by Wilfred Okiche

Should you look hard on the Internet, there are many instances where Dino Melaye, Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is behaving if not badly, then at least suspiciously. And no the pictures of him rolling on the floor of a church or videos in which he is recorded, dancing merrily to gospel songs do not count. One of those videos stands out in particular and can always be looked back upon as the prototype for the typical Dino Melaye interview that dares to venture beyond fawning admiration for the Senator.

Sitting with Ebuka Obi-Uchedu on the live chat show, Rubbin’ Minds airing on Channels television back in 2013, Dino Melaye, then not holding a government or political appointment, found a new calling as the Fonder/Executive Secretary of the Anti-Corruption Network (ACN), a civil society group. Mr Melaye and his Anti-Corruption Network were at the time, invested in the scandal that hit the Aviation ministry when it was uncovered that the minister, Stella Oduah had taken delivery of two 255billion Naira bullet proof cars purchased for her by an agency she was supervising.

There was no placating Dino Melaye as he came armed to the teeth with details that he assumed would suffice to convict Stella Oduah in the eyes of Nigerians. When Obi-Uchendu wasn’t buying any of his tough-talking, the ugly side of Dino Melaye, which had been quietly bubbling under the surface, came alive.

To be fair, whatever Melaye was selling was a tough one considering that the former house of representative member had a history of not too elegant behaviour, engaging in a public brawl while defending his principal, Patricia Etteh, another female politician who was accused of financial impropriety during her short stay as Speaker of the federal House.

This ugly side is one that has shown up in several other interviews which Dino Melaye has given before and after. It is the defence posture Nigerian politicians, unused to being challenged openly adopt when a line of questioning is not quite going their way. Instead of engaging directly with the issues and convincing his audience of the merits of his argument, Melaye began to bluff. He did this by accusing Obi-Uchendu (who unfortunately wasn’t at his informed best) of ‘’deviating from these issues now and trying to see how you can indict‘’ and being a ‘’Senior Advocate of the Minister.’’

Almost two years later, in another interview, this time with Sahara Reporters television platform, things were going considerably well until Rudolf Okonkwo started to query the thinking behind the lavish display of wealth and material possessions on Melaye’s various social media handles. Melaye took umbrage at this line of questioning, immediately retreating into defensive play, ‘’There is something called investigative journalism and I do expect that before you conclude on a story you need to hear from the other side,’’ Melaye lashed out at his host.

There was something disturbingly wrong about Mr Okonkwo’s professional conduct during the interview, as he wasn’t quite sure of his facts and allowed Senator Melaye railroad him one too many times but on this particular matter, all he did was ask a fair question that Melaye should have responded to in good faith.
The hustle is real

Before his name became associated with infamy, Dino Melaye was a go lucky child growing up in the ancient city of Kano. By the time he entered Form 2, Melaye recalls that his father lost his job hence the family encountered difficulties paying school fees. The young Melaye took up the responsibility and trained himself through Secondary school, trying out various odd jobs such as hawking soft drinks and working as an attendant in a petrol filling station.

According to him, he worked at Nickle Sweets in Kano on and off for six years before eventually obtaining his JAMB forms through proceeds from his stint as a bus conductor. Melaye also put his younger siblings through school from wages earned as a blue collar worker.
As an undergraduate of Geography at the Ahmadu Bello University, Melaye involved himself in student union activities. He was eventually elected Student Union leader before leading the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), a body more famous for the parasitic relationships its users have forged with politicians and people in powerful positions.

