[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Any responsible individual that is truly worth to be called a Senator, a position that convokes respect, decorum, and decent public conduct, should know the limits of his verbal diarrhoea.” [/perfectpullquote]
[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his is true for only those who have a home and can maintain descent matrimonial. A notorious serial divorcee, first class adulterer with volatile family history, a legislooter whose lifestyle is irreconcilably different from his legitimate earnings , Senator Dino Melaye who represents Kogi West Senatorial District in the National Assembly is the tragedy of the Okun Nation.
A graduate of Geography from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria with ‘pass’ grade level knew ab initio his certificate will not secure a job for him delved into politics, started as a hatchet job executor and found his way into mainstream politics under the evil reign of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in 2007 when he represented the people of Kabba/Bunu Federal Constituency.
Dino’s four years in the House of Representative was a monumental disaster, inglorious and huge embarrassment for the people of his constituency, state and the Federal Government as he turned the legislative chamber into a boxing ring intermittently. At the peak of the crisis that trailed the allegation that the then Speaker, Patricia Etteh, awarded N628 million contract to renovate her official residence and that of her deputy, Babangida Nguroje, in Apo Legislators’ Quarters, Abuja, Mr. Melaye exchanged blows with two of his colleagues; Emmanuel Jime and Hon Samuel Sejoro. The crisis began few weeks Dino Melaye was appointed Chairman Committee, Information and National Orientation by Hon Etteh. In defence of his appointment, Dino engaged in physical brutality of his colleagues including a female lawmaker Mercy Alumona-Isei, who he thoroughly abused and assaulted.
That was how the Kogi lawmaker first came into national prominence as an extremely troublesome, controversial and bad mannered figure. Dino fought tooth and nail to make the House of Representative ungovernable for Mrs Etteh’s successor; Dimeji Bankole but in futility as the entire house rose against his recklessness, selfish, childish and recalcitrant attitude towards constituted authority. On June 25th 2009, refusing to bend towards Dino’s whims and caprices, Mr. Melaye and his co-travellers, who styled themselves “Progressives,” called for the resignation of the House speaker, Dimeji Bankole noting that the young Speaker was dishonest and that his camp was tired of his leadership. This time around, it wasn’t in Dino’s way as he and other co-travellers were almost stripped by the pro-Bankole lawmakers, who tore their clothes in the process in the full glare of the students of City Royal Secondary School, Nyanya, a suburb of Abuja, who had come on excursion to the House. At the end of it, Dino Melaye was suspended from the house.
Because of his unruly behaviour and rapacious appetite for wealth, he championed any course that would bring him money no matter its dirtiness and foreseen and unforeseeable negative implications. It was on the account of his irresponsive representation with dubious antecedence that the people of Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu federal constituency rejected him for the second term in 2011 and he left the PDP for the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN. He stormed the ACN in his camisado’s style, bootlicking around the then ACN leader, Late Prince Abubakar Audu to get the ticket to return to the House of Representative and while ironically succeeded in getting the ticket, the people of Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu Federal constituency waited for Dino at the polls and rejected him again. Between 2011 and 2015, Dino became spokesperson to many influential Nigerians with criminal records, dug out their records and use it against them for his selfish interest.
Describing himself as an anti-corruption agent, Melaye floated the Anti-Corruption Network, which he used to campaign against graft. Dino was the executive director of Anti-corruption Network, another platform he used in duping unsusceptible Nigerians. Under his Anti-corruption Network, the likes of Senator Stella Oduah and Diezani Alison-maduekwe were his biggest prey. During the fuel price hike in 2012, Dino led a protest against the Federal Government, launching attack through the office of the then Petroleum minister Diezani Alison-maduekwe but the protest suddenly died immediately when Dino was given license for kerosene supply to the Northern Nigeria. During Stella Oduah’s BMW car purchase scandal as minister of Aviation, Dino threatened her with nation-wide protest but again rescinded after collecting the sum of One Hundred and Thirty Million Naira from the then embattled Aviation Minister.
In 2014 during the All Progressive Congress primary election, Dino was said to have attacked the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC forcing management staff of the commission to certify his primary election result which was conducted in his car. It was glaring and a known fact that three APC candidates for senatorial election all won but two were unseated for improper conduct of party primary which Dino was also guilty of. Dino was never the choice of the people nor that of the party but Bamidele Sam Aro. Haven found Aro as the greatest obstacle, Dino Melaye petitioned Sam Aro before the EFCC for financial crime, allegation that was considered untrue at the end of the investigation of the anti-graft agency.
In the general election and even with the “Buhari Tsunami” Dino did not win a local government in the five local government areas of Okun Nation where he comes from. And as a Leopard, he did not change his spots and has transferred his brand of politics of deceit, arrogance, nastiness, viciousness and indecent, to the upper house where he is not only a strong backer of embattled president of the senate Mr. Saraki but also chairs the Committee on the Federal Capital Territory where he is currently enriching himself with both cash and landed property.
Just like his political life, a man who is popularly known as ‘Bingo’; the name given to him by his two divorced wives has not stopped showing the world that he was raised under juvenile facilities. Out of the 109 distinguished senators of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dino Melaye is the only one who is currently unmarried. His first wife; Tokunbo Fabiyi who nicknamed Dino as Bingo had three children for him in their ten years of Marriage and another child from unnamed woman. Tokunbo got the worse beating of her life when she accused Dino of lying about his relationship with the actress Bisi Ibidapo Obe, stating among other choice words, “You have a Masters degree in lying, but I have a Ph.D. in detecting bullshit” She filed a divorce when she could no longer absorb beating from Bingo. Shortly after, Dino Melaye moved another woman named Alero Falope into the home that he shared with Tokunbo. Falope moved out 6 months later.
In 2016, the whole world stood in dismay, criticising Dino Melaye in drove for threatening a female colleague, wife of former Lagos State governor, Sen Oluremi Tinubu with beating and rape. Melaye earlier called on the Senators in attendance on the fateful day to fight the presidency to a standstill.
But when Senator Remi Tinubu (APC) called on Senators to close ranks and seek reconciliation amongst its members, Melaye flew into rage and said “I will beat you up, Impregnate you and nothing will happen”. Mrs Tinubu was saved by her colleagues from the rampaging Melaye.
During the inauguration of Governor Yahaya Bello as the forth executive governor of Kogi State on the 27th of January, 2016, Dino Melaye said “The people of the Western Senatorial District where I come from voted en mass for Prince Abubakar Audu. The people of the Eastern Senatorial District voted en mass for Audu, and the people of the Central Senatorial District voted en mass for Audu but God almighty voted for Yahaya Bello”. Haven found out that Yahaya Bello was too sophisticated and pro-people for him to manipulate to the bidding of the few against the general interest of the people, Dino is now turning around, looking for a way out of his political sinking ship and gathered some octogenarians expired politicians to pass a vote of no confidence on Governor Bello.
We have known this entire people from the past to the present; some started as commissioners, senators and guber aspirants whose stewardship remained colourless. The earlier they believe that Bello has returned governance to the people and their clandestine ethnic agenda will have no place in Kogi politics any long the better for them.
TOSIN JIDE
