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Opinion

Sunday, 20 October 2019 06:17

As Lagosians Rage: Sanwo-Olu, how now? - Bolanle Bolawole

"When France sneezes, Europe catches cold" – Metternich. Lagosians are in a rage and going by the saying of Metternich above, what do you think should be happening right now to the governor of the State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu? France in the above quote equates to no less a personality than Napoleon Bonaparte. Once Napoleon took control of France with a coup d’Etat and proceeded to attempt to create a French empire encompassing much of mainland Europe, every Napoleonic move became a source of great concern to Europe. No matter how unfeeling the powers-that-be may be, there is no way the…

Sunday, 20 October 2019 06:16

A postmortem on Dele Giwa's mangled body - Festus Adedayo

Since that dark Sunday morning on October 19, 1986 when renowned journalist, Dele Giwa, was parcel-bombed by a God-knows-who, Nigerian journalism, Nigeria and government-journalism relationship have not recovered from that nightmarish experience. And in diverse regards. First, because it was a novel manner of assassination, the killing of Giwa opened the floodgate for subsequent demystification of the oppression of journalists in Nigeria. For the Ibrahim Babangida military government which was the first suspect in the killing, Giwa’s death demanded new methods of arresting critical journalists without slamming any chains around their feet. Babangida thereafter sent for Antonio Gramsci, Italian activists…

Thursday, 17 October 2019 06:27

Are there elders in Buhari’s household? - Abimbola Adelakun

President Muhammadu Buhari built his brand on three myths: self-discipline, fiscal discipline, and military discipline. These myths became the national millstone when fate dealt Nigeria a diseased hand during the night of December 31, 1983 and ushered in Buhari into the presidency until August 1985. His quicksand morality has been an ever-present conundrum. From his first coming till the present time, Buhari has variously talked down on Nigerians about their indiscipline. When it comes to understanding Nigeria’s issues, Buhari’s mind can neither accept nuances nor complexities beyond the nostrum of discipline. He believes if he could intravenously inject us with…

Thursday, 17 October 2019 06:26

Between Aisha Buhari and Fatima Daura - Niran Adedokun

Fatima Mamman Daura’s Monday interview with the Hausa service of the British Broadcasting Corporation is as audacious as it is revealing. Until Fatima picked up the gauntlet, there were widespread aspirations to put a face to the name First Lady Aishat Buhari mentioned as having recorded and then went ahead to release the video that saw the President’s wife fuming. She did Nigerians the favour of resolving that contention. Fatima’s admittance of the deed may itself have been prompted by Aisha Buhari’s confident and most likely strategic revelation that she was the subject of this video, which hitherto generated a…

Thursday, 17 October 2019 06:24

Sex predators: Is castration the answer? - Bolanle Bolawole

Increasing cases of rape and defiling of little children in Ekiti require urgent attention. The amendment being sought may include imprisonment and medical castration of offenders, among others not stipulated in the existing law – Mrs Bisi Fayemi, First Lady, Ekiti State. The human mind works in a mysterious way that confirms that man is more than the Matter that Marxists say it is. Man, truly, has a spiritual essence. One of our Marxist lecturers, a professor, was driving one day on a long haul up North and, out of nowhere, thoughts of a classmate of his in his secondary…

Sunday, 13 October 2019 05:55

UNILAG and the sex narrative in the Villa - Festus Adedayo

Sex and sexual narratives took over the information highway for the better part of last week, causing a very serious gridlock. My Alma-mater, University of Lagos, launched the traffic. Kiki Mordi, a journalist with the British Broadcasting Corporation, (BBC) had undertaken an undercover operation of finding out what the colour of sex was on Nigerian university campuses. Her findings were as shocking as they were revealing. UNILAG lecturers, whom Mordi encountered, failed the litmus test and got dragged down the cliff by the lurid revelations of their sexual indiscretions. In the same week, the virus of sex sneaked into the…

Sunday, 13 October 2019 05:53

One item missing from the Budget - Simon Kolawole

Over breakfast and the obligatory cups of coffee somewhere in New York late September, a bright and enterprising Nigerian lady was, as it were, preaching to the converted on the urgency and benefits of private sector investment in infrastructure in Africa. The previous day at the Africa Investment Forum road show held at the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, she had challenged the world’s biggest investors and partners of the African Development Bank (AfDB) to increase their stake in Africa. She said there were solid investment opportunities and bankable transactions on the continent which they would do well to…

