Cost Of Governance: Playing Ostrich With The Economy

 By Adekunle Adekoya

Earlier in the week, two renowned economists, one a businessman and the other a traditional ruler used the occasion of a book launch by the Oxford Global Think Tank Leadership Conference in Abuja to speak truth to power. They are HRH Muhammad Sanusi II, Emir of Kano and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, and Mr. Atedo N.A. Peterside, founder of IBTC, which later fused with Stanbic Bank to become Stanbic-IBTC Bank. 

*Tinubu

What came up at the event, which the media focused on, were the reforms of the present administration and the cost of governance.

For Sanusi, the issue was the size and cost of governance. He pointedly asked: “We’ve got to be honest, why do we need 48 ministers? Why do we need dozens of vehicles when we’re moving around in convoys or travelling all over the country?”

Need For Decisive Action On Insecurity

 By Adekunle Adekoya

Recently, the Governor of Niger State, apparently at the end of his tether, vowed never to negotiate with bandits or pay ransom for kidnap victims, saying instead residents must be prepared to defend themselves against attacks. Governor Bago said this when he visited the people of Rijau and Magama Local Government Areas of the state, whose communities were recently attacked by bandits in Kontagora.

His words: “The state has reached a point where the people must stand up and defend themselves because ransom will only turn kidnapping into a thriving business.

Politics Of Lagos Igbo Property Demolitions

 By Ochereome Nnanna

The emergence of Senator Bola Tinubu as the “winner” of the Alliance for Democracy, AD, governorship ticket on December 21,1998, unknown to many, marked a major historic turning point for Lagos State.

Ordinarily, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, the man in charge of the party’s primaries in Lagos, should have insisted on a rerun. He did not, mainly because Tinubu’s contributions to Afenifere/NADECO struggle for Abiola’s mandate, especially his exile experience, endeared him to the party’s leaders above his co-contestants, such as Funsho Williams, Wahab Dosunmu, Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele and Rashid Shitta-Bey.

Tinubu And The Politics, Morality Of Presidential Pardons

 By Olu Fasan 

Pardon. An act so seemingly innocuous it should never be controversial. Yet, recently, a state pardon provoked public opprobrium in Nigeria. Why? Because it was wrapped in crude politics and stripped of morality. Pardons are much like gifts: they have a deceptive innocence.

*Tinubu

For instance, gifts are rooted in customs and tradition, but they are also associated with bribery and corruption. Similarly, a presidential pardon loses its moral anchor when it is steeped in impunity and abuse of power. So, it’s understandable why President Bola Tinubu’s recent decision to pardon 175 people, most convicted of serious crimes, triggered a spontaneous public outrage.

Pardons, Clemency, And The Death Of Moral Clarity

 By Ugo Onuoha

Lateef Fagbemi is Nigeria’s Attorney-general and Minister for Justice. He has been at the job since August 2023. He is a Senior Advocate, the equivalent of a King’s [formerly Queen’s] Counsel in the United Kingdom. He might have been a brilliant lawyer but his lawyering skills became more pronounced with his dexterity over election matters. 

My understanding is that he has had quite a few victories in high profile electoral disputes. And the crowning prize of his nose for winning election disputes was in 2023 when he led a team of other senior lawyers and a motley of nondescript attorneys to persuade the Supreme Court to rubber stamp the award of the presidency of Nigeria by the ‘Independent’ National Electoral Commission [INEC] to Alhaji Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Before Nigeria Defects To APC

 By Tony Iwuoma

When the history of Nigeria’s political decadence is finally written, the season we are living through will deserve its own chapter, a cautionary tale titled “Before Nigeria Defected.”

The phrase sounds exaggerated, almost absurd. But pause for a moment and look around. Every week, from one state to another, politicians, governors, senators, ex-ministers, former foes of the All Progressives Congress (APC) are suddenly rediscovering affection for the ruling party. They are crossing over in droves, clutching brooms they once mocked, delivering speeches that sound as hollow as campaign jingles played out of tune.

Tinubu’s Unpardonable Pardons: Folly Or Fraud?

