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Opinion

Friday, 14 July 2023 03:59

The bicycle boy who built an empire - Dare Babarinsa

A sea of humanity bid Michael Olasubomi Balogun, founder of First City Monument Bank (FCMB), farewell last week in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State. It was grand, the kind of occasion that befitted his sense of grandeur and his love of drama. The high priests of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) were there in large numbers, for Balogun was an influential and much valued member. He was also the leader of Ijebu Christians and he cherished his church title, Asiwaju Onigbagbo greatly. Balogun made money - tons of it - but his focus was humanity. When he had made money, he…

Friday, 14 July 2023 03:57

Tinubu and burden of ministerial list - Azu Ishiekwene

You may have seen it. The list, of course. Those who think that President Bola Tinubu is not moving fast enough to appoint ministers have offered to help. They have composed their own ministerial list for him and shared it on social media. It’s trending now. Just one look at it, however, and you would know that it’s an improbable list, even for a Banana republic. It didn’t make sense. Going by the list, not a few commentators are already relishing the prospects of Adams Oshiomhole as Minister of Works; Nasir El-Rufai as Minister of Interior; and Nyesom Wike as…

Tuesday, 11 July 2023 05:03

Focus on productivity, not technology - Dani Rodrik

Economists have long argued that productivity is the foundation of prosperity. The only way a country can increase its standard of living sustainably is to produce more goods and services with fewer resources. Since the Industrial Revolution, this has been achieved through innovation, which is why productivity has become synonymous, in the public imagination, with technological progress and research and development. Our intuition about how innovation promotes productivity is shaped by everyday experience in business. Firms that adopt new technologies tend to become more productive, allowing them to outcompete technological laggards. But a productive society is not the same as…

Monday, 10 July 2023 04:46

GandDollar Gate: Beyond Ja’afar’s video - Hassan Gimba

This was first published on October 29, 2018. Considering the resuscitation of the issue by the new Kano State Government, I see the need to republish it. While we knew and respected each other from a distance, I first met Ja’afar Ja’afar in 2015 when I was serving my second stint as the editor of Friday Leadership. Journalists have a way of knowing themselves through various networks even if they had never met. Journalism is a profession like any other that builds one’s reputation in the eyes of the world. Knowing the hassles one goes through to put a paper…

Monday, 10 July 2023 04:43

A little summer; plenty of work in Paris, c’est la vie - Chiamaka Okafor

“We are now beginning our descent into Charles de Gaulle Airport,” the captain’s jarring voice came over the intercom. I was fast asleep. I did not sleep the day before I embarked on this long journey, which took me from Abuja through a hectic layover in Addis. Somehow, the call informing passengers about descent always pulls me back to earth. It wasn’t different on this occasion. I couldn’t wait to touch down in Paris, the picturesque capital of France and a global centre for art, fashion, cuisine, and culture. It was my first time in Paris, the City of Love.…

Sunday, 09 July 2023 04:42

Mmesoma’s wrong was being Igbo - Festus Adedayo

If you diligently analyze social media’s initial reactions to allegation that Mmesoma Ejikeme forged her Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination result, it would be difficult not to conclude that her race was her wrong. That she was wrong to have been born Igbo at a critical time like this. Or that the politics of her race was her albatross. Ejikeme has attracted so odious comments to herself, similar to one who willfully pelted on self a mound of excrement. Only on Friday, an Anambra State committee of enquiry revealed that she indeed faked the result. Kaduna State-born Senator,…

Sunday, 09 July 2023 04:40

Choosing to triumph by the faith of Christ! - Taiwo Akinola

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world ~ 1 Peter 5:8-9. Introduction End-time believers must be extra vigilant because the enemy, Satan, has become so vicious, virulent, violent, determined and passionate about his game of wickedness. He works to crush anything, destroy anyone and render impotent any destiny as much as he can (John 10:10). Factually speaking, any rising profile will naturally attract the attention of…

