A two-time Minister of the Federal Republic and respected Elder Statesman, Elder Wole Oyelese has warned that Nigeria is racing toward a dangerous breaking point as morality collapses, corruption is shielded, and the suffering of the masses deepens.
As he called for urgent and sincere intervention from the political leadership to prevent a grassroots explosion that could shake the foundation of the nation.
In a statement on Tuesday, Elder Oyelese, a former Minister for Power and Steel, who is also a Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) averred that, “Nigeria is sitting on a moral volcano. Each act of injustice, every looted fund, and every display of indifference to the suffering of the people adds heat to that volcano. When leadership loses its conscience, the governed will eventually rise, not out of being unpatriotic, but because they can no longer breathe and are forced to struggle for life”.
Elder Oyelese lamented the increasing trend where stolen public funds, running into hundreds of billions and even trillions are quietly swept under the carpet and written off while millions of families go to bed hungry.
He also decried the growing emperorship mentality among some state leaders who have forgotten the purpose of power.
“Nothing threatens a nation more than when thieves become kings and the law becomes their protector. The several cases of senseless looting of our common patrimony and the shameless cover-ups that follow is an unforgivable assault on the soul of this nation. The time has come for President Tinubu to step on toes, no matter how large. Nigeria cannot survive on selective courage.
“Across the states, we now have public servants who are behaving like emperors who cannot be questioned, burying their heads in the sand like the proverbial ostrich while their exposed rump is visible to all. With humongous monthly allocations but with little to in terms of performance, some still point to Abuja as though governance is a blame-shifting contest. But they must realise that the people are hungry and angry but not foolish. Their silence and patience must not be mistaken for consent or cowardice.”
He noted that with the scale of allocations to states, no governor has any moral basis to pass responsibility for the people’s welfare as though governance is the duty of one man in Abuja.
“It is hypocrisy of the highest order for any leader who sits on billions to tell his citizens that only the President must make life better. Even, local government councils that have access to their statutory allocations can adequately cater for their peoples’ welfare better than any other level of administration.
Oyelese asserted that the only sustainable path to justice and peace is through true Local Government Autonomy and direct social intervention at the grassroots.
“In this wise, he called on President Tinubu to do the needful without further delay. He maintained that the President knows what to do to make both Administrative and Financial Autonomy happen in our local governments. He ascertained that this step is the only way to bring meaningful development to the grassroots and make the downtrodden feel the impact of government.
“We must return power and development to the people. Local Government Autonomy is not a constitutional ornament — it is the lifeline of democracy. When councils are free to function, development breathes again, and hope returns to the villages, towns, and wards. No nation can know peace while its base is suffocating.”
The elder statesman urged political leaders across the country to recover the moral compass of leadership, warning that history will not be kind to those who ignore the warning signs.
“Those who sit atop the mountain of privilege must remember that when the base erupts, it swallows the peak. Power is temporary; humanity is permanent. Let us act with conscience while there is still a nation to govern.”
Elder Oyelese concluded with a plea for humility, courage, and compassion in governance.
“The poor do not want revenge, they want relief. The earlier we listen, the safer we all become. Let us heal this nation before frustration turns to fury. True social intervention begins with a morality–fueled conscience.”
