not defense; it is dereliction. Every time officials dismiss mass killings as “exaggerations,” they embolden the perpetrators and dishonour the dead.

And to the Nigerian people—Christians, Muslims, and traditionalists alike—this moment demands unity, not division. Petition your lawmakers, demand justice, and refuse to be silenced. As Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja warns, “Increased insecurity haunts our nation, but prayer and action sustain us.”

Let S. 2747 (Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025) be not our punishment, but our turning point. Let it force us to see what we have refused to see—the rivers of blood that have stained our soil.

If Nigeria acts now—with honesty, urgency, and compassion—it can avert sanctions and reclaim moral authority. But if we continue to deny the truth, the gavel of justice will fall, and we will have no one to blame but ourselves.

This is not about America imposing values. It is about Nigeria reclaiming its humanity. The world is watching. Will we act, or will we perish in denial? The choice is ours to make.


Comrade James Ezema is a journalist, blogger, political strategist, and public affairs analyst based in Abuja. He writes on governance, democracy, and human rights in Africa. He's the President and National Coordinator of the Not Too Young To Perform (NTYTP)

Can't Fight Federal Government Policy, Maritime Workers Union Chief, Comrade Ugwu Vows

By Bon Peters

 

The executive chairman, Haulage District of Maritime works uniform  of Nigeria (MWUN) Eastern ports, Comrade Ugwu Adolphus says there is no amount of  intimidation, blackmail or name -calling that would make him fight the federal government policy of  Electronic Truck call -up system otherwise known as  E- call up  at  Onne Port.

 

Ugwu was reacting to a recent protest embarked upon by some truck drivers under the aegis of Active Containers and Cargo Truck drivers Association of Nigeria who on Tuesday staged a protest at Onne saying they were no longer members of Maritime workers Union haulage District unit Eastern Port citing extortion, lack of warfare and multiple taxation among others.

 

Comrade Ugwu said that trouble started when some disgruntled and power- seeking members of Maritime Workers Union haulage unit felt they had lost out in their quest to force him to continue fighting against the government policy implementation of the E- Call system at Onne Port.

 

He added, "when the issue of E- Call up started, we made our positions  known to the Nigeria Ports Authority especially informing them that there was no need for the system at Onne because of the peculiar nature of Onne especially as the E-call Up was to stem Congestions at the Port and there was no such problem here"

 

He continued, "But when the authorities concerned insisted on implementing it, who am I as a person or unionist to stop the federal government or NPA from implementing the federal government policy."

 

He noted that even some people came to him and mandated him to stop the E-call Up, but he told them he had tried but his power was limited to what the union could do.

 

"As they felt they could not push me, to stop the E- Call up and by extension Nigerian Port Authority and federal government they ganged up against me saying the Maritime Workers Union haulage unit connived with NPA to extort them",  Ugwu added.

 

Ugwu debunked all their allegations of multiple taxation and extortion insisting that what they pay is N5, 000 to N10, 000 Union fee which according to him is receipted and applicable throughout the federation.

 

On the lack of a welfare package for workers, the (MWUN) chief challenged them to come up with proof of anyone who was neglected in time of need.

 

"I challenge at least one person to come out with evidence that he has been neglected. Our members who are sick, we take care of them. We take them to hospitals for treatment and pay their bills. Those that lost their lives we gave them befitting burials and paid all their rights."

 

"Even those with permanent disabilities we have not turned our backs on them” 

"Where is this allegation coming from all because of implementation of E- call up" queried? 

"Maritime workers Union has nothing to do with the E-call system", Ugwu insisted.

Comrade Ugwu who displayed court judgement documents said that in 2021, some people also invaded the Ports trying to take over power but the union took them to court and won.

 

He said even the court told them that the Association lacked the power to unionize members but Trade unions. 

 

Speaking further, Ugwu said, I challenge them to come out clean. Instead of disrupting business activities by blocking Port access roads and causing economic sabotage,why not channel their grievances to the appropriate quarters like the court or invite the police. 

 

He however, cautioned his members not to engage in any act that would jeopardize the free flow of business activities at Onne Port insisting they should maintain decorum even in the face of provocation while calling anybody that is aggrieved to choose the part of dialogue to entrench peace at the Port