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Kyari, Primate Ayodele, and the unresolved petrol hassle
By Babajide Adekunle
There has been pushback from Mele Kyari, the group chief executive officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), against the calls for his sack. It is notable that several facets of Nigerian society have made the calls. I remember that in October 2023, a group of lawyers under the aegis of the ‘Coalition of Nigerian Legal Practitioners’ had asked President Bola Tinubu to relieve Kyari of his position.
The petitioners justified their request with reference to the fuel scarcity facing the country at the time. An excerpt of their petition says, “Under the current leadership of the present Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the NNPCL, the company has failed woefully and calamitously in its role to ensure adequate supply of petroleum products in the country, leading to skyrocketing transportation costs, inflation of food prices, and other untold hardships.”
In the same vein, the Christian Youth Forum of Nigeria (CYFN), in August 2024, called for Kyari’s sack, again citing fuel shortages and the astronomical increase in price of the product for their action.
The group, in a statement it issued, accused Kyari of lacking ‘empathy’ and the willingness to end the recurrent fuel shortage at filling stations, resulting in the pump price of petrol soaring to N1,000 in some places. The group described the situation as “nothing short of economic terrorism” and it believes that Kyari is complicit. In the long list of those dissatisfied with Kyari’s continued stay at the NNPCL are members of the House of Representatives, who must have found him culpable in the rift involving Dangote refinery.
The unifying thread among the incidents cited above appears to be that many Nigerians have given up on Kyari managing our shared heritage, deciding how best to use it for everyone’s advantage, and fostering the urgently required progress. Rather than Kyari proving his detractors wrong, what we have seen is an obscenely disgusting attempt to twist the issue and launch a flurry of attacks against imaginary foes. Active in this plot are spin-doctors, hired writers in the media, and different nebulous groups stumbling over one another. The emergent pro-Kyari movement has turned into a Bazaar of sorts, reminiscent of the infamous 1990s “two-million march for Abacha”.
The efforts to defend Kyari’s incompetence has become a fight between progressive and retrogressive forces, and what has so far played out is the familiar trend in which an influential person in the polity rallies support from partisan and nativist groups in opposition to popular aspirations. This is clear from the sponsored attacks in the media. In a space of three days, between August 9 and 12, two articles from fictitious writers have emerged in the Daily Trust newspapers.
In a particular hatchet job published in the newspaper, titled ‘Prophetic Missteps: Primate Elijah Ayodele’s record of unfulfilled predictions and NNPCL boss’, attributed to one Adewale Olabode, Kyari’s PR goons pilloried the clergyman for joining the patriotic call for his sack. Do Nigerians even need a seer or an oracle to tell them Kyari should go? Are we not entitled to demand for his sack, given our hardships, rising petrol prices, long queues at the filling stations, increased transportation costs, and increased food prices? I believe our focus should be on Kyari, rather than Ayodele’s prophesies that did not materialize.
Although Ayodele’s predictions have garnered him controversy, but as a citizen I find myself drawn to his compassion, altruistic and philanthropic actions toward the same oppressed people that Kyari has made unbelievably worse with his inconsistent policies as NNPCL GCEO.
Kyari’s resolve to single out Ayodele for attack is a red herring and unnecessary. Had a notable sheik from the north made a similar call, would he have sent his media attack dogs after him?
I believe Primate Ayodele, seeing the suffering of the masses, spoke out of empathy and concern, even for President Tinubu, who seemed entangled in a web of plots orchestrated to make him fail. While he makes scary prophesies at times, Ayodele will always urge his subjects to pray to avert the consequences of what he had foretold.
It is significant to note that prophets have historically been essential in influencing the path of human history, and that prophecy is an essential component of the Christian faith.
Scripture is filled with examples of prophets who foresaw disaster, only for their prophecies to be averted through restitution, divine forgiveness, or fervent prayers. The narrative of Jonah and Nineveh (Jonah 1-3) is one famous instance. Jonah had warned the Ninevites that their kingdom would be overtaken in forty days. Jonah’s prophecy caused the people of Nineveh to turn from their sins, and as a result, God spared the city.
