Let me try to put his submission in context. Historically speaking the origins of the people who occupy Delta North Senatorial district, South-South Nigeria, collectively referred to as the Anioma people can be traced back to two extreme tendencies. Migration of people westwards from the ancient Kingdom of Nri, which is in present day Anambra State, South-Eastern Nigeria and migration eastwards from the ancient Kingdom of Benin in present day Edo State, South-South Nigeria. The incredible convergence of these two tendencies within the lush fertile plains of the Anioma area gave birth to a unique blend of people who took the best of both worlds, Igbo and Benin. This uniquely blended people created for themselves independent city states that exist till this day across the Delta North Senatorial district. However at that time in order to protect themselves lacking any form of defensive capacity they made a strategic decision to align themselves with the powerful Benin Kingdom and its Oba.
Thus ceding some of their independence becoming something akin to vassals states. Overtime, desirous of their full independence, having built up their defensive capacities, these city states sought for themselves Kings, as the Israelites of the Bible did. Understanding that a King would be a rallying point, a symbol of authority, power, influence and would ensure their longevity as a people. Lacking any form of royalty within their rank and file they sought royalty from the pool of the Benin dynasty. So with the blessing of the all powerful Oba who was all too pleased to release his sons to establish thrones within these city states thus creating a bond that exists till this day between them and the Benin kingdom. So it is safe to say that the headship of all these ancient kingdoms that exist today within Delta North Senatorial district are exclusively from Benin kingdom, while the genealogy of the followership is of Igbo and Benin stock. It reflects in their names; Okafor, Okorie, Okoro, Chukwuma, Ifeanyi.....Igbo. Osamor, Idehen, Irabor, Iduh, Edobor.....Benin. Even in their festivals and titles there is a blend of the Igbo and Benin.
The Governor's statement is historically factual and not in anyway political chicanery as is being suggested in some quarters. After all Blacks in America still refer to themselves as African-American when in most cases they are 10-15 times removed from the motherland. In my opinion the Governor is well within his right to call himself an Igbo man from the South-South as it is highly probable that some of his ancestors were from the ancient Nri Kingdom in present day Anambra State South-Eastern Nigeria!
D.K Jadicsmashy

The jury is out, since there is no scriptural or historical data to back this date, then it is important we examine the origins of that date and why the early Church chose it in the first place. However what is germaine is; how can something as important and significant as the birth date of our Lord and Saviour be built on assumptions, half-truths and ambiguity? The celebration of the Lord's birth should be a consciousness, and if a day is set aside to commemorate his birth then let that day be built on the foundation of truth and holiness.
Certina Laughlin et al writing in 'The Almanac of Pastoral Liturgy' said that 'all though the month and date of Jesus' birth are unknown the Church in the early first century fixed the date December 25th , a day that corresponds to the Winter Solstice. Bradshaw Paul in his hypothesis 'The Rural History of Religion' posits that the early Church selected December 25th date to appropriate festivities held by the Romans in honour of the Sun god , Sol Invictus. A manuscript credited to the 12th century Syrian Bishop Jacobi-Bar-Saibi writes 'it was the custom of the Pagans to celebrate on the birthday of the Sun god, December 25th a day that was marked with wanton revelries and extreme forms of debauchery. The German Protestant Minister in 1743 Paul Ernst Jadhonski argued that Christmas was planned on December 25th to correspond with the Roman Solar holiday Des Natalis Solis Invict and was therefore a Pagan infiltration that debased the true Church. Some may argue that there is nothing wrong with deodorizing the date and then dedicating it our Lord, after all if the date was once associated with darkness it has now been appropriated by light through its association with our Lord Jesus Christ. However look at this the Book of Leviticus 19:19 the Lord speaking through Moses....You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, or shall a garment made of two kinds of material come upon you... Bro. Witness Lee writing in the footnote to the aforementioned scripture says....making a garment without mixing materials signifies that in our living and conduct as new testament Christians we are not allowed to mix or to be seen to be living as the people of the world, to those who belong to the Lord must not live according to the customs of unbelievers. (Eph 4:17, Rom 12:2 and 2nd Corth 6:14b) So why is the present day Church celebrating a day that is steeped in idolatry? Of what fellowship does light have with darkness? Or Christ and Belial? Even consider this, the excessive pursuit of materialism , overt consumerism and obscene commodification of the days preceding the 25th is truly an aberration and anathema to the one in whose honour the day is celebrated in the first place. We must agree the early Church made a mistake by choosing that date, but it is not too late to correct the anomaly. My humble submission is let the leading lights of the Church the world over appoint an ecumenical think tank, who through deep prayers and conscientious study under the direction of the Holy Spirit begin the process of determining the actual birth date of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, so we can once and for all establish the true birth date of Jesus Christ and then in true Christian fashion bury the ghosts of the Christmas' past forever.

