As Nigeria’s Judges Get Set To Begin Voting

 By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

This week, the opening salvo will be fired to signal the onset of the final round of voting in Nigeria’s electoral marathon. This is not a reference to the state-level ballots that occurred around the country on Saturday, March 18. I refer instead to something far more consequential.

Democracy may be about choices and decisions by citizens in theory. As practised in Nigeria, however, citizens are mostly spectators. In every election, Nigeria’s judges have the final votes.

2023 Elections: Do We Still Need Political Parties?

 By Adekunle Adekoya

The online version of Encyclopaedia Brittanica describes a political party as “a group of persons organised to acquire and exercise political power”. Political parties originated in their modern form in Europe and the United States in the 19th century, along with the electoral and parliamentary systems, whose development reflects the evolution of parties. The term party has since come to be applied to all organised groups seeking political power, whether by democratic elections or by revolution. 

*Obi, Tinubu, Atiku, Kwankwaso

Another online resource portal, Wikipedia defines a political party “as an organisation that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country’s elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or policy goals. Political parties have become a major part of the politics of almost every country.”

Peter Obi Writes Nigerians, Says: A New Nigeria Is Again Possible On The 18th Of March!

 

On 25th of February 2023, millions of Nigerians from all walks of life, across generations and backgrounds, from Bornu to Lagos, Port Harcourt to Sokoto, Kano to Enugu, Taraba to Ondo voted strongly and resolutely to take back their country. They voted for Labour Party; they voted for a New Nigeria!  I most sincerely continue to thank all Nigerians for their genuine belief and commitment that a New Nigeria is possible through us. And indeed, it is possible and has started!   

Nigeria: Thoughts On Our National Trauma

 By Steve Azaiki

For Nigerians, these are not the easiest of times. Happy faces are rare, because the mood is indignant. Adults—male and female—have stripped naked inside banking halls, demanding their cash. Fights break out routinely on queues before ATMs that dispense only miserly amounts. Small businesses have quietly folded up, at least in the meantime, because of low patronage occasioned by the cash crunch. 

Fuel queues disappear for only a few days, and then the filling stations run dry for weeks amid official explanations that don’t quite make sense to anyone any more. Nor do citizens feel safe and secure in cities, on the farm, or on the highways. Add the epileptic public power supply and the excruciatingly high cost of living, and it is easy to read the nation’s mood.

INEC: Nigeria’s Institutions Act Irresponsibly With Impunity… Sad!

 By Olu Fasan

Every nation fails or succeeds on the quality of its institutions. But every institution is as strong as the quality of its personnel, their competence and professionalism, their values and norms. Unfortunately, Nigeria is a country where state institutions utterly malfunction, bereft of any sense of responsibility, and where public officials have perverse norms and values, lacking a sense of purpose to serve the national interest.

*Yakubu

The latest instance of institutional failure in Nigeria is the abysmal performance of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, which dashed the hopes of millions of Nigerians, and the expectations of the world, by conducting a presidential election universally condemned for woefully failing the basic tests of transparency and credibility. INEC’s failure reinforced the global perception of Nigeria as a failing state.

Toxicity Of Tinubu’s Lagos Politics

 By Ikechukwu Amaechi

As I reflect on the happenings in Lagos State since the February 25 Presidential and National Assembly elections, I cannot help but see the spectre of the 1994 Rwanda genocide unfolding before our very eyes. In the years leading up to the 1994 genocide, the Hutu-led government used all its propaganda machinery to spread bigotry and hatred against the Tutsi, painting them as a threat to Rwanda, exactly the same way a section of the Lagos community is inciting hatred against Ndigbo, portraying them as enemies of the Yoruba.

*Tinubu and Sanwo-Olu in Landon
“For genocide to occur,” Kennedy Ndahiro, Rwandan journalist wrote on March 13, 2014, “it must be preceded by the dehumanisation of a group … dehumanisation removes the individuality of a person. There is no difference between the group and the individuals. When done well, pity for the 'other' becomes impossible and extermination becomes the natural next step.”  In the last three weeks, Ndigbo have been grossly dehumanised in Lagos. They have been portrayed as ungrateful migrants – never mind that they are Nigerians – who want to appropriate Yoruba heritage. 

A Toast To Odia Ofeimun At 73

 By Uzor Maxim Uzoatu

There is no better way of introducing Odia Ofeimun than pointedly stressing that “Odia Ofeimun is Odia Ofeimun!” Enough said. 

*Ofeimun

Poet, publisher, editor, activist, polemicist, mentor, politician, columnist, factory worker, writer, dance-drama exponent, public intellectual, critic etc, Odia Ofeimun has packed uncountable lifetimes into one tumultuous lifespan. 

