LOUD WHISPERS: Dress Codes Versus Morality Police
I wrote a Loud Whispers essay about dress codes in 2017. These days, when I read debates about how people of all ages present themselves in public, I think back to what I wrote then. In light of all I see happening, perhaps I will write an updated commentary soon. For now, let me ‘recycle’ […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Lessons From Hannah
Recently, there have been several high-level meetings to discuss the need for constitutional and legal frameworks to enhance space for women in political leadership in Nigeria. The same old tactics of simply making the case for women’s inclusion and lobbying political leaders has proven to be unsustainable, leading to a consistent drop in the number […]
LOUD WHISPERS: If You Want to Live Long
If you want to live long Master the art of counting one to ten whenever someone upsets you If you are still not calm after ten Count to twenty If you want to live long Know where witches and wizards live They don’t live in your village It is not your stepmother or mother-in-law I […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Let Us Pay Attention
When I was young, there was a family who lived close to us on our street in the Fadeyi area of Lagos. I will call the man of the family Mr Benson. He had a wife, Mrs Remi Benson. When they first arrived on our street, Mr Benson had a motorbike, and his wife would […]
LOUD WHISPERS: The Stranger
Dapo should have seen it coming. He should have known, the moment she walked into a church for a wedding ceremony ten years ago, that a time like this would come. He had gone to attend the wedding of the daughter of one of his older friends. Just before the sermon was about to begin, […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Three Score Plus Four
Three score plus four This is a long time Enough time for success Plenty of time to fail Adequate time for lessons to be learnt And for many things to be set aside Three score plus four Enough for prosperity and abundance Sadly, time wasted on innumerable wrongs While millions toil and sweat from cock […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Peace
In July 2000, I spent one week in Monrovia, Liberia. It felt like three months. I was based in London at the time, working with AMwA, an international development organization for African women. We established an African Women’s Leadership Institute (AWLI) in 1996 which I have written about a number of times here. The AWLI […]
LOUD WHISPERS: The Harris Versus Trump Debate
Of course I watched the debate, how would I live up to my self-described status as an ‘election junkie’ if I didn’t? I have written about how I stared at the television screen in horror in the early hours of June 28th when President Joe Biden imploded during his debate with ex-President Donald Trump. It […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Wairamini- Beijing@30
I recently gave the keynote address at a seminar to commemorate the retirement of a dear friend of mine from the federal civil service, Princess Jummai Idonije. The theme of the seminar was ‘ACCELERATING GENDER EQUALITY: AN INTERGENERATIONAL DIALOGUE ON BEIJING PLUS 30’. This is an abridged version of my speech. It gives me immense […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Be A Sheba
Our daughters are hungry Our sons are starving Our babies are sick Our husbands are angry The land is bleeding The air we breathe is bitter Everywhere around us, there is despair Sadness settles on young and old like a heavy, dusty cloak Sheba sees it in the eyes of Halima her neighbour who struggles […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Erelu Kuti of Lagos
Last week, I joined others to celebrate with Erelu Abiola Dosumu, as she marked 50 years as the Erelu Kuti 1V of Lagos. It was a delightful event to honour a truly deserving Nigerian citizen, who has remained an example of what we can all become when we are able to aspire to greatness against […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Kamala Harris- ‘A Reason to Hope’
A few days ago, I came across a video of a young man going around University Campuses in Nigeria, stopping female students to have a chat with them. In the three different videos of the same guy, the process was the same. He would walk up to a student and ask her if she had […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Adults And Good Manners
I was having a discussion with friends a few days ago, and we spent some time talking about some adults and the way they behave, setting a poor example for young people. It reminded me on an article I wrote a few years ago, here is an abridged version. Recently, I was in a cosmetics […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Eni Ogun: Professor Wole Soyinka at 90
Eni Ogun – Warrior, leader, fearless, battle tested, survivor Eni Ogun – Descendant of Ogun, the god of war and Iron. Hunter, innovator, adventurer, mysterious Eni Ogun – From the land where the River Ogun flows gracefully as it waters the lands that have produced great sons and daughters from one generation to the next Eni Ogun – […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Steeze
‘A person’s unique style, especially if it is fashionable and cool’ ‘A slang term that combines the words stylish and easy’ ‘Fashionably elegant’ There are these photographs of my mother and her friends, when she was living in Liverpool as a young woman. I was never tired of staring at them as a child. The […]