Opinion
Culture and Tourism: One year of painful agony
Published
2 years agoon
By
Lanre
President Ahmed Bola Tinubu is certainly a strategic thinker. He possibly could pass as the Aristotle of Nigerian politics, and many people wonder at his many socioeconomic and political interventions, some of them begging for interpretations.
Out of the blue, Mr. President gave us two ministries, Culture, Arts Creative economy, and Tourism. The development, though inspiring, provoked bitter and sweet reactions.
How could culture, arts and a creative economy that oxygenate tourism be separated from each other? The arguments raged and trust some of our pranting noisemakers who couldn’t see beyond their noses, they premised everyone who called on the President to do a rethink on the separation of the twins as noisemakers and rude to Mr. President.
The President, who is ever willing to listen, waded into the controversy and explained that he wanted to use the creation of the two ministries to stimulate jobs and offer space for more hands in baking the cake for the Renewed Hope agenda.
If creating jobs in the cultural tourism industry is the focal expectation of the agenda, then the President has hit the bull’s eyes but on political job offerings for the sake of boys and girls in the political space, then there must be a rethink, considering the huge plundering of the nation by ex-political appointees.
Unlike 2015, when President Buhari came with sweeping brooms to audit the Ministry of Tourism and found the cupboards empty without any documentation to help his government restructure the economy, which, consequently, led to the renaming the Ministry as Information, Culture and National Orientation, with Tourism, sadly, on a desk profile, Lai Mohammed, who took over the ministry, shadowed tourism as the voice of Jacob to culture.
Indeed, and in truth, culture played a significant and pivotal role in shaping our tourism space with the National Council of Arts and Culture, under the watch of enigmatic Otunba Segun Runsewe, occupying the Nigerian economic space even beyond the tourism rendition.
With a proven track record of delivery as Nigeria’ s tourism chief years ago, Runsewe rallied and glavernised all Nigerians, particularly members of the National Assembly and state governors, to buy into the Nigerian cultural landscape. He didn’t wait for any presidential council on tourism or any fancy overhyped cultural policy.
Matthew Olusegun Runsewe is a man of faith and, within a space of two years in office as Nigeria’s cultural ambassador and marketer, won over the hard doubting minds of Nigerians to value the chains in our cultural economy.
The President’s economic eggheads didn’t consult the cultural tourism maestro, and it was a grave oversight.
Ever strategic, futuristic, innovative and authoritative, Runsewe didn’t square in the make-believe gallery of cultural spin doctors but carefully took our cultural products to the owners, the Nigerian people
And with an abiding faith in Nigerian tourism press in particular and the entire national media landscape, Runsewe launched out with culture as the new oil, rebranded National Festival of Arts and Culture, and brought the world to Nigeria through cultural diplomacy to trade in Nigeria’s biggest cultural market, the International Arts and Crafts market.
Abuja, in five years, danced like an excited peacock and became the global cornerstone for cultural tourism diversity, which opened doors for all-expenses-paid international cultural invitational trips for some outstanding state cultural troupes to showcase our cultural values to the world. Significantly, INAC became a breeding ground to export our cultural diversity to the world and bring the world to our doorstep. It was counted for Runsewe!
There were also gains in training opportunities offered by countries such as Turkey and China. Indeed, Nigerian rural communities were targeted beneficiaries of skill acquisitions in arts and crafts, fashion designing, traditional hairmaking, shoemaking, cloth weaving, and so much more. There are living testimonies, no abracadabra!
At each of the two unfailing calendared cultural events, the youths, particularly the womenfolk, were mentored to acquire skills to reinvent the sector. The records of beneficiaries gave vent to eggheads around the President to rethink and birth an exclusive cultural economy. Unfortunately, they didn’t consult the maestro, and that led to our agonies.
From Kaduna to Rivers, Plateau, Edo, Ekiti, and Lagos states, Runsewe, in partnership with the governors, delivered on the socioeconomic strength of Nigerian culture and arts economy. For a week’s duration, the festival took place in those states, and it’s evident that both local and international attention were focused on the gains of the iconic festival.
This report today is to audit the ministries of culture and tourism under Hannatu Musa Musawa and Lola Ade-John, respectively, and to submit with evidence the two beautiful women failed this administration and put to flight our expectations on the renewed gains in the two sectors. My verdict is that they should look for jobs elsewhere or go back to their Egypt.