 By Ugoji Egbujo

In exercise of his prerogative powers of mercy, Tinubu pardoned a convicted murderer on death row. He also pardoned drug barons. He pardoned a kidnapper. That power was given to him on trust by the people.  In a country ravaged by insecurity, every message from the leader should reflect a ruthless determination to stamp out crime and give the fear-wracked populace a new lease on life. How much can we trust Tinubu?

*Tinubu

The power to tell convicted offenders “Go and sin no more” before they have served their complete sentences is at the absolute discretion of the president. But that absolute discretion must be exercised in good faith. Political discretion is a test of a sense of responsibility. A president must always act in the country’s best interest; otherwise, he loses moral authority to govern. When Tinubu grants pardons to murderers, kidnappers, and drug dealers, he doesn’t just expose the country to a few recidivism-prone criminals; he lowers the bar. He tilts the scale in favour of lawlessness.

David Umahi Is Too Small…

 By Obi Nwakanma

David Umahi, Minister of Works under this administration, is not a very likeable man.  He is crude, and not really very polished.

*Umahi

Mr. Umahi trained in engineering at the old Anambra State University of Technology (ASUTHEC), now Enugu State University.

It was not a bad school.

But in the period David Umahi went there, it was not among the top dog schools for engineering in Nigeria.

And so, it was quite rich for David Umahi to claim, in a standoff with the Arise TV News journalist, that he was a “professor” in the practice of engineering. Well, of course, clearly, he was sounding off, in a manner of speaking.

Rushed Clearance Of INEC Chair: For What?

 By Tonnie Iredia

Professor Joash Amupitan (SAN), outgoing Deputy Vice Chancellor (Administration) of the University of Jos is now the chairman of Nigeria’s electoral body – the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The entire process of nomination, scrutiny, endorsement, approval and appointment was as far as the public was concerned concluded within a week.

*Amupitan

What was the speed for? Whereas background checks may have started much earlier when the President first ear-marked a candidate, we really didn’t need to present a rushed exercise to the public more so, as the position involved has not only become controversial but has also since moved into one that attracts much cynicism. 

October 20: When Nigeria Lost Children And Conscience At Lekki Toll Gate

 By Ebuka Ukoh 

October 20, 2020, was an unforgettable Tuesday night. Then, I sat at home, watching DJ Switch’s Instagram livestream, my phone trembling in my hands as her voice broke through the darkness. The sound of gunfire echoed over the national anthem. Flags fluttered in blood and fear. Protesters-unarmed, singing, kneeling-were sprayed with bullets. I remember feeling sick. Not just in my body, but in my soul. I knew how this would end. We all did. 

In Nigeria, power too often answers activism, not with dialogue but with death. 

Revealing The Secret Behind Kumuyi's Prayers - A Book Review

Book: Riches Of Prayer

Author: W. F. Kumuyi

Pages: 157

Publishers: Life Press Ltd, Lagos, Nigeria

Reviewer: Banji Ojewale 

Years ago, a journalist approached Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi, General Superintendent of Deeper Christian Life Ministry, DCLM, eager to know what he hid under his miracle-laden prayers that always landed, bereft of boisterous baggage. The newsman wondered: ‘’What I find amazing … is that some other pastors would lay their hands on people and shake them till they fall down and roll about. But you don’t do that. You just stand at the podium and pray a simple prayer, a normal prayer, no theatrics, and people get healed.’’

Let’s All Defect, Now!

 By Adekunle Adekoya

Earlier this week, Tuesday precisely, Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah of Enugu State, elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ditched his party, and with his entire political machinery, defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. He was not the first, and will not be the last.

*Mbah and Tinubu

His colleagues of the PDP that had defected to the APC much earlier include Governors Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State and Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State. With the way things have turned out in Rivers State, we should expect another defection from there anytime soon.

Obasanjo And The Haunting Ghost Of His Third Term Agenda

 By Olu Fasan

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigeria’s former military ruler and former civilian president, is a bundle of contradictions. One could write a book on Obasanjo’s strengths, and another on his flaws. Of course, Obasanjo is his own hagiographer. He has written many books on himself, with such self-referential titles as My Command, Not My Will and My Watch. But as the biographer Lytton Strachey said, discretion is not the better part of biography. And so, most of Obasanjo’s books are an exercise in self-glorification, with highly disputed narratives. 