Igbo And The Battle For Lagos

 By Bisi Olawunmi

With governorship elections slated for Saturday, 18 March, 2023 there is tension in many states where the elections have become too close to call. Lagos State is the economic jewel of the nation and one where Saturday’s election will be an epic battle, given the emergent Youth Revolt which catapulted Labour Party’s (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to a landmark victory over Lagos Landlord, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Obi garnered 582,454 votes to Tinubu’s 572,606 votes with perennial presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, of the People’s Democratic Party trailing by a paltry 75,750. For the PDP candidate, it was literally a wipe -out. Atiku, the Turaki of Adamawa simply ‘ tukasile ‘ (fell apart) in his Lagos outing. The Obidients even claim that they had a wallop of votes close to one million.

Nigeria: A Dangerous Trend

 By Sunny Ikhioya

From the outcome of the February 25 elections, it is clear that our politics will never be the same again. Our youths have answered the clarion call by taking up the challenge to take back their country and, this is clear for all to see. Even with this, some people are refusing to accept the reality of our situation. You know, those who do not want to play by the rules always find reasons for their failure. The election was substantially flawed and has drawn negative criticism from far and near. 

Ultimately, it is the court that will decide. But whatever the outcome, the real change in our democracy has come to stay. This is an election that our sitting President, after casting his vote on election day, displayed his ballot to the whole world, an action that is against the Constitution and the Electoral Act. By so doing, he has demonstrated that our leaders have no respect for the rule of law, and a few misguided leaders followed in his footstep. 

To The Nigerian Youths Of Lagos

 By Sola Ebiseni  

To start with, I belong to the OBIDATTI Movement with undying conviction that a new Nigeria is possible and that the combination of Peter Gregory Obi and Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed is the best for its realisation. My conviction is also anchored on the fact that it is the turn of Southern Nigeria and specifically the South-East to produce the next President of Nigeria after the eight years of President Buhari from the North as a guarantee for equity and the imperative peace of the federation.

Nigerian youths, in spite of the INEC shenanigans, remain the heroes of the on-going electioneering processes. From the outset, they were unpretentious about their interests. They resolved to break away from the evil that has befallen Nigerians, particularly in the last eight years in all aspects of life and more worrisome, the issue of insecurity which places our country in the category of failed states.

Creating Safe Digital Spaces For Women

 By Sefa Ikpa and Zikora Ibeh

International Women’s Day, celebrated every March 8, is a day to commemorate the achievements of women and gender equality advocates. This year’s theme focuses on innovation and digital technology for gender equality, recognising the rising influence of technology, and the important role it plays in society today, including the negative and positive effects.

Over the last two decades, digital technology has had significant impact on global industrialisation, knowledge democratisation, access to power and opportunities, and networking. Indeed, the growth of digital technology has revolutionised human experiences and social interactions across the world.

Presidental Election 2023: Demonstration Of Craze

 By Ighodalo Clement Eromosele

The expectation by Nigerians of a free, fair, transparent and credible presidential election; the hope that results from the polling units will be transmitted directly to INEC Result Viewing portal (IReV); the enthusiasm kindled in Nigerians, many, first-time voters to perform a civic duty of voting have all been eroded by processes characterized by multiple irregularities, foremost of which was the failure by INEC officials to transmit results for the presidential elections directly from the polling units in accordance with the provisions of the 2022 Electoral Act and with the much publicized INEC election guidelines.

INEC has arrogated the failure to do so as arising from glitches in the electronic systems. Yet, the results for the National Assembly Elections were transmitted by the same systems. This contradiction is befuddling and it is a trust deficit for INEC.

Igbos Earned Their Lunch In Lagos!

 By Femi Olufunmilade 

Lagos has been a cosmopolitan, global destination with a modern seaport at Apapa since the mid-1800. It became a Crown Colony in 1861. I did a research for the Nigerian Customs, went into the Federal Archives at the University of Ibadan and discovered records of the Customs Administration of Lagos since 1877. Could have been earlier. 

Lagos was developed by people from diverse parts of the world. The British contributed their bit, ditto indigenous people, as well as other West African groups like Dahomians, Ghanaians, Togolese, etc. From within Nigeria, you have early settlers like the Bini, and the Tapa, and returned slaves from Brazil and Sierra Leone, and, by the early 1900s, the Igbo began to flock in. Later, the Lebanese came, followed by the Indians. All of these groups have made Lagos what it is before BAT came out of his father’s crotch, whoever he is. 

Should Indicted INEC Sit Over Her Judgement?

 By MC Asuzu

Without any iota of doubt, all Nigerians must know by now that the vast majority of the people in this country are no longer ready to go on with all the lies and deceptions that had gone on in this country for all these past years. 

