Insecurity: Between Badaru’s Resignation And General Musa’s Return

 By Adekunle Adekoya

Curious. And curiouser. 

That’s how I can describe happenings on the Defence turf. Just weeks ago, immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa exited active service as a uniformed soldier. His exit, still unexplained, led to the elevation of his immediate subordinates into vacancies created by his exit. The burly Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen Olufemi Oluyede, stepped in as Defence Chief, while the Navy and Air Force and Army also got new chiefs.

*Gen Musa 

Prior to these developments, there had been talk of insurrection, with more talk of some soldiers having been arrested for questioning. After Musa was formally pulled out of service, all that talk vaporised. It seemed as if the dog had been given the name they wanted to give it so they could do to it what they wanted to do.

Renewed Hope Or Renewed Hypocrisy: Tinubu’s Risky Politics Of Redemption

 By Emmanuel Aziken

At a time President Bola Tinubu has chosen to nominate some of Nigeria’s most controversial personalities as ambassadors to represent the country abroad, the emergence of his so-called Renewed Hope Ambassadors—appointed to canvass support for his second-term aspiration—has shaken the polity in a manner that many did not expect but which, perhaps, should no longer surprise anyone observing the curious evolution of our political culture.

*Tinubu and Omokri 

 The inclusion of figures like Mr. Reno Omokri, whose pre-election stance painted Tinubu with every negative virtue that should not be associated with a leader, did not completely shock Nigerians. After all, before Omokri, the president had already appointed Dr. Daniel Bwala as Special Adviser, a man who only a year earlier emphatically declared that “even if you give Tinubu 30 years, nothing will work.” With such examples, it has become increasingly clear that Tinubu’s political instincts lean heavily toward embracing, rehabilitating, and strategically deploying his most ferocious critics.

Hasn’t Tinubu Insulted Nigerians Enough?

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

It is extremely difficult to understand why President Bola Tinubu takes delight in insulting Nigerians at every turn. Or how else can one explain most of his actions other than that of a leader who does not care a hoot about what the people think or feel?

*Tinubu 

A few weeks ago, it was the issue of presidential pardon. It beggared belief that a president would demean a constitutional instrument, designed not only to temper justice with mercy but also give the Nigerian state a human face with the axiomatic milk of kindness flowing underneath near infinite executive powers.

Structure Matters: Nigeria Needs The Right Political System To Succeed

 By Olu Fasan

Too often, one hears that it is not Nigeria that needs restructuring, but the minds of Nigerians and their leaders. Those who hold that view try to shift the emphasis away from structure to culture. They are wrong! Of course, culture matters, and leadership matters too. But empirical studies around the world show that it is the right institutions, the right governance structure, the right political system that creates the incentives that shape behaviour and drive political and economic progress. 

*Tinubu and Akpabio

The best insight on the powers of incentives came from Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner, authors of the fascinating book Freakonomics. They said: “Incentives are the cornerstones of modern life – and understanding them is the key to solving just about any riddle.” They added: “An incentive is a bullet, a lever, a key; an often-tiny object with astonishing power to change a situation.”

Questions For President Tinubu

 By Ochereome Nnanna

President Bola Tinubu’s spokesmen have been oddly quiet over two very grave accusations which portrayed their principal possibly as a part of our security problems. 

*Tinubu

When 25 students of Government Girls’ Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga in Kebbi State were abducted about ten days ago, the state’s Governor, Mohammed Idris, made a shocking disclosure. He said his government received credible intelligence about a likely attack on the school. 

Nigeria Burns, Leaders Make Merry

 By Emeka Alex Duru

My friend and colleague, Dr. Promise Adiele, read my mind in his piece of Wednesday, November 19, 2025, titled “Tinubu: To be or not to be – that is the question”. In it, Adiele did a robust analysis of the governance challenges in the country and the inability of the Bola Tinubu administration to confront the situation. Adiele raised the question of whether Tinubu should resign as President or not, pointing out, of course, that either of the options has corresponding consequences.

*Tinubu and Shettima 

A portion of the write-up touched mostly. It read: “Today in Nigeria, terrorists are targeting military formations, decimating our soldiers through ambush and sophisticated intelligence. The mass kidnapping of schoolchildren has returned in all its fury and despicable orchestration. In just one week, a Nigerian Brigadier General was ambushed by terrorists and murdered in the most gruesome manner. 

Under Bola Tinubu’s Watch, Boko Haram Has Finally Won

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

President Bola Tinubu is over the moon right now, for whatever it is worth. Last week was horrible for his administration and the man-in-charge image he is trying desperately to project. In less than seven days, terrorists deflated his elephantine ego by ambushing, penultimate Friday, a military team led by Musa Uba, a Brigadier General and commander of the 25 Task Force Brigade, in Borno State, killing four operatives — two soldiers and two CJTF officials – and later executing the gallant officer.

*Tinubu during a security meeting with service chiefs

On Monday, November 17, they invaded Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, Kebbi State, and abducted 24 schoolgirls after killing the vice-principal. On Wednesday, November 19, they stormed Christ Apostolic Church, in Eruku, Kwara State during a midweek prayer session, killing three persons and abducting 38 other congregants, mostly women and children, drawing nationwide outrage. To worsen matters, they placed a N100 million ransom on each of the 38 abductees.

