Our Unusual Electricity Industry

 By Adekunle Adekoya

Our country, Nigeria, is a wonderful one. In fact, there is no other country like ours on the face of this earth. What works seamlessly elsewhere is like rocket science here, and vice-versa. For many years, we imported what we have and have tried to export what we don’t have.

The unusualness of Nigeria reared its head a few days ago when the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, published data on the state of affairs in our electricity industry.

The data, in part, revealed that revenue accruing to the electricity distribution companies, called DISCOs, soared by 666% in 10 yrs, while electricity supply grew just 32% within the same period. Properly spelt, the data showed that DISCOs’ revenue rose from N302.93 billion in 2016 to N2.3188 trillion in 2025, an increase of about 666 per cent.

What Future For The Yoruba After Tinubu’s Presidency?

 By Olu Fasan

At some point, whether in 2027 or in 2031, the Yoruba will face a future without President Bola Tinubu in power. Following January’s presidential election, Tinubu will either retain the presidency for four more years or lose it and leave office in May next year! Whichever way, either sooner, in 2027, or four years later, in 2031, the Yoruba will face a future without Tinubu as president.

*Tinubu

But what kind of future awaits them, and how would they handle it? To answer the question, we must examine two things that have happened to the Yoruba under Tinubu’s presidency and consider their long-term implications vis-à-vis the Yoruba’s age-old political tradition and temperament.

Nigeria Is Also Ours, Not Theirs Alone

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

Listening to some government officials speak these days, their mendacity, arrogance and the ‘you can hug the transformer’ bearing, it would seem that this country is their exclusive estate. The rest of us who they have reduced to ‘hewers of wood and drawers of water’ are to be seen, not heard.

*Tinubu

Even that, to them, is a privilege, for which we should be thankful. Their contemptuous ‘take it or leave it’ attitude has reduced governance to a zero-sum game where those with opposing worldviews are seen as existential threats to be crushed, even as our commonwealth is ruthlessly appropriated and deployed in securing personal power in a self-aggrandising manner that deals fatal blow to public good.

Peter Obi: Month Discount On Petrol: From Reactive Policies To Flawed Outcomes!

 The announcement by the APC led Federal Government offering a 30-day discount on price of petrol to relieve the acute hardship and hunger caused Nigerians by its unplanned removal of subsidy can only be described as another very reactive and confused approach to governance that is now the culture of the Tinubu Government.

*Peter Obi

I had delayed in reacting to the announcement just to give the benefit of doubt and watch the outcome of the policy. Now, having assessed the outcomes, the policy is a substitution of political optics for sound policy.

As Nigerians will recall, President Bola Tinubu on May 29, 2023, most carelessly removed fuel subsidy without any consultation or proper assessment of the negative impacts of such policies on our economy particularly on the livelihood of ordinary Nigerians.

Peter Obi: Scaring Investors While Celebrating Macroeconomic Stability!

 As the APC-led government continue in their delusional celebration of Nigeria's macroeconomic stability, the warning from the United States Government to prospective investors on inherent risks in Nigeria, further affirms the general and correct assessment that President Bola Tinubu-led government is incompetent, ineffective and corrupt.

*Peter Obi

In the 2026 Nigeria Investment Climate Statement, the U.S. Department of State clearly flagged corruption, insecurity, inconsistent regulatory enforcement and weaknesses in the judicial system, cargo delays and power sector challenges as key factors undermining investor confidence in Nigeria. The report went further to caution investors of the possible use of arbitrary detention, travel restriction and immigration enforcement to coerce foreign businesses in Nigeria.

Peter Obi: Building New Nigeria – Our Collective Responsibility

*Peter Obi

Today, I honoured an impromptu invitation to interact with fellow Nigerians in Manchester, United Kingdom. I had the pleasure of sharing fraternal moments with some of our compatriots in the diaspora. I spent time listening to their concerns about our nation and was encouraged by their passion and desire to build a New Nigeria for all.

Peter Obi: Data And Statistics Are Tools For Effective And Good Governance

*Peter Obi 

Data and statistics are indispensable tools for effective and good governance. They enable us to assess performance, measure progress, identify challenges, and learn from the experiences of others. Although the next World Statistics Day will be celebrated on 20 October 2030, I have chosen to commemorate it today because it is usually celebrated on 20 October, and to encourage our people to appreciate the importance of statistics in national development.