For instance, Obasanjo’s My Command, an account of his role during the civil war, was so controversial that it provoked General Godwin Alabi-Isama to write his own book, The Tragedy of Victory, to correct what he described as “Obasanjo’s Tissues of Lies”.

Senior Advocates Of No-Consequence (SANs)

 By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

The ritual of the “Call to Bar” is the formal ceremony for the admission of new entrants into Nigeria’s legal profession. The responsibility for administering it resides in the Body of Benchers (BoB), a statutory entity described by law as “a body of legal practitioners of the highest distinction in the legal profession in Nigeria.”

The solemnity of the Call to Bar is guaranteed by the presence of members of the BoB who administer the ceremony resplendent in ceremonial gowns supposed to testify to their high distinction in matters legal. The criteria for the determination of this threshold requirement of “highest distinction” antecedent to membership of the BoB are, however, opaque.

Air Peace Expands Horizon With New Abuja-London Route

By Fred Chukwuelobe

On October 26, 2025, Air Peace Airlines Limited will add the lucrative Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja (IATA code ABV) and the London Heathrow (LHR) route to its network. The airline will also in 48 hours after, add the ABV – London Gatwick (LGW) route. This will bring to three the number of UK destinations Air Peace will be flying into, that is, in addition to its highly successful Murtala Muhammed International Airport (LOS) Lagos to London Gatwick (LGW) it currently operates.

Last August, Air Peace received another Boeing 777-200ER aircraft with registration number 5N-CEG, bringing to four the number of wide-body aircraft in its fleet to service these new routes. The upcoming London routes will increase their share of passenger volume into London, a market that had for years been dominated by foreign “big players” in the aviation industry.

Nigeria: Beautiful Nonsense As Governance

 By Owei Lakemfa

Senate President Godswill Akpabio issued a very powerful statement to the world on October 11, 2025, titled “The Trials and Triumphs of a Resilient Nigeria’s 10th Senate.” He vowed   that: “The Senate cannot and will not be held hostage by the disruptive instincts of any of its members.”

*Akpabio 

He declared: “Democracy thrives only when its institutions are respected and its rules upheld…The discipline of parliamentary conduct is a universal marker of political civilization”. The Senate President mentioned no names, gave no instances, referred to nothing. It was just a bland statement that said nothing. It gives the impression of an idle leader finding it difficult to get out of bed. 

Certificate Scandal: Minister’s Resignation Not Enough!

 By Tonnie Iredia

The uproar generated by the allegation that Uche Nnaji, Nigeria’s immediate past Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology forged both his degree and NYSC certificates has simmered considerably following the Minister’s resignation. But why he resigned is not clear. Did he resign because he was weighed down by the enormity of the scandal? Could it be that he wanted to save the government from further bad press or was he forced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to quit? This unclear end to the scandal is one of the many reasons why the resignation is not enough.

*Nnaji

If Nnaji was not guilty as some of his supporters forcefully argued, it is unfair to sacrifice him over some purportedly concocted allegations. Considering that it was not just a fake degree certificate but also a bogus NYSC certificate, the allegation became one too many. On this score, the former Minister cannot blame those who concluded that he has a propensity to be blame worthy. A spokesperson for Nnaji had argued that there was a PDP faction within the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN who ganged up against his principal. If so, did the same political group permeate the NYSC to conjure the wrong official to sign Nnaji’s bogus discharge certificate?

Minister Nnaji: Is Tinubu’s Cabinet An Oluwole United?

 By Ugoji Egbujo

Atiku says the federal cabinet is an assembly of serial forgers, money launderers, election bandits and identity thieves. While it can’t be described as a total rogues’ gallery, it harbours far too many shady figures, granting too many reprobates access to the pulpits of power.

Tinubu, the acclaimed talent hunter, wanted a minister of innovation, science and technology and chose Nnaji. That is telling. Of all the brains in Igboland, of the constellation of Igbo intellects, Tinubu chose an Nnaji to lead innovation. Perpetuating the pattern. The third-class students march into politics to govern the first-class students, their footsteps echoing their hollowness in the corridors of power. Had Tinubu placed country above cronies, summoning scholars and inventors to ignite science and technology, he would have spared himself and the country this festering mess. And spared Nnaji this life-bending humiliation.