Dino Melaye’s rise and ascension to the summit of political power was done the old fashioned way, same way hundreds of political careers have kicked off in Nigeria. Start out as a student leader, establish a reputation as a mobilizer or change agent, cultivate relationships with politicians, cut your teeth working for and with them in whatever capacity, stay loyal to their cause, and seize whatever moment that presents itself when it does. When queried on the source of his convictions, Melaye insists he ventured into politics for development reasons and to right the wrongs of society

In any case, Dino Melaye became the Secretary General of the African Youth Council and then that of the Common Wealth Youth Council. In 2005, impressed by his experience, Melaye was appointed by President Olusegun Obasanjo to chair the Presidential Advisory Council on Youths. Both Melaye and Obasanjo had been imprisoned during the Abacha years.
2007 was the year all the hustle finally paid off for Melaye as he was elected to the House of Representatives on behalf of his Kabba/Bunu/Ijumu federal constituency of Kogi State. The importance of the climb he had to take to get into the power equation is not lost on Melaye and he stresses this in an interview with Punch Newspapers. Hear him, ‘’Power is never served as a buffet. To attain power, you must struggle for it. The youths of this country will not get power on a platter of gold. So they must come out of their cocoons and begin to make sacrifices in search for power.’’

A history of violence
No sooner had Dino Melaye been elected than the country became aware,- in the most ignoble way of course,- of the youngish legislator with a penchant for big sounding words that mean very little and a weird taste for violence. The first major scandal to hit the newly elected house in 2007 had Dino Melaye right in the thick of it. And it was not the last.

The Speaker of the House at the time, Mrs Patricia Olubunmi Etteh found herself in a debacle after it was uncovered that she had awarded a contract worth 628million Naira for the renovation of her and her deputy’s official residences. Dino Melaye was one of the strongest, most vocal supporters of Patricia Etteh even when it was clear she had lost public sympathy.

He took this support to strange heights at the public sitting of the panel headed by David Idoko that was set up to investigate the contract award when he furiously exchanged blows with honourable colleagues Emmanuel Jime (Benue) and Samuel Sejoro (Lagos,) forcing the panel to adjourn sitting.

Patricia Etteh was soon swept aside, replaced by a youngish Dimeji Bankole but Melaye and the ‘’Progressives,’’ his clique of like minds refused to get over her ouster. He styled himself as an anti-corruption crusader and in June of 2009, Melaye accused the House leadership of mismanaging various hundreds of millions of Naira earmarked to organise several house activities; a retreat, and a conference specifically.

A year later, Dino Melaye and ten of his ‘’Progressives’’ colleagues advised Mr Bankole to resign his position as Speaker or be disgraced thoroughly. Citing ‘’corruption’’ and Bankole’s leadership style which in their observation, was ‘’responsible for the rift, disagreement, and disharmony between the two brothers in the National Assembly’’ the group brandished what they claimed were incriminating documents and issued Bankole a 7-day ultimatum to step aside.

Two weeks later during plenary session all hell let loose and Melaye was in the centre of it all. Pro and anti-Bankole legislators clashed and full grown men wrestled one another to the ground. Some of the Honourables, including Melaye, had to be bundled out, torn clothes, bleeding bodies and all by security personnel while some students who visited the National Assembly on an excursion, looked on in aghast. Melaye and his supporters were suspended from the House for their behaviour. They went to court and a Federal High Court eventually ruled that the suspension was illegal.

Gone girl
Dino Melaye’s battles with women have been well documented, especially on the domestic front. In 2012, after a whirlwind romance, actress Bisi Ibidapo-Obe revealed she was pregnant and pointed to the very married Dino Melaye as the father of her baby. In her telling, she was introduced to Melaye by her colleague Lola Alao and Melaye proposed to her shortly after she took in. She claims things went South when Melaye advised on an abortion, claiming that his church frowned upon pregnant brides. Melaye vehemently denied responsibility even after the actress challenged him with a paternity test. He dismissed her claims as an ‘’Africa Magic’s story and an expression of fiction.”

Melaye’s wife at the time, Tokunbo publicly defended her hubby and absolved him of any duplicity, going on Twitter to express her support. Months later though and she was singing a different tune. In 2013, Tokunbo Melaye filed a petition for divorce accusing the Senator of assault and threats to fundamental human rights. She told a grisly tale of gun violence, chronic emotional abuse and put up a picture of her bloodied hand following a violent attack.