THE GOWON LIE: How The North Was Fooled And How His Own Memoir Convicts Him

 By Khaleed Yazeed

I have completed reading General Yakubu Gowon's 881-page memoir, My Life of Duty And Allegiance. I read every page, from the opening reflections on his childhood in Daura and Wusasa to the closing chapters on his exile, his prayers, and his long twilight as an elder statesman. 

*Gowon

I read it slowly, the way a man reads a document he knows will settle something inside him, and I read it with a question burning in my chest: how was the North led into a war that consumed more than a million lives, and how was that story sold to us? 

From my own understanding of those 881 pages, one conclusion stands above every other. Gowon is judging himself. He has convicted himself. He has written the indictment in his own hand, signed it with his own name, and published it for the world to see. A prosecutor becomes unnecessary here. A truth commission becomes redundant. Historians need not comb through archives in London and Lagos, because the general has laid the evidence on the table himself, chapter by chapter, page by page, and invited us to examine it.

Dele Giwa: 40 Years After The Gruesome Murder Of This Celebrated Journalist

 By Ugochukwu Ejinkeonye 

“Death is…the absence of presence…the endless time of never coming back…a gap you can’t see, and when the wind blows through it, it makes no sound” – Tom Stopard  

*Giwa 

In the morning of Monday, October 20, 1986, I was preparing to go to work when a major item on the Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS) 6.30 news bulletin hit me like a hard object. Mr. Dele Giwa, the founding editor-in-chief of  ‘Newswatch’ magazine, had the previous day been killed and shattered by a letter bomb in his Lagos home. My scream was so loud that my colleague barged into my room to inquire what it was that could have made me to let out such an ear-splitting bellow. 

We were three young men who had a couple of months earlier been posted from Enugu to Abakaliki to work in the old Anambra State public service, and we had hired a flat in a newly erected two-storey building at the end of Water Works Road, which we shared. My flat-mate, clearly, was not familiar with Giwa’s name and work, and so had wondered why his death could elicit such a reaction from me. 

But later that day, as he interacted with people, he realised that Giwa’s death was such big news, and by the next couple of days, he had become an expert on Giwa and his truncated life and career. Across the country, Giwa’s brutal death dominated the news not just because of the pride of place he occupied in Nigerian journalism practice, but more because of the totally novel way his killers had chosen to end his life.

Disservice, Impunity, Dysfunction And Life In Nigeria

 By Adekunle Adekoya

I am sure that not a few people, like me, keep wondering just what is happening in our country. The state of affairs leaves one wondering whether we won’t have to go to outer space to get aliens who may love us enough to run the society for the betterment of all. 

*Tinubu

Of course, it is always easy to blame government, but that is inescapable because fish starts rotting from the head. If the government stinks, then the whole society is undoubtedly a cesspit from which issues forth the most offensive odours.

Tinubu Can’t Handle Insecurity: Why Does He Want Another Term?

 By Ugoji Egbujo

A nation that conscripts its graduates cannot lose them on a federal highway, allow exchange of ransom,  and call the aftermath a rescue.

*Tinubu

A few days ago, thirty prospective corps members left Oyo for the East. Twenty were taken near Owerri, on the Owerri–Onitsha road at Umunoha. Ten escaped. The local people who witnessed the abduction could not stand the apathy of the security agencies, so they blocked the road to force a chase. The situation borders on hopeless.

Ohanaeze At 50: AI-KO’s Insider Story

 By Ochereome Nnanna

I first met Russia-educated Agbeze Ireke Kalu Onuma (AI-KO) in 2002 when I went to an Ohanaeze Ndi Igbo event in the Enugu residence of retired Justice Eze Ozobu. He had just emerged as the President-General of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a young Abiriba man involved in the affairs of Ohanaeze. Usually, it was the elderly ones such as retired Commodore Okoh Ebitu Ukiwe, Prof Anya O. Anya, Dr Mang Egwuronu and a few others that mingled with the leadership of the group. On getting acquainted, Agbeze and I immediately became friends. We later went to the residence of his uncle, Dr Egwuronu, a Russia-trained pharmacist and avid historian. They come from a prominent Abiriba family.

NYSC Kidnap Story: Burden Of Public Trust

 By Tonnie Iredia

Twenty (20) prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) on their way to the Southeast for orientation and service year were kidnapped on October 1, 2026. Following their release some 6 days later, our traumatized country was greatly relieved.

