The question on the lips of many Nigerians as the nation marks another Democracy Day is this: Is democracy defined only by the fact that the government is led by elected civilians? That question becomes even more germane now that the Nigerian government has taken certain measures considered anti-democratic by a section of the citizenry, Read More…
The bloody five-year pro-democracy uprising that forced the military back to the barracks after a cumulative 29-year military dictatorship began on Monday July 5, 1993. Hundreds of lives were lost. Some of the bloodiest battles were fought in Ibadan on Tuesday April 14 and Friday May 1, 1998. Ibadan is the traditional capital of the Read More…
WHEN THE HEADLINES caught fire with news that four oil firms including the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) were planning to acquire a stake in Dangote refinery which goes into operation soon, many tongues started wagging. The interest of international companies is understandable, after all Dangote himself has interests in other countries. But a state-owned Read More…
They were five days that began to reset the world. Days in which significant steps were taken to redress years of senseless and mind boggling genocide against hapless peoples while the rest of humanity watched unconcerned. The five days of May 27 to June 1, 2021 provided some relief, and assurance that humanity might yet throw Read More…
“Do not judge a runner by the challenges he or she faces, or the strains on their legs as they run, or even the grimaces on their faces; judge them at the finish line. Africa will finish its race for development well, against all odds!” That is the prediction of the President of the African Read More…
By Alexis Akwagyiram Ndukwe Ekekwe was furious when he heard how much compensation a judicial panel had awarded him after finding that members of an elite Nigerian police unit tortured him in custody following a raid on his phone accessories shop worth 7,500,000 naira ($18,000). The night after his arrest, he said, officers took him Read More…
We thrive on illogicalities. We neutralise curses with invectives. Suffering a headache? Take some gin. Chew some raw coconut to cure your cough. Add some tobacco snuff to the bargain. Damn the flu with a dip in a freezing pool. Tell the asthmatic we’ve found a permanent cure: inhalation of fine powdery tatashe and Cameroon Read More…
In picture above: Bob Marley in 1979, before the Reggae Sunsplash concert in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Photograph: Denis O’Regan/Getty Images One day I shall always remember is May 11, 1981. Nigeria was in turmoil. There were protests across the country while some cities were deserted. Factories were closed as were offices. There was hope in Read More…
HADIZA Bala Usman, politician and social activist, was until last Thursday, May 6, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA. But on that day, President Muhammadu Buhari yanked her off and ordered an investigation of her stewardship in the agency. As in almost all such cases, the report of the investigation may never Read More…
On the service lane of the Airport Road, Abuja, with a Road Safety patrol van far behind me, a commercial motorcyclist carrying three men came from the opposite direction at full speed. Riding against one way traffic on such a high profile highway? I was convinced the fellows were in big trouble as they were Read More…