Saturday, 08 July 2023 04:34

Which one to decapitate – subsidy or corruption? - Umar Yakubu

“…impunity becomes the very foundation upon which systems of corruption are built. And if impunity is not demolished, all efforts to end corruption are in vain.” — Rigoberta Menchú, Nobel Prize laureate. In 1949 during a meeting with the American Economic Association, Dr Nourse was a classic “on the one hand—on the other hand” economist. That infuriated the then President Truman, with his failure to present a clear policy for him to adopt. He was tired of listening to consequences of economic decisions that were usually “on the one hand, X is good, but ‘on the other hand, Y will…

Friday, 07 July 2023 04:25

Mmesoma: What really happened? - Azu Ishiekwene

I’m not sure what breaks the heart more: her insistence on her innocence or the prospects of a future that now hangs in the balance. For a young adult with a promising future, the emerging facts only suggest one thing: it doesn’t rain, it pours. Mmesoma Ejikeme was one of the numerous students of Anglican Girls Secondary School (AGSS), Nnewi, Anambra State, who took the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) in May 2023. The first child in a family of four whose father eked out a living as an Okada rider, Mmesoma remained not just the pride of her parents,…

Thursday, 06 July 2023 04:30

Is Tinubu’s Eldorado a mirage? - Zainab Suleiman Okino

By now, it should be clear to all that no one is safe from bad government policies, including its cheerleaders. The effects of wrong-headed approach to governance is evident in every home, every plate of food (if any), quality of living; even on Abuja’s now near empty streets, and near collapse of small-scale businesses. We all bear the brunt of ill-advised and ill-timed policies as recently enunciated by the new government of President Bola Tinubu. In contrast, the over 100 convoy of cars in the president’s movement in Lagos, the almost 50 SUVs seen earlier during his triumphant return to…

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Wednesday, 05 July 2023 04:31

Threads v Twitter – is this the main bout between Musk and Zuckerberg?

Jim Waterson Elon Musk recently challenged Mark Zuckerberg to a physical cage fight – but the real battle between the two billionaires will begin on Thursday when Zuckerberg launches Threads, his company’s Twitter competitor. Zuckerberg’s Meta believes there is a gap in the market for a Twitter-style social network for short posts that is technically stable and isn’t subject to the whims of Musk, who despite being one of the world’s richest men spends a considerable amount of time engaged in disputes on social media. Threads was unveiled to Meta staff last week, with the chief product officer, Chris Cox,…

Monday, 03 July 2023 03:14

NNPC and the rest of us - Hassan Gimba

Decree 33 of 1977 saw to the birth of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on April 1 of that year through the merger of the Nigerian National Oil Corporation and the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel. The main purpose was for it to add value to the nation’s hydrocarbon resources “for the benefit of the nation’s economy…” NNPC’s Kaduna, Warri and Port Harcourt Refineries, among others, were built solely for the “benefit” of the Nigerian economy. Completed and commissioned in 1980, the Kaduna Refinery was meant to be a modern conversion refinery having two parts: 50,000 barrels of…

Sunday, 02 July 2023 04:20

Osun’s Sallah scuffles and Abuja’s dog meat - Festus Adedayo

Two issues engage this piece today. Each of them is reflected in animal imageries. The first has dog as totem of its analysis. The second too is better explained by the bestial engagement of rams. Let us begin with the latter. Last Wednesday, Osun State witnessed a bestial ram fight. Children in, especially Northern and western parts of Nigeria, grew up to see the perennial rituals of ram – called agbo in Yoruba – fights. By the way, ram flaunts during Id-el Kabir celebrations are more than part of the pot-pourri of a religious festival. They are a celebration of…

Sunday, 02 July 2023 04:18

The beauty of our triumphant walk in Christ! - Taiwo Akinola

Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place ~ 2 Corinthians 2:14. Introduction Deep inside the heart of every normal person on earth is a passionate desire to fulfill the purpose for which he is created. That passion unknowingly forms the basis of the bulk of our intentional prayers unto God, and that’s the cry of destiny: a cry for that one thing that is worthy of your one life. Once you discover it, and avoid all distractions, removing whatever clogs your…

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