Both Hannatu Musawa and Lola Ade-John do not have depth, charisma and the guts to take us across the Jordan to the promised renewed land of hope in Culture and Tourism trade.
Let me situate that Musawa as Minister of Culture, Arts and Creative Economy amputated the Nigerian cultural movement through her unbelievable swoop on all the 11 heads of parastatals under the newly created ministry of culture, an effort that caused a heart failure of the Nigerian cultural movement.
Though changes are inevitable in the journey of life, it is sad for a minister to bitterly knife through the souls of the best we have in the system out of mere political shenanigans, certainly showcasing ingenuity in scandalous self-worth.
Runsewe was not only the big star in our cultural firmament, there were also Ahmed Mohammed Ahmed and Ado Yahuza, who turned around the fortunes of the National Troupe of Nigeria and National Institute for Cultural Orientation ( NICO), respectively, before the coming of Musawa.
Ahmed literally burnt midnight candles, went round the country, sought out the best creative young persons, and on the flooded planes of Iganmu,lagos office of the agency, breath life back into our moribund National Troupe, set it off on global showcase and insisted that Nigeria must welcome her foreign guests with the best of culture dances and drummings on showcase.
Hannatu killed that dream, but today, she wished to appropriate the gains as landmarks of her key performance metrics. The case of Ado Yahuza at Nico is equally worth mentioning because we must build on gains and not distractions packaged to deceive the public.
Nico also rose from the ashes of misplaced and misappropriated priorities. As a tested human resources manager, Ado Yahuza took Nico’s training school out of the lethargy of focal mission, affiliated it with Nassarawa state University, breeding certificated cultural officers for the good of nation and for export to global cultural knowledge market.
Under Ado Yahuza, Nico tackled headlong the discomforting cultural malaise among Nigerian young persons, took our languages to the barracks, and schools across the country and flourished cultural revival through cultural clubs in secondary schools. Our children become proud again about our way of life.
Ado Yahuza also worked hard with the encouragement of UNESCO and got Nigerian heritage values , sango festival in oyo State, and our midwifery system listed on UNESCO representative calendar. Nico thematic workshops targeting the academic community and Sundry professional groups produced detailed essays and materials for generic documentation to find solutions to national cultural setbacks. Hannatu again nailed Ado Yahuza on head for outstanding performance but would turn around to document his achievements as one of her great achievements in one year.
In a recent publication sighted last week in a national newspaper and written by one Dr Deji Ayooola, an anthropologist, his deliberate delivery of what was clearly an attempt to credit Hannatu Musa Musawa with scores of achievements she bitterly repudiated by sacking these patriotic Nigerians , is nauseating. It was an anthropological fallacy written to curate Hannatu as our cultural messiah. It failed to click and register against her failed efforts so far.
Though Hannatu was quoted to gleefully admit that the remarkable achievements and milestones in the culture space were the handwork of “ her predecessors” in the sector, it is, however, rankling to the mind why Hannatu choose to sack the best, the “ predecessors “ (DGs) and sought their replacement with girls and boy scouts! In a hurry to assert her lordship in the sector, she pulled down pillars unto honour, and she wanted us to clap for her?
The truth is that Hannatu Musa Musawa has added no values to whatever she met on the ground in the culture space and should be shown the way out of this government. There was no inclusivity in the way she ran the ministry and which evidently ambushed critical ongoing gains before she came.
Her first stakeholders meeting at Villa ended terribly in chaos when the creative community told her to regard herself as a mere passenger and not as chief pilot in the fast-moving nigerian creative train. The media was awash with the apologies of our amiable vice-president, kashmi shettima, who promised the culture and creative stakeholders that this government will respond positively to their neglect over the years. Hannatu didn’t get the message!
Hannatu’s effort to reap from the Grammy Awards nominations of some Nigerian acts and whom unfortunately lost out to a South African listed nominee drove nails between the minister and Nigerians when she out of desperation called for an African Grammy Awards replica.
Certainly, it won’t be out of place that Hannatu’s one year in office attracted most stringent controversies ever apart from the edugate affair. The public opprobrium against her many public missteps is a tail sign that she is surplus to requirement in this administration.
For want of repeating myself, it’s funny that someone somewhere in present day Nigeria, in our culture space, will deliberately mark up the ongoing refurbishment of National theatre, a private business, owned by the Bankers Committee as one of Hannatu’s pindown achievements. It is a hilarious, unbelievable, desperate movie script written to mock our intelligence.