Still on the Edo election as an amateur non-partisan pundit I would like to give my own prediction on the likely outcome of tomorrows contest using the simplest of permutations based on the likely voting patterns in the three senatorial zones that make up the state.
EDO NORTH: The Deputy Governor is from this zone and is a known grass root mobilizer, his presence on the ticket will guarantee maximum votes for the Governor. As for his main challenger it is the Comrade factor and certainly not his running mate that is the main force behind the ticket. The Comrade is a dyed in the wool slugger and his presence in the opposition's corner will surely attract votes to APC.
MY VERDICT: Too close to call, most likely votes will be split down the center.
EDO SOUTH: The Governor and his main challenger are both from this zone. If the Governor was once considered to be a political upstart, today he is the real deal, a dogged fighter who has in recent times mastered the art of political brinkmanship. As for his main challenger, he is highly regarded in this zone having been around since 1999.
MY VERDICT: Too close to call.
EDO CENTRAL: This is the real battleground zone, this zone is a PDP strong hold and has always gone with the former ruling party since 1999 and are most likely to vote that way again. Considering the added incentive to vote PDP again; a sure route to Dennis Osadebey House in 2024. If Ize Iyamu wins it means this zone which is made up of the highly educated Esan people will have to wait for eight years (2028) to take a shot at the top job in Edo State. Since the creation of the state form the old Bendel State in 1991 no Esan man has ruled for a full four year period let alone eight. Prof. Osunbor would have if not that the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja sacked him one year into his ill-fated tenure.
Below are all the civilian chief executives since 1991
Chief John Odigie-Oyegun (Bini) Jan 1992-November 1993 (Edo South)
Chief Lucky Igbenedion (Bini) May 1999-May 2007 (Edo South)
Prof Oserheimen Osunbor (Esan) May 2007-November 2008 (Edo Central)
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole (Afamai) November 2008-November 2016 (Edo North)
Mr Godwin Obaseki (Bini) November 2016-Date (Edo South)
Based on the aforementioned I believe this zone will vote overwhelmingly for the Governor and this will ensure he wins the election.
MY VERDICT: The Governor will sweep this zone and by extension win the election.

Is there a grand design to further pauperize Nigerians? As if the unenviable title of 'poverty capital of the world' is not enough, they seek to further push us deeper into the sweltering miasma of poverty. By the time all this is over mark my words the new title would be the 'worlds capital of extreme poverty'. Is the timing right? PMS pump price increase, electricity tariff increase coupled with thousands furloughed due to the effects of a rampaging virus. Where is the National Assembly in all this? The same people that were quick to as DSTV Nigeria to back down on their planned price hike, but suddenly turn silent when Nigerians were slammed with more hardship! We are in for it, expect more mean measures in the coming months the ride will be rough, the turbulence long and scary, the outcome; best left to the realm of conjecture. God please save Nigeria!

My honest submission is a big NO! Since there is no scriptural or historical data to back this date. Imagine this, how can something as important as the birth date of our Lord and Savior be built on assumptions, half-truths and ambiguity? Certina Laughlin et al writing in The Almanac of Pastoral Liturgy said that 'although the month and date of Jesus' birth are unknown the Church in the early first century fixed the date December 25th, a day that corresponds to the winter solstice. Bradshaw Paul in his hypothesis 'The Rural History of Religion' posits that the early Church selected December 25th date to appropriate festivities held by the Romans in honor of the Sun god, Sol Invictus. A manuscript credited to the 12th century Syrian Bishop Jacobi-Bar-Saibi writes; 'it was a custom of the Pagans to celebrate on the birthday of the Sun god, December 25th, a day that was marked with wanton revelries and extreme forms of debauchery. The German Protestant Minister, in 1743 Paul Ernst Jablonski argued that Christmas was planned on December 25th to correspond with the Roman Solar holiday; Dies Natalis Solis Invict and was therefore a paganization that debased the true Church. In the Book of Leviticus 19:19 the Lord warns speaking through Moses.... 'You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed or shall a garment made of two kinds of material come upon you'..... Bro Witness Lee speaking in the footnotes to the above scripture says that 'making a garment without mixing materials signifies that in our conduct as Christians we are not allowed to be mixed, those living the New Testament life should not be seen to be living as the people of the 'world' do, those who belong to the Lord must not live according to the customs of unbelievers! (Eph 4:17, Rom 12 :2)
In 2nd Corinthians 6:14b the Bible says.... or what fellowship does light have with darkness? Bro Lee also expanded this saying...'the word indicated that the believers in Corinth were unequally yoked with unbelievers not separated unto God from worldly people and their practices. Pointing out that considering the believers divine nature and holy standing there should be no accord or harmony between Christ and Belial! So why are Christians being associated with a day that is steeped in idolatry? Even consider this the excessive materialism, overt consumerism and obscene commodification of the days preceding the 25th of December is truly an anathema to the one in whose honor the is celebrated in the first place.
My final word is let the leading lights of the Church the world over appoint an ecumenical think tank, who through deep prayers, insights, study and submission begin the process of unraveling the actual birth date of our Lord Jesus Christ so we can once and for all establish the correct date and in true Christian fashion bury the ghosts of the Christmas' past forever.

