Nigeria, In Times Like This…, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had assured the country of its readiness to deploy the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) and the Election Result Viewing Portal (IReV) in the build-up to last Saturday’s presidential and national assembly elections. These two technological innovations would have enhanced the transparency of their process and the integrity of outcomes. INECs inability […]

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At the End, Only One Will Win!, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The less you say, the less risk you run of saying something foolish, even dangerous. In 1825 a new czar, Nicholas I, ascended the throne of Russia. A rebellion immediately broke out, led by liberals demanding that the country modernize—that its industries and civil structures catch up with the rest of Europe. Brutally crushing this […]

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INEC and the Lesson from VAR, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) held a mock accreditation exercise last week in 436 polling units across the country. The purpose was to test the functionality of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) ahead of the general election that begins next week Saturday with the presidential poll. Available reports indicate that it was largely […]

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The Governor and the Cemetery Boy, By Olusegun Adeniyi

Arthur Brisbane, 10th century American journalist and writer was credited with the statement, “Use a picture. It’s worth a thousand words.”He could not have been more apt. The picture featured on this page today is that of the Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule condoling a crying boy crouched beside the grave of his deceased father. It […]

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Atiku/Tinubu: Please, Grow Up!, By Olusegun Adeniyi

Street wisdom dictates that those in glass houses don’t walk naked. This seems lost on Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar. The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate and the flagbearer of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have allowed their media managers to trade damaging allegations that question their own character and […]

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How Far Can Peter Obi Go?, By Olusegun Adeniyi

THISDAY headquarters on Creek Road, Apapa, Lagos was not far from Mr Peter Obi’s corporate office. So, we visited each other regularly before he became Governor of Anambra State. Not only has our friendship endured, but Obi has remained the same man I first encountered more than two decades ago. Simple. Gracious. And, as I have learnt […]

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‘If the Patient Dies, Kill the Doctor’, By Olusegun Adeniyi

Monday’s statement by the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) that one of its members, Uyi Iluobe, was murdered by relatives of his patient at a hospital in Oghara, Delta State is a serious allegation. Iluobe’s death, according to the NMA President, Uche Ojinma, as “response of the relatives to the loss of a patient from suspected […]

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Ndigbo, 2023 and Looming Danger, By Olusegun Adeniyi

Nothing speaks better to a time like this than the message embedded in ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’.  Particularly in the Southeast. I have deployed the 18th century poem by German writer and politician, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe several times on this page. It tells a compelling story that begins as an old sorcerer departs his workshop, leaving an apprentice with chores to perform. The apprentice, who had apparently observed his master at work, enchants a […]

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Peter Obi, Atiku, Kwankwaso and 2023, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The editorial board of THISDAY newspaper on Monday hosted the flagbearer of the Labour Party, Mr Peter Obi in continuation of our presidential dialogue series. After the session, we all came out for group photograph, just as we did when we hosted the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) presidential candidate, Dr Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso in […]

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2023: A Word for Bad Losers, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The 2023 general election is almost upon us. No fewer than 12,000 candidates sponsored by 18 political parties will contest for 109 Senatorial seats, 360 House of Representatives memberships, 993 State House of Assembly positions, 28 governorships, and the lone office of the President. An estimated 95 million registered voters are also expected to cast […]

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A Significant Lesson from Ghana, By Olusegun Adeniyi

On Monday in Accra, President Nana Akufo-Addo sacked his Minister of State for Finance, Charles Adu Boahen following sordid revelations from renowned Ghanaian investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas. “After being made aware of the allegations levelled against the minister in an expose, ‘Galamsey Economy’”, according to the director of communications, Eugene Arhin, “the President spoke […]

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Thou Shall (Not) Sleep on Duty!, By Olusegun Adeniyi

On Tuesday, the Mail of London reported that ‘Tik Tok stars who mocked a government official in Nigeria have been sentenced to be whipped 20 times under Sharia law.’ In the video that sparked the official outrage, according to the report, the duo of Mubarak Isa Muhammed and Muhammed Bula “mocked Mr Ganduje for alleged land grabbing, corruption and sleeping […]

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When Budget Becomes Racket, By Olusegun Adeniyi

Given how a serious national economic planning instrument has been cynically subverted over the years, there cannot be a more apt summation of the futility of budgets in Nigeria than a 2019 Twitter thread by ‘Laolu Samuel-Biyi. I have twice referenced his conclusion on this page: “If you want to keep hope alive in Nigeria, don’t look at […]

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Squandermania Nigeria Unlimited!, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The late Dele Giwa once wrote that Nigerians ‘have been shocked to the state of unshockability.’ He was right. But every once in a while reports about our country are so shocking that you continue to doubt them until their veracity is confirmed. I was in such a situation on Monday when I read a report credited to the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Director-General, Bashir […]

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The Case Against ASUU…1, By Olusegun Adeniyi

A thought-provoking piece is going round on WhatsApp. Credited to Professor Hamman Tukur Sa’ad, it concerns the current Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) strike and the tertiary education crisis in Nigeria. The author not only accuses ASUU leadership and those who manage education in Nigeria of lacking critical thinking, but also indicts them for […]

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Wadume and the Nigerian Tragedy, By Olusegun Adeniyi

The slap on the wrist given a notorious kidnap kingpin has exposed the underbelly of the criminal justice administration in Nigeria. It also underscores the seeming hopelessness of the national security situation. Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court, according to reports, last month sentenced Hamisu Bala, popularly known as Wadume, to seven years imprisonment for unlawfully dealing in prohibited firearms and […]

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