Plagiarism: The Silent Crime That Robs Nations Of Ideas

 By Stephanie Shaakaa

The first time I saw my own words staring back at me under someone else’s name, I felt an ache I cannot quite describe. Every sentence, every metaphor, every night of reflection poured into that piece stolen. Not borrowed, not referenced, but taken whole.

Plagiarism is theft. I know, because my original article carefully researched, deeply thought through, and published in Vanguard Newspaper on August 23, 2025 was stolen, rebranded, and published in a business newspaper in Nigeria under the name of Udo Maryanne Okonjo, who even had the audacity to call it “Side-Chick Economics: The Hidden Billions of Secrecy (Part 1)”. Part 1! As though she intends to build an entire series on an idea that is not hers.

Rufai Oseni And The Courage To Ask Questions That Burn

 By Stephanie Shaakaa

There are journalists who report and there are journalists who interrogate reality. 

*Oseni

Rufai Oseni of Arise TV belongs to that rare, unbending category of truth-tellers who refuse to be hypnotized by power or intimidated by titles. He has mastered the art of peeling away official veneers and exposing the hollow core beneath the rhetoric that too often passes for governance in Nigeria.

Some journalists report events. Rufai Oseni dissects them.

He doesn’t just anchor the news he interrogates reality.

The Tragedy Of Public Office In Nigeria

By Sam Amadi

The tragedy of holding  public offices in Nigeria is not only the prevalent bad governance we see everywhere. It includes the damage it does to those who hold such offices. 

*Amadi

Many of our political leaders are well trained professionals. Some of them have held top management positions before turning to political offices. But they never get back to doing any other meaningful work after holding high political office except continuing to politick. The reason for this captivity to politics is that Nigerian politics is corrosive. It destroys that quality of corporate usefulness such that once you have tasted it, you are never fit for anything else except Nigerian politics.

Rescuing Nigerians From The Talons Of Some Leaders

 By Owei Lakemfa

The resolve, determination, precision   and speed with which the Petroleum and Natural Gas   Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN   took on Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, frightened the ruling elites.  

They clearly had written off the Nigerian working people and their ability to strike if necessary. The elites   had come to the conclusion that the Nigerian people are conquered and can be trampled upon at will. The labour reaction which started with the resolve of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, to stand up to the Dangote Plc and its attempts to trample the rights of workers into the dust, was also a warning   to elites who seek to enslave the people. So, after   being staggered, these elites are admonishing labour for setting a bad example. 

Certificate Integrity And The Future Of Nigerian Leadership

 By Peter Obi

It is commendable that the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Mr Uche Nnaji, has resigned following the controversy surrounding discrepancies in his academic certificates. 

That is a decent and honourable step. Similarly, we can recall that during President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, then Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, resigned after issues were raised concerning her NYSC certificate. These instances remind us that such matters are not trivial; they constitute serious criminal offences. 

As we approach the 2027 general elections, INEC and all relevant agencies must take decisive steps to verify and authenticate all academic and professional certificates of every candidate—from the President down to local government councillors. We cannot continue to allow dishonesty and criminality to sit at the heart of leadership.

ASUU Vs FGN: Renewed Hope, Renewed Struggle

  By Jeff Godwin Doki

One can say with considerable justification that our politicians do not know the meaning of honor. And this is because honor is a very expensive gift, and that is reason you cannot find it among cheap Nigerian politicians. For example, some of the salient attributes of honor include integrity, honesty and the keeping of a promise or an oath.

Nowhere is this idea of honor illustrated with more completeness than in the poem, ‘The Franklin’s Tale’ written by Geoffrey Chaucer (1342-1400), the first English poet. The story goes like this: Dorigen’s husband had traveled out of town when a young man came earnestly asking for her love. Jokingly, Dorigen gave the young man an almost impossible condition which is that: he can only get her love if he is able to clear away all the rocks from the sea.

Wilful Destruction of People’s Investment in Lagos

 By Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

These are trying times for Nigerians. The diabolical nature of mankind is in full expression. For me, it has come down to the harsh truth that I never really knew my so-called friends. It’s indeed embarrassing to come to terms with the realities I see in modern-day Nigeria.

