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In July 2005, I was aboard an Egypt Air flight from Cairo to Lagos on my way from Saudi Arabia. As we approached the Nigerian air space, the pilot announced that we would be landing in Kano because the Lagos airport had been closed. An airplane had crash-landed and blocked the only runway at the […]
Continue ReadingAnytime people complain to my hearing about the lopsided high-level appointments made so far by President Bola Tinubu, I am tempted to gloat and proclaim: “Told you so!” I have never hidden my bias for the reflection of federal character, or equity, in appointments, employments and projects. My simple argument for decades has been that […]
Continue ReadingIf anyone had told me in 2004 that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu would one day, as president of Nigeria, declare emergency rule in a state and suspend a governor because of a squabble between a godfather and his godson, I would have said: “Stop it! Tinubu would never do that!” But you should forgive me: […]
Continue ReadingWith Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi central) suspended by the senate for “misconduct” and “refusal to comply with the seating arrangement” in the red chamber, may we now carefully proceed to the substance of her allegation against Senate President Godswill Akpabio? We need not be distracted from the serious allegation against the nation’s No 3 […]
Continue ReadingAs soon as I laid my hands on Gen Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s autobiography, ‘A Journey in Service’, there were only two things I was eager to read: the June 12 annulment story and the murder of Dele Giwa, one of the finest journalists out of Nigeria. There were many landmarks that defined the IBB era […]
Continue ReadingThe House of Reps has received proposals to create 31 new states across the country. Amazing. If every proposal sails through (which I doubt), that means we will end up with 67 states since we currently have 36 of them. That would mean 67 state governors, 67 state cabinets (with thousands of commissioners, special advisers […]
Continue ReadingYou can say whatever you like about Rt Hon Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, but you can never accuse the former governor of Rivers state of denying the media premium content anytime he speaks. He talks so plainly and pungently you cannot but hunger and thirst for more. He is a journalist’s delight. Those in the business […]
Continue ReadingHow can I forget? On April 22, 1990, Major Gideon Orkar announced the overthrow of Gen Ibrahim Babangida’s military regime which he described in choice words as “dictatorial, corrupt, drug-baronish, deceitful”. In those days, every coup speech was welcomed with enthusiasm. Every new administration was seen as the dawn of a golden era. Orkar made […]
Continue ReadingA year ago, Mr Olanipekun Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), openly lamented the “craze and quest for gratification, bribes and other compromises” by some of the commission’s investigators. “They are becoming too embarrassing and this must not continue,” he said. Monday last week, the EFCC dismissed 27 officials over alleged […]
Continue ReadingDo you know that Jigawa can become the richest state in Nigeria? Don’t laugh at me and say “this guy has started again”. I will explain myself, but my central point remains that we have a mental block when it comes to understanding the wealth of a state. We have limited it to mineral resources […]
Continue Reading“Nigeria is finished patapata!” Do you often hear that? I have observed over time that there are people who get excited by negative news concerning Nigeria. If the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reports that we have recorded a negative GDP growth rate or the economy is heading for a recession, they will be the […]
Continue Reading“But she spoke the truth.” That is the most common retort among the diehard fans and devotees of Mrs. Kemi Badenoch — leader of the UK Conservative Party — who has been obsessed with saying nasty things about Nigeria since she made her way into the front row of British politics and started glowing under […]
Continue ReadingWhat I would call a routine conversation with a former Nigerian leader inspired this write-up. After expressing his concern about certain developments in the polity, the retired general said he was worried about how Nigerians keep promoting ethnic and religious sentiments at a time the country needed all the unity it can afford to make […]
Continue ReadingIt’s been very difficult for me to comment on the VAT component of the tax reform bills because of lack of data. President Bola Tinubu has proposed to increase VAT derivation from 20 percent to 60 percent. This has led to political pushbacks and media war. Proponents argue that the bill is so good it […]
Continue ReadingCall her naïve but she spoke the minds of millions. I am talking about the woman interviewed by TVC during the Ondo state governorship election last weekend. Asked how the voting went, the woman, speaking in Yoruba, said: “Everything went peacefully. We have voted and we have collected money. Everything went well.” A lady (probably […]
Continue ReadingThe late Archbishop Benson Idahosa was once asked to comment on the “proliferation of churches” in the country. His rhetorical response was as cynical as it was clinical: “Why are people not complaining about the proliferation of beer parlours?” This came to mind recently when the old debate about whether or not we should pray […]
Continue ReadingJust when you are tempted to give up on Nigeria, something happens and your hope survives another brutal assault yet again. The incident involving Hon. Alex Mascot Ikwechegh has once more assured me that Nigeria is not a lost case. We know what is right, even if we fail to do it. We know what […]
Continue ReadingPraise the Lord! President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed ministers and heads of departments and agencies to reduce the number of vehicles in their convoys to three and their security personnel to a maximum of five. This is to “reduce the cost of governance” (I prefer to call it “government’s running cost” because “governance” is […]
Continue ReadingBreaking News: The World Bank has endorsed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic policy, suggesting that Nigeria must maintain its current reforms for the next 10 to 15 years in order to be able to transform its economy. Dr. Indermit Gill, the chief economist and senior vice-president of the World Bank Group, said and I quote: […]
Continue ReadingWell, well, well… what an eventful week! So eventful I was unsure of what topic to write about. I started out wanting to do a follow-up to my last article, ‘On States, Regions and Federalism’. I also wanted to make an important clarification on the Unification Decree of 1966, having forgotten to add that it […]
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