Long before Malam Abba Kyari's reign began and ended as the 'power behind the throne', there was a certain Greg Scarpa! The difference; Mr. Scarpa was a life-long criminal while Malam Kyari was a technocrat and distinguished public servant. The similarity lies in their larger than life persona, their unalloyed loyalty to their respective principals and sadly the circumstances surrounding their untimely deaths.
For those familiar with the five family structure of the New York wing of the American Mafia, may have heard of Greg Scarpa, he was a high ranking figure in the Colombo crime family. (The crime families are Colombo, Gambino, Luchesse, Genovese and Bonnano spread across the five boroughs of New York City) As a top ranking Capodecina in the Colombo family Greg Scarpa like Malam Kyari after him was never the Boss (in our case the President), the Under Boss (Vice President) or Consigliere (SGF) yet he wielded so much power and influence within his Borgata and beyond. So influential was this Capodecina that word on the street at that time was Greg Scarpa was the de facto Boss of the Colombo Borgata! No major decision, score or move could take place without first bouncing it off Mr. Scarpa. In fact Mr. Scarpa cuddled power, clung to its appurtenances, while cunningly putting the energy it generated to devastating use, building a cult of personality around himself, dolling out favors to associates and in the most extreme case determining who would live or die! (It was for the latter he earned the moniker 'the Grim Reaper). A lot of the aforementioned epaulettes were attached to the Kyari mystique the exception; the part of being a purveyor of death. Greg Scarpa's loyalty to his Boss was without question, it was fierce it was unimpeachable and like Malam Kyari after him the same could be said, in fact Waziri Adio tried to qualify it, in his words, 'he was always ready to take a bullet for his Boss. That is what loyal aids especially Chiefs of Staff do'. When the Colombo administration was threatened by some renegades from within the family it was Mr Scarpa the Boss turned to, to quell the mutiny, deal with the dissidents and restore order. In Malam Kyari's case he had to constantly restore order, albeit covertly as a result of what Simon Kolawole described 'as the narration of everything that went wrong within the Buhari government was constructed to put the blame at Kyari's doorsteps. As is the case with all mortals Greg Scarpa like Malam Kyari after him had his life cut short at the height of his power, not by the bullets of a criminal up-start but by a rampaging virus that claimed the life of this mob titan. It was said that when Greg Scarpa's death was announced spontaneous jubilation broke out in and around the New York criminal landscape and wait for this...even within certain law enforcement circles! Despite the negative press and vilification of Mr Scarpa there was genuine out-pouring of sadness by certain ordinary folks saddened by his passing. In the case of Malam Kyari after him we saw something similar an equal measure of joy and sadness on his passing. I will not dwell on the former, in the case of the latter the most poignant show was from no other than the Minister of the Exterior Mr Geoffrey Onyema, his beautifully crafted dirge could well be described as a colorful tapestry of effusive praise written for a deserving 'Best Man'. RIP Malam Abba Kyari!

Last time I checked Donald J Trump is still the POTUS, a Nigerian Daily thinks other wise!

A leading Nigerian Newspaper recently referred to Mike Pence Trump's Vice President as President! What a gaffe!

With his recent showing at the Iowa caucuses what if by the wildest stretch of the imagination Mayor Pete Buttigieg goes on to win the Democratic party nomination. And then wait for this goes on to defeat Donald J Trump come November 2020. The question is what will his partner be called; the first man? (Mayor Buttigieg is openly gay and is married to his long time male friend). Let's figure it out just thinking aloud.

Lawyers in the house I need your help , how come Maryam Sanda gets the death penalty for murdering her husband, while Yewande Oyediran who also murdered her husband Lowo in Ibadan Oyo State was convicted for manslaughter then sentenced to just seven years in the can. To add salt to injury I heard the out going Governor on the eve of his departure gave her a pass, effectively given her a state pardon. The question is are the two incidents not similar? Lawyers please help give us a legal basis for the difference in outcomes.