Similarly, Amos prophesied against the kingdom of Israel, foreseeing its demise due to its wickedness (Amos 1-9). However, when the king and people of Israel heard Amos’ prophecy, they repented, delaying God’s judgment!
Nathan prophesied to David (2 Samuel 12:1-15) that he would suffer misfortune for sleeping with Uriah’s wife and producing a kid. Nathan forewarned David that the Lord would send his wives to those close to him, who would have sex with them in public. God forgave David when he admitted his sins and demonstrated contrition.
The instances provided above demonstrate that a prophecy serves as a warning, with the goal of bringing about repentance and restoration.
These illustrations demonstrate that prophecy is not a final or set result. While a priest is happy to accomplish his heavenly mission, we are ready to mock anyone who fails to fulfill a prophecy. Thus, it is foolish for Kyari’s thugs to attack Primate Ayodele.
Rather than using insulting language, Kyari need to demonstrate his ability to reverse the current negative trend and guarantee a sufficient supply of petroleum products.
Babajide Adekunle, a marketing specialist, writes from Lagos.
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How Primate Ayodele Foretold Peter Obi’s Exit From ADC Since July 2025
In early July 2025, when the African Democratic Congress (ADC) was unveiled as the opposition coalition party for the 2027 election, Nigerians were overjoyed.They weren’t just excited for the party, but also for those who made up the party. They were bigwigs from the 2023 presidential election and two major candidates of the opposition; Abubakar Atiku of PDP and Peter Obi of the Labour Party were part of the coalition.Many Nigerians who want the APC out of the way were excited that, for the first time, opposition parties in Nigeria realised it would take unity to remove a strong politician like President Tinubu from power and because in the last election, the combined votes of opposition parties surpassed that of Tinubu, the combination of the two opposition actors was seen as a great force.However, while Nigerians were happy about the coalition, Primate Elijah Ayodele, a renowned prophet who is known for the prophetic position he occupies in global politics and governance, revealed what was to come for the coalition during a press conference.The press conference was held on the 5th of July, to launch his annual prophecy book titled Warnings To The Nations, and during the question-and-answer sessions, he was asked about the fate of the ADC, and his response left everyone surprised.He mentioned that the ADC coalition is good, but the former governor of Anambra state, Peter Obi, would pull out of the party. He stated that the coalition is divine but Peter Obi will pull out. This was barely one week after the coalition was unveiled.These were his words:“The coalition is divine. Only a spell will dismantle the coalition.“Peter Obi will still pull out from this coalition, if care is not taken. If they advise him wrongly to pull out, he cannot win.”“If Obi said he wants to pull out, use Rotimi Amaechi (ex-minister). No other person (sic) will contest, it is Atiku. But the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) believes they have won the 2027 election with these governors that they are poaching. President Bola Tinubu, you have not won yet; I am giving you a warning now, how you can win, how people will defeat you.“Anything I said, that’s what God said. And I am presenting it that way. So, if you don’t like it, it is in 2027 that you will regret it.”https://thelagostimes.com/2027-election-primate-ayodele-releases-prophecy-on-adc-coalition-says-peter-obi-will-pull-out/Just as Primate Ayodele warned, Peter Obi left the coalition yesterday Sunday to pursue his presidential ambition elsewhere.This fulfilment further shuts the critics of Primate Ayodele; many have said what he does is permutation and analysis but there is no way anyone could have thought Peter Obi would leave the coalition in July 2025, the very beginning of the coalition when the going was at its best. This shows Primate Ayodele remains a formidable and credible prophet for all nations.Likewise, on the issue of Rabiu Kwankwaso, Primate Ayodele has always maintained that he is not fully with the ADC and that he will just be there like a mole.This has been fulfilled too because Kwankwaso left with Obi to NDC, just few weeks after joining.