Moonlight jobs and GDP sweet songs
I was gripped with fear on the anthropological submission that about 257, 754 “ new jobs” were harvested by Hannatu in one year and to the Gross National domestic productivity, Hannatu’s classical ingenuity scaled up the GDP by a share of 0. 37 per cent from 1. 3% to a current GDP share of 1. 67%. This abracadabra figures from certainly a heinous research beats my imagination considering the fact that the minister and her new team are struggling on all fronts. She held her first retreat with her team barely three weeks ago, so where did magic figures come from?
There were other generated statistics from the synagogue of Satan, unbelievably outlandish and programmed to deceive unassuming Nigerians.
Soft power magic!
It was again written by our anthropologist that the ministry spearheaded Nigeria cultural influence from 2. 5 % to 46% in the period under review and the brand index perception from 1. 5% to 18%. I dey laugh the devil. What? Under Hannatu’s, the clueless minister of culture? Wonders shall not end with infertile imaginations of some Nigerians. Watch out from this week advertorials, press releases, and paid opinions on the achievements of day dreamers in this government.
On the stakeholders’ belt, the ministry and minister “organised” successfully about 18 stakeholders’ meetings spread through workshops and public engagements by CEBAAC and Nigerian Gallery of Arts. Really? When and where? Hannatu held a creative sector meeting under the office of the vice president, and just on Friday, May 10th, the Nigerian film and Censors Board, headed now by Dr Shaibu Husseini held a strategic stakeholders meeting in lagos. Two is the number and not 18, as generously and ingeniously claimed by the magical anthropological hand.
Certainly, the game to justify their appointments is here, and the fear of their removal for poor performance will beyond measure the pushing out conjured figures to the public space. Except for Dr Shaibu Husseini of Nigeria films, movies, and censors Board, nothing good has come out of the Culture House of Hannatu.
Hannatu sadly is her own problem. She was not circumspect and wise to clearly work with the best she met on the ground, but today, without fear of posterity, has aligned with the achievements of those she pushed under the bus in the desperation to have an absolute grip on the sector.
We won’t be surprised to see the same fabulous fallacious ecosystem emanating from some of her appointees to just justify their obvious failings. Unfortunately, Hannatu can not save the failures as the blind can not lead the blind.
In the tourism sector, Lola Ade John should just go and take a deserved rest somewhere. She is not in tourism, not cut out for it, can not interpret her mission, and is too laid back to confront the two monsters under her struggling ministry.
Madam lola is a victim of her fear. She is feeble, weak, and afraid to effect changes and drive collaborations that can advance the course of the sector. She has walked into a deadly trap, and it’s too late for her to escape the hammer of non performance.
Her spin doctors are well-known industry buccaneers . They will give you a shoulder to cry on for a fee or reward. Ade John came to seek a sympathetic tourism crowd, and they have been praising her to high heavens and justifying her very grave failings.
I won’t waste my time because lola Ade John has no technical tourism structure of her own. She is in the wrong place, pretending that she can do the job. Lola Ade John can’t do anything for tourism. That is truth and the only truth. We won’t be surprised to see her Bill Boards all over Abuja, lagos, and Ekiti states, showcasing her soft power in cutting red tapes to declare open grandiose tourism projects primed to confuse the uninitiated.
I don’t know why people lie openly to justify just a stay in public office, to which they are unfit to run. Is it a crime to throw in the towel if the ring is too hot and unbearable?
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Opinion
Why Nigeria needs the All-Nigeria Rotary Peace Summit
Published
3 days agoon
November 3, 2026
The All-Nigeria Rotary Peace Summit will examine how good governance, justice and equity can help Nigeria build lasting peace
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Entertainment
Reel Momentum: Nollywood Releases That Defined Q3
Published
2 weeks agoon
October 21, 2026
By Olayinka Akanbi
The third quarter of 2026 offered a clear picture of where Nollywood stands today. Across July, August and September, filmmakers told stories centred on family, culture, history, identity and everyday life.
Some films looked inward at personal struggles, while others drew from folklore, real-life events and Nigeria’s past.
Also read: Orlando Owoh Music Festival Set for November 7 in Lagos
There were also signs of change in how films are distributed, with streaming platforms increasing their investment in original content.
July was defined by personal, character-driven stories.