Friday, 11 October 2019 05:10

Sexual exploitation of students - Yetunde A. Odugbesan-Omede

Sexual exploitation and harassment of students by teachers and administrators are reflections of corrupt education systems. Sexual exploitation and harassment are not peculiar to systems of education in Nigeria. They are a global issue affecting school systems and students worldwide. Places where control mechanisms are lax, corruption levels are high and fear of reprisal in reporting crimes, especially conducted by those in power are breeding grounds for teachers and administrators to engage in such action without regard. Sexual harassment is defined as unwanted sexual advances or remarks typically in the workplace, professional or social setting. Sexual harassment and abuse in…

Friday, 11 October 2019 05:09

Bad road paved with good intentions - Dare Babarinsa

When was the last time you drove for five kilometres on a good road in Nigeria? For me, I cannot remember, especially the so-called Federal roads. It seems as of now that all the Federal roads in the South-West are under re-construction or under re-consideration. I think it is time we end the charade and allow each state to take care of the roads within its jurisdiction. In the 1970s and 1980s, Ife-Ibadan road was so good that Oyo State government had to set up the first Road Safety Corps in Nigeria mostly to control speed on that road. Chairman…

Thursday, 10 October 2019 04:57

If Nigeria was a PLC, it would be sold for N1 and restructured - Olu Fasan

There is a well-known practice in the business world in which a large multinational corporation could be sold for £1 or $1, the token price tag serving only as a symbolic proof of exchange. But why would a corporate entity be sold for a token sum? Well, that often happens when a company, despite its asset-base and prospect, has been so badly mismanaged that it’s struggling to operate profitably. Someone, usually a private-equity investor, could then buy the distressed company for a token sum, restructure and turn it around. There are several high-profile examples of such £1 or $1 companies,…

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Thursday, 10 October 2019 04:56

Preventing digital feudalism - Mariana Mazzucato

By exploiting technologies that were originally developed by the public sector, digital platform companies have acquired a market position that allows them to extract massive rents from consumers and workers alike. Reforming the digital economy so that it serves collective ends is thus the defining economic challenge of our time. The use and abuse of data by Facebook and other tech companies are finally garnering the official attention they deserve. With personal data becoming the world’s most valuable commodity, will users be the platform economy’s masters or its slaves? Prospects for democratizing the platform economy remain dim. Algorithms are developing…

Tuesday, 08 October 2019 05:48

How to rethink capitalism - Simon Johnson

The 2008 financial crisis, together with failed efforts to combat climate change and sharply rising inequality, has frayed the neoliberal consensus that has prevailed in the United States and much of the West for more than two generations. Three issues must be considered in weighing what comes next. The United States Business Roundtable, an organization of CEOs of large US companies, recently issued a statement that caused quite a stir in some circles. Rather than focusing primarily or exclusively on maximizing shareholder value, America’s corporate titans argued, companies should attach more weight to the wellbeing of their broader stakeholder community,…

Monday, 07 October 2019 05:29

The crisis of Central-Bank governance - Lucrezia Reichlin

European Central Bank may enjoy stronger protection against political pressure than other central banks do, but it also faces unique constraints. The more ECB is forced to expand its policy remit to meet new economic challenges, the more likely it is to trigger destabilizing political conflicts within the eurozone. The relationship between monetary authorities and governments differs in important ways between the United States and the eurozone. The US invariably falls into a traditional pattern whereby governing politicians, with an eye toward the electoral cycle, tend to favor expansionary fiscal policies and looser monetary conditions, while the Federal Reserve, wary…

Sunday, 06 October 2019 05:48

A MUST READ: Time to drag Buhari, el-Rufai and others to Kigali - Festus Adedayo

Rwanda does not hide the fact that she is a coquette. From the moment you land at the Rwanda International Airport, Kigali, the irresistible mermaid which Rwanda lets loose on you, begins to openly seduce you, making salacious passes and daring you to resist her bewitching beauty. She does not pretend that she is seeking to take away your innocence. Without forewarning you, Kigali caresses your skin like an adulterous woman seeking a liaison, as if telling you to your face that her tender touch on your skin is a favour from her. In her eyes, you could see a…

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