Melaye on his part, through a statement by his lawyer, accused Tokunbo of infidelity and theft. Finally, in December, he tweeted, ‘’I am grateful to God for a turbulent phase in my life has finally come to a long-awaited end,’’ marking the official end of his ten-year marriage to Tokunbo. They had 3 kids together.

It did not take Melaye long to find himself another partner. He introduced Alero Falope as the new ‘’Mrs Melaye’’ before divorce proceedings were finalised but the union was short-lived and she fled his home barely six months later, again under a cloud of controversy.
At the workplace, during the height of Ettehgate as the Patricia Etteh scandal was dubbed by the media, Melaye was involved in an altercation with Mercy Almona-Isei, a female lawmaker from the opposing Integrity group. Eyewitnesses say that Melaye verbally threatened to assault the legislator representing Ndokwa/Ukwuani of Delta state.

Misogyny unlimited
Following his suspension, Melaye lost the bid to return to the House under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) platform. After his stint with the Anti-Corruption Network, he was elected Senator of the Federal Republic in 2011 under the All Progressives Platform (APC) party and became a staunch supporter of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki.

This rabid support for the legitimacy of Saraki’s claim to the number three political position in the land placed Melaye at odds with the section of the Senate that opposed Saraki’s election. In a showdown that is surely the lowest moment for the 8th assembly, Dino Melaye reportedly threatened to physically abuse and sexually exploit a fellow Senator, Oluremi Tinubu (Lagos Central) after she called him a ‘’thug.’’ As Premium Times reports, Melaye charged at Tinubu yelling, “Look this is not Bourdillon. I will beat you up,… impregnate you and nothing will happen.’’

At a press conference held two days later, Dino Melaye while trying to defend himself, laughed the allegations off. He said, “Biologically, it is even impossible to impregnate Mrs Tinubu because she has arrived menopause. How can you say you want to beat somebody and at the same time impregnate the person?”

This cringe-worthy disregard for the opposite sex reared its ugly head earlier during plenary in March when Melaye was supporting a motion to patronise made in Nigeria products. Melaye somehow managed to support his cause and belittle the female species at the same time when he placed market goods and women in the same category with his remarks. He said, ‘’We will also move in order to encourage made-in-Nigeria products and begin to talk about made-in-Nigeria women. Apologies to my uncle, the Governor of Edo State, we must as a people stop paying dowries in dollars and pounds.’’

Adams Oshiomhole who had recently wedded Cape Verdean native Lara did not find the statement amusing as his press secretary soon issued a statement castigating Melaye who in his words, ‘’cannot maintain a decent matrimonial home,’’ for delving into private matters.

No vex, na God
Dino Melaye is born again. He knows his Jesus and he wants you to know it. Step away from the controversies, the attacks, the scandals for a moment and you will see, from his social media feeds no less, that the man is in touch with his spiritual side. In May this year, pictures emerged on the Internet of the Senator at a thanksgiving service in Kogi, with his parents in attendance, rolling on the floor in his white agbada and expensive shoes. On his Instagram feed, he captioned it, ‘’Rolling on the floor before my God.’’

There is also a short video available online where he is dancing and singing along to a popular gospel tune. This one captioned, ‘’Praising God is the secret of my success. You want success, start praising God.’’ His Twitter feed @dino_melaye is littered with populist, prosperity-speak like “Even in the times of recession, my experience will be different.’’ and “My God is a prosperous God so I have no dealing with poverty”.

A lover and collector of exotic cars, pictures of Melaye’s latest automobile acquisitions are likely to be captioned, ‘’No vex, na God’’ or ‘’This kind of God.’’ Melaye understands the Nigerian tradition of never bothering to query the origins or source of unexplained wealth once the glory has all been ascribed to God. But even in the face of screaming evidence, Dino Melaye once denied posting pictures of his cars on social media.