One of the standout releases was Alechenu, directed by Biodun Stephen, which followed the journey of an autistic teenager travelling from Oyo State to Lagos in search of the mother he had never met.
The film explored themes of family, identity and perseverance through a simple yet emotional narrative.
Around the same period, Lami focused on the life of a retired soldier grappling with the emotional effects of war, examining trauma, healing and second chances through the experience of one man trying to rebuild his life.

Another notable release, The Return of Omotara Johnson, marked the return of veteran actress Bukky Wright in a crime drama centred on family secrets and unresolved past conflicts.

Later in the month, films such as Wire Wire and Njem: The Journey continued the trend of storytelling rooted in real-life experiences and social issues.
In August, attention shifted towards history, tradition and culture.

The month opened with Sweet 16, a coming-of-age family drama that also drew attention as one of the final completed performances by the late actor Alexx Ekubo.
This was followed by Ikenga: The Last Festival, a story centred on tradition, power and destiny, featuring veteran actors Pete Edochie and Patience Ozokwor.

Released around the same period, Aláhùn (The Weaver) drew heavily from Yoruba mythology and folklore, highlighting a growing interest in indigenous narratives and local fantasy storytelling.

Towards the end of the month, King Kosoko revisited the life of one of Lagos’ most influential historical rulers, reflecting a broader shift by filmmakers towards exploring Nigeria’s history on screen.
By September, the conversation had expanded beyond storytelling to include audience engagement and distribution models.

One of the month’s notable releases was Mama Deola’s Wedding Story, which became the first original production from Nigerian streaming platform Kava. Its release underscored the increasing role of local streaming services in shaping the industry.
Other films focused on contemporary life and younger audiences.
Ordinary People examined the lives of everyday Nigerians, while 19 explored themes of identity, ambition and relationships from a youthful perspective.
One Gidi Night captured the rhythm and character of Lagos, using the city itself as a central narrative element.
The month also saw the release of Black Market, which generated widespread attention due to efforts to stage a Guinness World Record attempt for the largest film screening audience at Tafawa Balewa Square in Lagos.
Taken together, these releases reflect an industry in transition one that is expanding its storytelling range while experimenting with new platforms, audiences and formats.
Also read: Orlando Owoh Music Festival Set for November 7 in Lagos
Nollywood is not only telling more stories; it is also redefining how those stories are created, distributed and experienced.
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By Victor Ojelabi,
The Rotary Foundation has recognised the polio eradication efforts of Rotary International District 9112 under Immediate Past District Governor Lanre Adedoyin, following the District’s transfer of District Designated Funds to the PolioPlus Fund during the 2025 to 2026 Rotary year, a contribution acknowledged recently, as part of the global funding effort to protect children from the disease.
Also read: Rotary Club of Lagos Strengthens Traders With Fresh ₦6m Business Grant
The recognition brings a fitting international dimension to a Rotary year in which Adedoyin, a lawyer and member of the Rotary Club of Surulere South, repeatedly placed polio eradication among District 9112’s major humanitarian priorities across Lagos and Ogun states.
In a message addressed to District 9112, The Rotary Foundation thanked the District for committing its District Designated Funds to the campaign, saying the collective support from Rotary districts helped the organisation reach its fundraising target and secure matching funds that translate into US$150 million for polio eradication.
“Your support helped Rotary reach our goal and secure the matching funds that translate into US$150 million toward eradicating polio,” the Foundation said.
The money has consequences far beyond the balance sheet.
According to the Foundation, polio funding supports frontline workers taking vaccines into remote communities, environmental surveillance capable of detecting the virus in wastewater and programmes designed to interrupt transmission in affected areas.
The Foundation said the continuing effort was particularly important in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the only two countries where wild poliovirus remains endemic.
That assessment is consistent with Rotary International’s latest account of the global campaign.
Rotary says its partnership with the Gates Foundation generates up to US$150 million annually for polio eradication, with Rotary raising US$50 million and the Foundation providing a two-to-one match.
The money supports vaccine procurement, social mobilisation, outbreak response, surveillance and other operational requirements.
Rotary’s involvement stretches back decades. Its first polio vaccination project began in the Philippines in 1979, and the organisation became a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988. Since then, global polio cases have fallen by 99.9 per cent.
For Nigeria, the story carries particular resonance.
The country recorded its last case of wild poliovirus in Borno State in August 2016.
