Muhammad Ali, The Greatest (1942-2016)
Muhammad Ali, who died late Friday evening aged 74, was one of the greatest icons of the 20th century, one of the world’s greatest boxers of all time, and certainly in his time, and during the era that he dominated the ring, the greatest among his contemporaries, the inimitable master of his game. The polyvalent […]
Restructure Nigeria, To Save It
No one should be surprised by the loud and widespread support that has attended the latest call by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that Nigeria needs to be restructured. In his words, “our current structure and the practices it has encouraged have been a major impediment to the economic and political development of our country. […]
Tomato Scarcity As Metaphor
One of the major news items in circulation has been the scarcity of tomato. Incidentally, Nigeria is (was) the 14th largest producer of tomato in the world and the second largest producer in Africa, after Egypt, but our country hardly produces enough to meet the local demand of about 2.3 million tonnes, and lacks the […]
The Niger Delta Avengers
Niger Delta Avengers is the name of a new group of militants in the Niger Delta who claim to be different from the former agitators and militants who operated between 2006 and 2009, largely under the umbrella of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND). The title of this group may well […]
Deregulation and The Politics of Public Policy
This thing called democracy, particularly the Nigerian brand, never ceases to throw up new and intriguing lessons about the relationship between government and the people, and the larger, complex socio-political environment. I had gone to Lagos on an assignment in the last two days of the year 2011, when around midnight I received a phone […]
President Buhari, Cameron and Corruption
“We have got the leaders of some fantastically corrupt countries coming to Britain… Nigeria and Afghanistan, possibly the two most corrupt countries in the world”, UK Prime Minister David Cameron was caught on tape telling the Queen ahead of the anti-corruption summit organized by the UK Government, this week, which was attended by Nigerian President, […]
The Cost Of National Depression
“I hear the World Bank says Nigeria is now the worst place to do business in the entire world.” “ I don’t believe it.” “I also hear that of the 15 fastest growing economies in Africa, Nigeria is no longer on the list.” “ I say I don’t believe that. And stop hearing bad […]
May Day, Tiwa Savage, Her Husband And Nigeria
“Ol’boy, man don see something oh.” “Wetin you see?” “My eyes don see something. My ears don hear, and my mouth sef, I for talk something join.” “Talk make I hear” “No be dis Tiwa Savage and him husband matter? The husband wey say him wife offend am, he no gi am food, him wife […]
Confronting The Curse Of Oil
The monthly Federation Accounts Allocation Committee, FAAC, meeting was held the other day in Abuja, with the representatives of state governments again cap in hand, asking for their share of federal revenue – read: oil revenue, or better still, national cake, or our money. A paragraph in the report by the online newspaper, Premium […]
Who Governs Nigeria?
During the Jonathan administration, an outspoken opposition spokesperson had argued that Nigeria was on auto-pilot, a phrase that was gleefully even if ignorantly echoed by an excitable opposition crowd. Deeper reflection should have made it clear even to the unthinking that there is no way any country can ever be on auto-pilot, for there are […]
Leave Matter For Matthias
“I saw something yesterday. I thought it was a joke.” “What happened?” “Nigerians and their sense of humour; we always manage to squeeze laughter out of every situation, no matter how sad.” “I don’t like the suspense. What is it?” “I attended a wedding engagement ceremony.” “And?” “When the groom’s family was presenting gifts to […]
It’s time to put Nigeria first
This commentary is inspired by Olusegun Adeniyi’s “Of wailers, counterwailers and Buharideens” (ThisDay, March 31). In that piece, the ace journalist and public affairs commentator successfully defines the tri-polarities governing public responses to the Muhammadu Buhari administration. The take-away is that the biggest challenge that Nigeria faces at the moment is political partisanship, which has […]
Boni Yayi: Our Friend Next Door
Our neighbours to the West, the Republic of Benin, have just concluded a Presidential election, which has been considered free, fair and peaceful, from the first round, to the run-off which produced businessman Patrice Talon as winner and next President of that country of about 10 million people. Commentators have noted with delight the manner […]
Why Nigerians are special
Whatever problem we may have in Nigeria at this or any other time, this country is sustained by the fact that we are indeed a very special people. We have been described as the happiest people on earth, we have also described ourselves as resilient, gifted and determined, and in one report, Nigerians are said […]
In This Same Country…
There is today in Nigeria an entire generation of Nigerian-passport wielding men and women who do not actually know, to borrow Achebe’s words that indeed “there was once a country”. These children born in a season of austerity, and raised during the years that the locusts ate, have become angry citizens. They are angry because […]