He has been reluctant to identify the source(s) of the fabulous wealth that he flaunts on social media and intrusions into his private businesses have been fended off aggressively. Melaye would rather list all the places his wealth has not come from.
He told Punch newspapers once again last month, ‘’I have never got any contract from the government contract in my life. I have also never taken any political appointment in my life or a position where I have control over government funds. I have never had government imprest and I challenge anyone who has any criminal allegation against me to actually come out and present it.’’ But when pressed to offer more specifics, all Melaye could manage was, ‘’God is the ultimate giver of legitimate wealth and anyone who really wants to tap into the anointing of getting resources from God should please consult me.’’

Why always Dino?
This November, the National Assembly Press Corps named Dino Melaye the most outstanding Senator of the year. His buddy, Bukola Saraki was on hand to present the trophy to him. This show of solidarity was hardly surprising as Dino Melaye has been the most aggressive and vocal supporter of the Senate President. This loyalty encompasses family bonds as Melaye also led the contingent of legislators that accompanied Toyin, wife of the Senate President to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) offices when she was invited for questioning.

It makes for muddy optics, the anti-corruption crusader, fighting tooth and nail on the side of one of the most tainted families in Nigerian political history. It is quite surprising that Melaye would defend the Sarakis who have found themselves in similar situations to those whom he had screamed himself hoarse over in the past. It beggars belief for instance that Melaye would demand Dimeji Bankole or Stella Oduah’s resignation on the one hand and not expect the same of Bukola Saraki.

But the world of politics is murky and Dino Melaye understands this better than most. As a Senator he has been quite active on the floor of the house, finding time and energy to devote to causes that matter to him.

He has sponsored bills to legalise professional lobbying in the legislature, another one to protect persons against the madness of jungle justice, his national lottery bill has been passed into law and he has indicated interest in sponsoring an anti-tribal marks bill.
But Melaye has also been error prone. He nearly cast a dark cloud over President Buhari’s anti-corruption drive when he alleged illegality and exorbitant commissions to the tune of 25 billion Naira charged by SystemSpecs Limited, a private company, for the deployment of Remita, an e-payment software used for the transfer of Federal Government’s funds from financial institutions into a single treasury account (TSA). The Senate committee dispatched to investigate the claims found no such irregularities.

Melaye also accused telecoms giant, MTN of illegally transferring $13.9 billion out of Nigeria with the help of Okey Enalamah, the Minister of Trade and Investment over the past ten years. Both MTN and EnalOkey Enalamahamah have dismissed Melaye’s claims but the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions has commenced investigations with the aid of international experts.

Dino Melaye accused the Federal Government of secretly (and illegally) sharing over $4 billion, being the refund of over-deduction from the federal government and the 36 States as Paris and London Club debt repayments in November 2016‎. Minister for Finance, Kemi Adeosun issued a swift denial, querying, “It is absolutely not correct. No $4 billion was shared. Where will the government get the $4 billion from?”‎ What actually happened was the government merely announcing modalities for the reimbursement of about N522.74 billion over-deduction on foreign loans to the 36 states.

In keeping with his reputation as the nation’s Chief of scandalous affairs, Dino Melaye has been exposed to be operating a foreign bank with Bank of America, clearly against the code of conduct for public office holders in Nigeria, and in his position as Chair, Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory has been accused of influencing Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) projects to his constituency in Kogi state.

With his outsize colourful persona, playing to the gallery, effective deployment of social media, a knack for courting controversy, unflinching loyalty to key allies and ability to attract publicity to himself and his causes, Dino Melaye is indeed the quintessential Nigerian politician. Calls for his political demise are only exactly what they are, mere calls.

As long as he plays the game as effectively as he does, mudslinging, swimming in the dirt and all, he is likely to be around for a long time yet. It is the way of the world.