Bola Tinubu’s Diminished Presidency

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

Many are outraged that President Donald Trump called Nigeria a “disgraced country.” I am too. But my anger is not against Trump. I am angry with President Bola Tinubu who brought this insult on us. The only reason why Trump would disparage this country of over 200 million people is because Tinubu has damaged our collective reputation in the eyes of the international community.

*Tinubu

An African adage says, “He who fetches ant-infested firewood invites lizards in his house.” So, I am not cross with Trump’s showboating. Yes, as a Nigerian, my national pride is deeply hurt when the president of another country ridicules mine.

Nigeria Doesn’t Need A Military Coup; It Needs Enlightened, Active Citizens

 By Olu Fasan

However much the Presidency tried to explain away President Bola Tinubu’s last-minute cancellation of this year’s Independence Day parade, it was clear that something was amiss.

For such a milestone as Nigeria’s 65th independence anniversary, it was beyond belief that the president would abruptly ditch the parade on the strange excuse that the Armed Forces should not be sidetracked from fighting terrorism, as if the entire military would be on the parade ground. An intelligent guess would suggest that President Tinubu was probably warned against appearing in public because of an attempted coup d’etat. Put simply, he was apparently alerted to danger ahead and shielded from it. 

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.

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.

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 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.

Between Natasha’s Defiance And Fubara’s Docility

 By Emmanuel Aziken

Two strong disruptions to Nigeria’s democratic flow in March 2025 were seemingly repaired recently with the dramatic restoration of Governor Siminilayi Fubara to the helm of affairs in Rivers State and the reinstatement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan to the Senate after months of suspension.

*Natasha 

On the surface, both restorations may appear as victories for democracy, yet when viewed closely, they reveal two sharply contrasting responses to political persecution — one marked by courage, the other by compromise.

The Return Of Fubara, Nigeria’s Most Diminished ‘Governor’

By Olu Fasan

Siminalayi Fubara returned as “governor” of Rivers State last week, six months after he was magisterially removed from office by President Bola Tinubu, following his declaration of an emergency rule in the state. Fubara returned with his tail between his legs, utterly humiliated.

*Fubara, Wike and Tinubu

Henceforth, anyone who refers to Fubara as governor must put the word in inverted commas. Why? Well, truth be told, he’s not a governor in the true sense of the word. He owes his existence in office not to the people of Rivers State, but to President Tinubu, the National Assembly and Nyesom Wike, the former Rivers State governor, now Tinubu’s self-aggrandising and untouchable minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

Abike Dabiri-Erewa: When Duty Is Betrayed, Price Must Be Paid

 By Elsie-Bernadette Onubogu

It is no hyperbole when I say the internet erupted in a storm of tweets this past week. Unlike the cliché – ‘a perfect storm,’ there was nothing perfect in the sense of the word about this storm.

*Abike and Tinubu

That tweet on the ‘X’ platform soon found its way to other social media avenues in particular – WhatsApp. On the train to Ontario from New York, I realized I had missed several calls due in part to unstable network going through nature’s wooded scenery that allures me into taking the train to Canada rather than flying.

Upon investigation, I realized the raison d’etre for the storm was ‘the endorsement of a hate speech’ by a public officer appointed to represent and be the face of Nigeria in the Diaspora. Yes, there was outrage on the internet, and I keyed into that outrage. I did so because, in sharing and forwarding a tweet that was not only derogatory, bigoted, discriminatory, dehumanizing and denigrating, that Nigerian officer betrayed the sworn duty to promote respect, unity, and the dignity of every Nigerian irrespective of ethnicity, gender, class, religious belief or age.

The Japan “Hometown” Hoax

 By Ochereome Nnanna

One of the fallouts of President Bola Tinubu’s recent trip to Japan was the news that Japan had created a “hometown” for Nigerians in Kisarazu, a suburb of Tokyo. The impression it gave was that Japan would issue special visas (perhaps something like the American Visa Lottery), to enable willing Nigerians migrate to Japan, settle and work.

When I made a social media post asking Nigerians if they would like to “japa to Japan”, a good number of young people seemed excited about the “opportunity” and sought more information. The Japanese Foreign Ministry has since clarified the issue, but in a manner that poured ice water on the enthusiastic expectations of those seeking to become Japanese overnight.

Wike’s Lives Hang On A Slender Thread

 By Dele Sobowale

In all matters, one must consider the end” – Jean De La Fontaine, 1621-

“A man cannot be too careful in his choice of enemies”– Oscar Wilde, 1856-1900.

*Tinubu and Wike
Every active and deliberately controversial politician in a deadly political environment has two lives to protect – his real life and his political life. Occasionally, the two lives are imperiled at the same time on account of circumstances brought about by him or beyond his control. For a long time in the history of partisan politics, a politician has placed his two lives in jeopardy. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, has inadvertently boxed himself into a very tight corner.