A report by the Imo state police command claimed that the corpers were rescued by a combined team of security operatives. Bearing in mind that such rescue operations had reportedly happened recently, many people praised our gallant forces. But a few days later, media reports surfaced suggesting that the rescue story was not completely reliable.

Independence Address, Endless Promises No Specifics

 By Dele Sobowale

Bayo Onanuga, the Senior Special Adviser to the President, accused critics of writing their responses without reading Tinubu’s address. That is certainly not true about me. In fact, the address was read to me by Uncle Sam, the Publisher of Vanguard, in his house – while asking for my comments on a few statements. 

*Tinubu

Unknown to Uncle Sam, at least until I told him, my team was out from 6am monitoring the situation with transport fares in several bus stations in Lagos State. By the time three of us reached Uncle Sam’s house, reports from thirteen popular bus stations were in.

66 Years On, Nigeria Must Escape The Fragility Trap

By Olu Fasan

How fragile is Nigeria? That is one question Nigerian leaders don’t want to confront. Indeed, it irks them when anyone says that Nigeria is a fragile state. What’s more, some Nigerians, out of sheer romantic or sentimental patriotism hate it when the word “fragility” is used to describe Nigeria.

*Tinubu

It is unpatriotic, they reckon, for anyone to suggest that Nigeria is a fragile state. But this is not a subjective matter, rather it is an objective reality, based on rigorous assessment of key political, economic and social indicators. Nigeria may choose to be the judge and the jury in its own matter and declare itself strong and stable, the world simply does not see it that way, and the evidence points to a deeply fragile state.

As INEC Reassures Nigerians

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has reassured Nigerians still smarting from its 2023 shenanigans of its readiness, this time, to deliver credible elections in 2027.

*Amupitan 
The reassurance came from the INEC chairman, Joash Amupitan, a professor, whose great skill and knowledge in law earned him the prestigious rank of a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) who appreciates that democracy being a rules-based game should be governed by constitutional rules, laws and institutional norms.

Living In Denial With Loans And Unimplemented Budgets

 By Adekunle Adekoya

On October 1, the President made a broadcast to the nation about the state of the Nigerian state. In summary, the president said that “reforms are over, foundation laid for prosperity.” The president’s assertions have never been interrogated, except for sporadic attacks from leading opposition figures about specific items.

*Tinubu

I want to ask: What was reformed? As far as I can see, what has been drummed into the ears of Nigerians, and which some multilateral institutions have bought into is the removal of subsidy on fuel energy, namely diesel, petrol, and Jet-A1, and flotation of the Naira. The argument advanced for subsidy removal was that government would conserve resources, increase revenue and have more funds to run the country.

Nigeria: A Case For The “Igbo Ranch”

 By Ochereome Nnanna

This is a necessary sequel to my article last week titled: “Owo Ranch: Attention, Gov. Peter Mbah!” You may have, like me, wondered why Governor Mbah would carve out over 10,000 hectares for the ranch project at his hometown, Owo, in Nkanu East LGA of Enugu State.

*Gov Mbah

Since his government has remained mute on the many issues surrounding the project, we are free to speculate. If he actually intends it for corporate, professional ranching, all I need to add is that he should ensure that the youths of Enugu State are strong stakeholders for their ownership, empowerment, and security.

Fear Of Electoral Violence In 2027

 By Tonnie Iredia

Since December 12, 1959 when the first national pre-independence elections were held in Nigeria till today, we have had no election without citizens losing sleep and remaining exceedingly anxious over electoral violence. Even the June 12, 1993 Presidential election internationally recognised as the nation’s best had its own tension.

Indeed, the 1993 election was the first to be annulled in the nation’s history. Nigerian elections have always been subjected to a plethora of electoral malpractices featuring political intimidation, vote buying and collusion of the electoral body with interest groups to rig our polls. These anomalies have greatly discouraged citizen participation in elections leading to sequential decline in voter turn-out.

Obi Versus Soludo: Unnecessary Political Cannibalism

 By Dele Sobowale

"I stand by my words"– Governor Soludo on Peter Obi leaving money for Anambra – Daily Post Nigeria.

*Obi and Soludo

It was not my intention to get involved in the controversy between presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and a former governor of Anambra State, and incumbent Governor Soludo. Granted, I have always wondered what Soludo hopes to gain by working against the ambitions of a fellow Igbo man – when he is not a candidate himself.