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Four Times Primate Ayodele Warned About Resurfacing Of Covid-19 In Nigeria (VIDEOS)
Nigerians have been gripped by fear since the report of the COVID-19 variant in Cross River.The Cross River State Ministry of Health has begun profiling and tracing individuals in the state who have been in contact with a Chinese national admitted after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus.Not many people expected this to happen in Nigeria, because since 2020 when the global pandemic happened, there hasn’t been a single case of the virus in the country until yesterday, about five years later.However, despite the fact that Nigeria was declared Covid-19 free, popular Nigerian prophet, Primate Elijah Ayodele, warned about three times that he foresees the virus coming back to Nigeria.In his first prophecy regarding it, he warned that Nigerians should not pray to see Lassa fever and Covid-19 coming back in some areas.“Let’s pray so that we don’t see Lassa Fever again. Let’s pray so that Covid will not come back in some areas”https://vt.tiktok.com/ZS9dYjCMS/This wasn’t given attention by many because it felt Nigeria has been immune to the virus. Everyone went about their business as usual, and in the midst of all that, Primate Ayodele warned intensely again.“Let’s watch this for the World Health Organization, I see airborne disease, Covid in another dimension that can cause cough, cold, air disease, it’s a warning and that’s what the Lord said.”https://vt.tiktok.com/ZS9dj5UL5/This time, he specifically called out the World Health Organization about re-occurrence of Covid; and gave directions regarding how it would happen. He also emphasized that it was what the Lord said, but how many people actually listen?Again, during a church service, Primate Ayodele warned that Covid is coming and will happen in a different way compared to the previous one. He made it known that the way of contacting it will be different from the previous one.“Also, Covid is coming, but the way it’s going to come will be different from the way we experienced it that time. The process of contacting it will be different from the previous one.”https://vt.tiktok.com/ZS9djao7v/Likewise, in his annual prophecy book titled Warnings to the Nations, Primate Ayodele warned that another round of COVID is coming. This book was released in July 2025.“Another round of COVID will come up, and another disease epidemic. I foresee that a lot of money will be spent, and they will face some challenges in getting things right. The workers of this Body will be attacked, and there will be changes in leadership” (Page 36)All of these have fulfilled the prophecies of Primate Ayodele. Beyond the prophecy fulfilment, this is a call to relevant authorities to always listen when God is warning them about anything through his prophet.
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Kwara Monarch Kidnap: Primate Ayodele Warned But They Didn’t Listen
Oba Salman Aweda, his wife and another resident have been kidnapped emidnight invasion of Olayinka community in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State.He was recently elevated by the state government.The heavily armed gang stormed the palace of at about 1:40 a.m. on Saturday, firing sporadically to scare residents before taking him and two others to an unknown destination.This is the noise we have been making regarding how they treat the prophecy of Nigerian prophet, Primate Elijah Ayodele of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church.Before now, people used to say Primate Ayodele talks about politics alone but at the moment, his prophecies about insecurity in the country has been top notch; nobody comes close if we are to rank it but it is alarming that people who are supposed to secure people have turned deaf ears.This has repeated itself several times and it seems the time has come for us to ask questions; do our security operatives enjoy hearing the death and kidnap of innocent Nigerians let alone prominent individuals?Before the recent attacks on military base, an ondo monarch, bomb attacks in Borno, attack on church on Easter Sunday, Primate Ayodele specifically warned the security operatives and the government about the impending attacks but they never listened. Now, few weeks ago, Primate Ayodele revealed that next target of terrorist in Nigeria and stated that they are planning to attack some traditional rulers. He even went as far as revealing the states where the attacks would be carried out.These were his words:“Terrorists will start kidnapping traditional rulers in some states that include Kebbi, Niger, Zamfara, Kano, Kogi (Lokoja axis), Ondo, Kwara, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi and Yobe, with concerns that the threat could also extend to the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.”The happening in Kwara state has fulfilled this prophetic warning. Obviously our security operatives didn’t do anything about it. Now, how long do we continue like this?
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