*INEC Chair, Prof Yakubu 

And even that statement is to put it very mildly indeed. The only surprising thing about this emerging situation is that unlike in the past, the young people that dominate this revolutionary movement have apparently agreed not to be violent about it; no matter the provocation they get from the erstwhile political brigands in this regard.

Nigeria: The Rise In Police Brutality

 By Tochukwu Ezukanma

This is an Igbo saying: “Eze mua amu, ndi odibo ya e tiwa si ba isi.” It loosely translates to, “If the king laughs, his servants will become delirious with laughter.” In other words, servants are out to impress their master and prove their loyalty to him, and consequently, will carry to the extreme the master’s desires and actions. 

The Nigeria Police Force, in this context, is the servants, and President Buhari is the king. If the government respects, develops, protects and secures Nigerians, the Nigerian police, invariably, will revere and protect Nigerians. But, as the administration obviously despises Nigerian lives, what is expected of its police force – its servants – is commitment to furthering the master’s desires and preferences. It will inevitably despise Nigerian lives, and consequently, be brutal and trigger-happy. 

Awake, O Judiciary!

 By Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa

On Friday March 3, 2023, the nation waited with bated breath for the Supreme Court, the crowning glory and head of Nigeria’s judicial system.

The apex court is populated with leaders of the judiciary, starting from the Honourable the Chief Justice of the Federation, who also heads the National Judicial Council. It had been a long wait indeed, essentially because on February 8, 2023, the Supreme Court gave a lifeline to the suffering masses of our people when it issued an order for the old N200, N500 and N1000 notes to continue to circulate alongside the new notes. But the federal government and the Central Bank of Nigeria would have none of it, insisting that the old N500 and N1000 notes were gone forever as they had ceased to be legal tender.

They Sell The Needy For A Pair Of Shoes

 By Owei Lakemfa

I woke up at the weekend to a letter by Professor Ibrahim Adamu Yakasai of the Bayero University, Kano. He had on March 25, 2023 performed a civic duty as the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Returning Officer for the Tudun Wada/Doguwa House of Representative elections.

He had announced with his professorial authority that Ado Doguwa of the All Progressives Congress, APC, polled 39,732 votes to defeat his closest rival, Yushau Salisu Abdullahi, of the New Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP, who polled 34,798 votes. Now, in his letter, he makes a different declaration: that the previous verdict he declared was false, but that he had to do so because his life and those of other electoral staff were endangered. He said the collation area was under siege and he was “completely traumatised, hopeless and confused”.

An Attempt To Defend Professor Mahmood Yakubu

 By Emmanuel Aziken

Against the background of dashed hopes and the intrigues that shadowed the conduct of the 2023 presidential election, it is difficult for anyone with a clear conscience to rush to the defence of Prof Mahmood Yakubu, the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

*Prof Yakubu 

Given that Yakubu is a professor of history, it is telling that historians will in the immediate and distant future easily pick him out as a facilitator in the conspiracy to suppress what many had projected would be the beginning of the Nigerian renaissance in the third decade of the 21st century. What with the promised hopes that spurred many Nigerians who had in the past not voted, to on February 25, 2023, take that first step in their civic responsibility to enthrone good governance.

2023 Election: The Betrayal, The Tragedy, The Shame

 By Tony Eluemunor

First the betrayal: President Muhammadu Buhari and the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) without being prompted by anyone, repeatedly promised Nigerians a free and fair election in February 2023. Buhari promised that a transparent 2023 election would be his legacy project.

Yet, what happened? International observers have derided both Nigeria and the elections. Both Buhari and the INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu knew that giving Nigeria a flawless general election was doable, that the money projected to meet the logistics that would make the poll transparent was duly budgeted for and the monies made available to the electoral agency.

Explaining Peter Obi’s Victory

 By Promise Adiele

This is not a critical dissection of the recently concluded presidential election in Nigeria, an exercise globally acclaimed as a collective assault on the humanity of Nigerians and their civic beings. That political obscenity, through coordinated acts of criminality, raped the intelligence of Nigerians, summarily calling to question those who populate our public service and security apparatuses. 

*Peter Obi

The reactions following the elections have been seething and hysterical, especially for those who believed INEC chairman Prof Yakubu Mahmoud that the results would be transmitted directly from the polling units to the commission’s portal. 

Alas, the BVAS was deliberately incapacitated. It was a beguiling gimmick unleashed on Nigerians through well-lubricated machinery of composite deception. Regrettably, the announced results have momentarily conferred a spurious legitimacy on the ruling APC as they glory in their capture and seizure of vengeful power. The humiliation continues to assail the length and breadth of the country as Nigerians are rudely encouraged to accept the vulgar manifestation of power desperadoes in the country. The temptation to discuss issues arising from the election is compelling but I must remain focused and faithful to the title of this essay.