Nigeria, a country that demolishes more than it builds, By Abimbola Adelakun

Popular singer Yemi Alade recently drew the ire of some online commentators when she decried the frequency of house demolitions in Lagos. Some of these commenters’ vociferous defence of the government’s decision to demolish houses left me wondering if this is not schadenfreude. Do these people truly believe in the irreproachability of the government, or […]

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Ohanaeze warns Igbo not to join the hardship protests in the country

Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, the socio-political group of Nigerians of southeast extraction on Monday in Enugu directed that Nigerians from the geopolitical zone should not partake in a planned national protest. There had been plans by some groups that Nigerians at home and in the diaspora should embark on protests over their declared economic hardships in […]

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Tales The Country Told Me: Hilda Baci and Seun Kuti, By Reuben Abati

Two major events dominated the headlines in the weekend that just passed in Nigeria: the heroism, determination and the example of Ms. Hilda Effiong Bassey, known as Hilda Baci for short, and the sordid drama of Seun Kuti, son of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the ternal music icon, pushing, slapping and assaulting a policeman in uniform. Both […]

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Take back your country, By Fola Ojo

A beleaguered Nigeria is preparing for one of the most historical presidential elections in the annals of her history. If extant quandaries from fuel scarcity, and maddening quagmires from currency swap crisis unleashed on us by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, don’t railroad […]

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For God, country and the marabout: #NigeriaDecides2023, By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu

Democratic politics is by far the most brutal competitive sport invented. Unlike other sports where the combination of individual skill, perspiration, inspiration, and experience or team ethic can be dispositive, outcomes in politics can hinge on externalities unrelated to these, such as the security services, voters, the media, electoral management bodies or all of the […]

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Mali’s military junta gives French ambassador 72 hours to leave the country

Mali’s military leaders have expelled the French ambassador to the country over what they called “outrageous” comments made by the French foreign minister about the transitional government. Relations between France and Mali, a landlocked country in West Africa which is one of the world’s poorest nations, have deteriorated since the army seized power in August […]

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Ghanaian police threaten to jail pastors who predict doom, evil things about the country in 2022

As the year 2022 draws nearer, the Ghanaian Police Service has warned religious leaders in the country against prophesying “harm, danger and death” and others that could “create tension and panic” in the country. Clergymen are known to making prophecies about countries and people as a new year emerges. In a statement released by its Director, […]

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Know the country that first brings complete democracy to the world

Every election cycle, we’re told that it’s the most important one ever. And in many ways, that’s true — if only because we can shape the future, but not what’s in the past. Yet the past is our best tutor for making sure we don’t repeat mistakes, learn from other societies and innovate in ways […]

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