As Thomas Paine wrote in his time, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” The one consolation as ever is this knowledge: “Even this too shall pass…” 

The issue at hand does not need for me to pontificate. There was massive demolition of some buildings in the Trade Fair Complex in Lagos. The matter raised so much dust across the primordial divides of Nigeria. The talk was that the buildings were demolished because they were built without the requisite approvals. There was also talk that they were erected on canals and water channels. 

Forgery As State Policy: Tinubu, His Cabinet, And The DSS Must Be Held Accountable

 By Atiku Abubakar

Tuesday’s resignation of Uche Nnaji, Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, has once again brought to light the deep moral crisis at the heart of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration. What should ordinarily be a matter of national shame is now being disguised as a “voluntary resignation”, an attempt to whitewash yet another scandal that typifies the forgery-ridden character of this government.

*Tinubu and Atiku

Let the truth be told: Uche Nnaji should not have been allowed the courtesy of resignation. He should have been summarily dismissed and prosecuted for deceit and falsification. By permitting him to quietly exit through the backdoor, the Tinubu administration has once again demonstrated that it is an assembly of forgers, impostors, and morally bankrupt individuals masquerading as public servants.

For Nigeria, 24 Million Reasons To Fear The Future?

 By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

When Olusegun Obasanjo took over in the middle of 1976 from the slain Murtala Muhammed as Nigeria’s military Head of State, the regime was already committed as a matter policy to transition power to an elected civilian administration in 1979. This was a big deal alright but not one over which he had much say as such.

As military Head of State, General Obasanjo identified two issues to define his personal legacy. One was food security. To address that, he launched “Operation Feed the Nation”, better known by the acronym (OFN). Those were the same initials of Obasanjo Farms Nigeria, the name of the company under which the General would later pursue his post-retirement vocation in agriculture. The coincidence was not lost on many.

Igbo-Yoruba Rivalry, Bridging The Harmony Route

 By Tony Iwuoma

On a hot afternoon in Lagos, Alaba International Market buzzes like a living organism. Igbo traders call out prices for electronics in quick Igbo-English pidgin, while Yoruba shopkeepers argue with them in Yoruba-laced banter. 

Bargaining is intense, voices are loud, but behind the noise lies a rhythm of trust: credit extended across ethnic lines, partnerships formed in cramped offices, apprenticeships that cut across ancestral origins.

At one stall, Chijioke, an Igbo importer, laughs as his neighbour, Bamidele, a Yoruba distributor, jokingly accuses him of being “too sharp.” Chijioke fires back, “And you Yoruba, you like to calculate everything!” Both men laugh. The stereotypes are alive, but in this moment, they are softened into jokes, not weapons. They know their livelihoods depend on each other.

Echoes of ‘Iya Shukudi’ In Trade Fair Demolitions

 By Ugo Onuoha

Many issues have been playing out in Lagos state between the government and residents, especially with those of Igbo extraction. There appears to be no love lost. It has been a cat and mouse relationship since after the February 2023 presidential election in which Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi [an Igbo], defeated a ‘son of the soil’ Bola Ahmed Tinubu, candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress [APC] political party.

*Sanwo-Olu and Tinubu

The defeat of the Jagaban, who was a governor of the state between 1999 and 2007, was deemed an insult, an assault, and a sacrilege. It came as a shock of ‘tsunamic’ proportion because Tinubu, now president of Nigeria, was regarded as the builder and owner of Lagos, a claim that is blatantly untrue. He was regarded as a wily politician and a political strategist like no other. For once he was outed as a giant with clay feet. 

The 15 Best African Safaris To Add To Your Bucket List...

 Why Is Nigeria Missing?

Few travel experiences rival the magic of an African safari. To embark on one is to surrender to the rhythm of the wild: rising before dawn for a game drive as the bush stirs awake, and closing the day with a sundowner as the horizon dissolves into one of the continent's surreal sunsets.

Unbeknownst to some travelers, safaris take many forms: open-vehicle game drives across sweeping plains, intimate walking safaris with expert trackers, canoe journeys along river channels, and even ocean safaris that unveil a world of hidden coral reefs and aquatic species.

Peter Obi: The Danger Of Making Crime A Norm

 Whenever I talk about Nigeria being a crime scene, those who are part of the criminality and their hirelings will quickly start their noise-making, attacking and blackmailing me.