Four years later, the World Health Organisation African Region was formally certified free of wild poliovirus, leaving Afghanistan and Pakistan as the remaining countries with endemic transmission.
That historic achievement, however, did not mean the end of the polio challenge in Nigeria.
Circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus can still emerge in communities with low immunisation coverage, making vaccination and surveillance essential even in countries that have eliminated wild poliovirus.
It was against that backdrop that the IPDG’s polio drive developed during the 2025 to 2026 Rotary year.
Adedoyin, who became the second District Governor of District 9112 following the division of the former District 9110, had signalled early in his tenure that healthcare would remain a central part of the District’s service programme.
His installation in Lagos in July 2025 marked the beginning of a year that subsequently combined fundraising with grassroots advocacy and support for health workers.
By September 2025, the District had held a PolioPlus seminar at which Adedoyin warned against complacency simply because wild poliovirus had disappeared from Nigeria. District records show that the campaign remained prominent in its programme in the months that followed.
In October, Districts 9111 and 9112 took the End Polio Now message beyond conventional conference halls with a joint train journey from Lagos to Abeokuta.
Led by Adedoyin and then District 9111 Governor Henry Akinyele, alongside Nigeria National PolioPlus Committee Chairman Joshua Hassan and other Rotary leaders, the initiative turned the train journey into a public awareness campaign for polio eradication.
District 9112 also took the message to communities in Ogun State, including a roughly 10-kilometre Keep Polio @ Zero awareness walk in Sagamu aimed particularly at encouraging parents and guardians to ensure that children receive their vaccinations.
In Lagos, the campaign moved from advocacy to practical support.
District 9112 donated 100 pairs of rain boots and 200 raincoats to the Lagos State Primary Health Care Board in October 2025 to assist health personnel working on polio eradication during the rainy season. The intervention was valued at about ₦1.6 million.
Adedoyin made the District’s position clear at the presentation.
“Our commitment to ending polio is absolute,” Adedoyin said. “We will continue working with the Lagos State Government and our partners until polio is completely wiped out.”
Another significant moment came towards the end of his tenure.
In June 2026, District 9112 announced that it had raised US$13,000 through the World’s Greatest Meal initiative for The Rotary Foundation’s PolioPlus Fund.
The contribution was described by World’s Greatest Meal Committee Chairman Tokunbo Opanubi as one of the highest recorded by the District through the initiative.
The US$13,000 contribution is separate from the District Designated Funds now acknowledged by The Rotary Foundation.
Together, however, the initiatives illustrate the different channels through which District 9112 supported the global eradication campaign during Adedoyin’s tenure.
District Designated Funds form part of The Rotary Foundation’s funding system and allow Rotary districts to direct portions of avail

IPDG Lanre Adedoyin with wife at a Rotary event recently
able Foundation resources towards eligible programmes.
PolioPlus is one of the avenues through which districts can deploy such resources in support of Rotary’s eradication objective.
The Foundation’s latest acknowledgement therefore adds another layer to District 9112’s polio record for the 2025 to 2026 year.
It also demonstrates the multiplier effect behind Rotary’s funding model.
A contribution originating from clubs and districts can ultimately support a much larger global pool used for vaccines, surveillance, community mobilisation and the difficult task of reaching children in areas affected by conflict, insecurity or geographical isolation.
The stakes remain considerable.
Polio is a potentially fatal infectious disease that primarily affects young children and can invade the nervous system, causing irreversible paralysis.
Although its global footprint has been reduced dramatically, Rotary cautions that eradication requires sustained vaccination and surveillance until transmission has been stopped everywhere.
The Foundation’s message to District 9112 captured that unfinished mission.
It thanked the District for supporting the PolioPlus Fund and helping move the world closer to the point where “no child is threatened by this disease ever again”.
For Adedoyin, who handed over the governorship of District 9112 at the end of the 2025 to 2026 Rotary year, the recognition offers a powerful postscript to a year in which the District’s contribution was measured not only in fundraising figures, but also in public advocacy, community mobilisation and support for those working closest to vulnerable children.
Also read: Rotary Club of Lagos Strengthens Traders With Fresh ₦6m Business Grant
And for District 9112, the acknowledgement connects a local Rotary story from Lagos and Ogun states to a much larger global ambition: ensuring that the final cases of polio become part of history rather than the beginning of another outbreak.
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