Tag: saharareporters

Forty years ago, a brand new set of undergraduate students graduated from the Mass Communication Department of the University of Lagos. I was fortunate to be one of them. I remember very well the enthusiasm of fellow graduating students, the hopes and aspirations of a greater and brighter future ahead in uncharted territories. If not, how could I have survived my initial encounter with what… Read More

Friday June 12 marked Nigeria’s 21 years of steady democracy but in my observation what should be a national day of celebration was greeted by collective indifference save for the political elites, who have profited from the current arrangement, who found a way to regale us with flowery prose and vain promises. This was the first question I asked my… Read More

I’m one that believes that the best time to discuss war prevention strategies is peace time, not war time. War time is best devoted to winning the war, not thinking of how to prevent another war. What that translates to in the battle against the recent upsurge in rape cases in Nigeria is that ordinarily, we should not be having… Read More

In a few days, black America will pick up the pieces from the intense trauma of the past few weeks to mark this year’s Juneteenth. June 19, 1865 was the date when Union general Gordon Granger read federal orders in Galveston, Texas declaring all previously enslaved people free. Though the abolition of slavery happened much earlier, the American south wasn’t… Read More

The announcement of Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Nigeria’s nominated candidate for the position of the Director General of the World Trade Organization, which would now be vacant by September 1, 2020, and not 2021, following the incumbent’s decision to take his exit a year earlier, was received with great excitement among Nigerians. This enthusiasm is in itself a reflection of… Read More

Nigeria is a troubled nation going through tortured times. Sixty years ago, Nigeria became independent. Till today, our federal system of government continues to experience tensions due to issues of inequality and ethnic domination. The Federal Character Commission was established to ensure federal character principle that will guarantee equitable representation of different groups in all tiers of the federal government.… Read More

If you want to be different in your ideological make up in life, you must have a thick skin to stand and withstand the expected consequences. For a lawyer in this part of the world, it is more serious, thick skin alone may not suffice, so you add ruggedness to the mix. And if you prescribe celestial fortification, you may… Read More

The spokesperson of Islamists in Kano has stated that Mubarak Bala would not be tried in a sharia court. That came as a relief, right? But do not be excited. Mr. Bala would still be punished in line with sharia law. Those who are conversant with the treatment and trial of persons who are accused of blasphemy in Kano understand… Read More

The Federal High Court in Lokoja set tongues wagging, dogs barking and goat bleating when on June 2, 2020, after examining incontrovertible evidence, the court recited the contents of Nigeria’s history to declare that the country was indebted to ancient Igala Kingdom. That debt in cowries, now to be paid in naira, is approximately N10bn. As it is the tradition… Read More

History, as they say, repeats itself. In the case of Nigeria, bad history often repeats itself; good history rarely does. This best explains what plays out in the Presidential Villa between the First Lady and Sabiu Tunde Yusuf—President Muhammadu Buhari’s nephew and personal assistant. Nigeria is plagued with leadership problem. A recurring situation whereby the electorates voted a president into office only for the office to be hijacked by other ‘presidents’ who… Read More