*Peter Obi
But how do you tell people that those whose integrity, character and behaviour are supposed to be exemplary and emulated in society have become the very source of the nation’s decay? How do you tell young Nigerians to be honest and upright when those they are supposed to emulate are the least to be emulated because they are criminals and dishonest? 

Certificate forgery is a serious criminal offence in all countries of the world. It is one of the most corrupt practices heavily punished.

Peter Obi: Lagos Demolitions: Law, Justice And Compassion

 A week ago, a team of concerned leaders visited the demolished Aspamda Market in Lagos. Since then I have carefully followed the reactions trailing the demolitions, our visit, and feel that other extraneous variables are affecting our compassion for each other as Nigerians. The situation calls for deep reflection on the relationship between law, justice, and compassion in governance. 

*Sen Abaribe, Peter Obi and Sen Umeh vist the Demolished Market Buildings in Lagos

I recall an incident in the nineties, when I bought a house in the UK at 66 Donnington Road, NW10. While the building was still being refurbished, some squatters moved in. When I consulted my lawyer, he advised that I should write to them formally and approach the court. It would have been unthinkable for the state to simply wake up one morning and demolish people’s houses - especially when such houses were neither used for crime nor taken for any overriding public purpose. 

Nigeria: Befriending Bandits!

 By Suyi Ayodele

The photograph is graphic. The message is obvious. The semiotics are unmistaken. A bandit in military fatigue sits comfortably. On his lap is an AK-47 assault rifle. Around his neck are various communication gadgets. His look betrays his hubris. He is a man of power! His confidence shows who is in charge. It is audacity in its illiterate form!

Another man in a native attire bends towards the bandit. He smiles sheepishly. He holds a handset, in a very suggestive manner. The caption tells the entire story: “Nigerian Government Official ‘Exchange Contact’ with Bandits After a ‘Peace Deal’ Meeting in Subuwa LGA in Katsina State.”

Lagos And The Igbo: The Threats Of Pogroms At The Polls

 By Ugoji Egbujo

In 2023, after Obi defeated Tinubu in Lagos, MC Oluomo addressed the state. He warned the Igbo to sit at home on election day if they wouldn’t vote the APC. He wasn’t subtle. In that live broadcast, he framed  non-APC votes as a punishable betrayal. The police invited him for questioning, but the “chat” was more photo-op than accountability. He was released after a half-hearted apology that many saw as scripted.

*Tinubu and Sanwo-Olu 

A few days later at the polls, the Igbo were beaten black and blue, chased away from the polls. Many Igbo voters were hospitalized in Eti-Osa, Ojo, Amuwo-Odofin, and beyond. Oluomo’s agents had performed their task. The police did nothing. INEC said the election was credible. Oluomo and his principals celebrated the triumph of hooliganism. MC Oluomo’s street enforcers had turned words into wounds, and the lack of repercussions emboldened the playbook.

Nigeria: Has The Economy Stabilised?

 By Nick Dazang  

Leaders, like all mortals, experience fear. But most of them do not show it. In tempest and in turbulence, leaders must exude calm. They do so less their citizens find recourse in despair or paralysis. Which explains why at the height of the Great Depression, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt assured Americans, in his first inaugural address on March 4, 1933, that “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”.

“Perhaps, borrowing from this tendency, of leaders to show outward calm in the face of grave difficulties, our President, Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on assumption of office, elected not to raise the alarm about the economy. Even though the data and reality prevailing at the time suggested that our economy had taken a dark turn, he preferred to be taciturn.

Do We Deserve Bad Leadership?

 By Donu Kogbara

On Tuesday night, I appeared on Charles Aniagolu’s Arise TV show, alongside Dele Farotimi and Professor Jibrin Ibrahim.

We had been invited to discuss my view that most of today’s Nigerians deserve bad leadership because they don’t protest significantly when they are subjected to endless injustices and governance deficits.

Nigeria can and should be a great giant of Africa, thriving capital of the black world, source of pride for our Diaspora brethren and example of what black people can achieve if they do things properly.

But we are held back by corrupt, uncaring, cynical, inept politicians and civil servants at the federal, state and local government levels. And I don’t know why we do not rebel more and rebel vigorously.

Tess Onwueme, Distinguished Playwright And Scholar, At 70

 By Monday Philips Ekpe

Professor Ngugi wa Thiong’o, world-renowned Kenyan literary giant, described Professor Tess Osonye Onwueme thus: “In her work, Onwueme has shown daring in her exploration of ideas even if they lead to subjects and themes which may seem taboo. Onwueme is eminently a political dramatist, for power affects every aspect of society. She explores these themes with a dazzling array of images and proverbs. Her drama and theatre are a feast of music, mime, proverbs and story-telling… Onwueme consolidates her position among the leading dramatists from Africa.”

Professor Eugene Redmond, poet-laureate at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, IL, USA was even more robust and sweeping in his submission: “Among her literary soul mates are Wole Soyinka, Ama Ata Aidoo, Samuel Beckett, Derek Walcott, John Pepper Clark, Albert Camus, Chinua Achebe, Toni Morrison, Anton Chekhov, Femi Osofisan, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, George Bernard Shaw, Athol Fugard, August Wilson, Amos Tutuola, Gloria Naylor, Buchi Emecheta, Dennis Brutus, Alex LaGuma, Mariama Ba, and Sembene Ousmane.”

Nigeria At 65: It’s Time To Break The Vicious Circle

 By Olu Fasan

President Bola Tinubu cancelled yesterday’s Independence Anniversary parade at the last minute. No reason was given for the cancellation beyond the government’s “deep regret” for the “inconvenience caused”. Given that it was about Nigeria’s 65th anniversary as an independent state, a milestone, the cancellation was significant. Yet, in truth, it was just as well the parade was axed.

For it would be an extraordinary act of self-deception to roll out the drums for Nigeria’s 65th independence anniversary. The sad truth is that, beyond the fact of its existence as a political entity, there’s little worthy of jubilation about Nigeria at 65. If that statement sounds outlandish, then consider the following three critical measures of a nation’s success: unity, security and prosperity. Add a fourth: state capacity. How well has Nigeria fared, at 65, on these indices of development? Abysmally, one must say! 

What Exactly Does Lagos State Want From Ndigbo?

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

On October 1, Nigeria marked its 65th anniversary as an independent country and Nigerian leaders, as usual, used the opportunity to preach the gospel of peace and unity. Nigeria, many insisted, is the handiwork of God.

*Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe and Peter Obi inspect the demolished structures at the Trade Fair Complex, Lagos

President Bola Tinubu led the choir in his nationwide broadcast with this rallying cry: “While our system and ties that bind us are sometimes stretched by insidious forces opposed to our values and ways of life, we continue to strive to build a more perfect union where every Nigerian can find better accommodation and find purpose and fulfilment.”

Those that are more religiously inclined insist that since God does not make mistakes, then a united and indissoluble Nigeria must be seen as part of God’s divine purpose. But in reality, these preachments of unity mean nothing. They are mere sound bites meant to wheedle the unwary but which, at the end, as the legendary Shakespeare noted in Macbeth, are “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.” They are periodic effusion of platitudes, wearing the toga of an idiot’s tale.

Resetting Society Through The Womenfolk (Book Review)

Title: Woman, You are Important

Author: Blessing Abraham

Publishers: Kabod Broadcasting, Lagos

Number of Pages: 224

Reviewer: Banji Ojewale

Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ghana’s Kofi Annan (1938-2018), once said, ‘’There is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women.’’ Nations across the globe have adopted this counsel and roared themselves into greatness and accomplishment. One of the big factors that winged their traction for meteoric move is the preponderance or balanced presence of their women in government at the top, not on the periphery of activities.

Peter Obi: A Great Nigeria Is Still Possible!

Statement by Mr. Peter Obi, Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 Presidential Election, on the Occasion of Nigeria's 65th Independence Anniversary, 1 October 2025

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Fellow Nigerians,

Today should be a day of joy and remembrance, a day to celebrate the struggles of our heroes who fought to free Nigeria from colonial rule. It should be a day for gratitude to Almighty God for His blessings on our nation.

On 1 October 1960, Nigeria gained independence to global acclaim as an emerging African economic and political power. Such was our potential that Time Magazine predicted the rise of a true African superpower that would lead the continent with pride. Our founding fathers fought for independence with confidence, passion, and determination to build a prosperous Nigeria that would stand alongside the world’s most advanced nations.