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Opinion

Friday, 31 March 2023 01:54

Africa: Why does Burna Boy rock more than Nigeria’s elections? - Azu Ishiekwene

From Accra to Cape Town images of Nollywood, Nigeria’s popular movie footprint, are a common staple in homes across the continent as are the sights and sounds of its pop icons who are also amongst Africa’s biggest. When politics is on the menu, however, it does not appear that the rest of the continent has the same appetite for what Nigeria has to offer as it does for the country’s jollof rice, its captivating movies or perhaps the Afrobeat of superstar, Burna Boy. Between February and March 2023, Nigeria held its general elections; the seventh since 1999 when the country…

Thursday, 30 March 2023 02:49

The passing of Oladipupo Diya - Bola Bolawole

The death, on Sunday, 26th March, 2023, of Oladipupo Diya, brought memories, fond or otherwise, flooding our memory, chief of which must be the coup, real or concocted, that Diya and other Generals were alleged to have been implicated in, on 21 December, 1997, aimed at toppling the vile dictator, Sani Abacha. In all, 26 civilians and soldiers were accused of treason, the majority of them Yoruba; they faced the death penalty if found guilty. Dragged before a kangaroo military tribunal and deemed guilty even before the trial had begun, six of the accused, including Diya, were handed the death…

Thursday, 30 March 2023 02:44

What will Nigeria’s digital census find? - Abimbola Adelakun

Now that Nigeria’s next census date has been officially confirmed, I am curious if the exercise will provide a different picture of our population distribution or merely validate the status quo. Anyone who has been a Nigerian for long enough already knows that the national population is a continuation of the politics of power by another means. Virtually every census in modern Nigeria has been vigorously challenged for its statistical accuracy and, of course, its ideological agenda. Far more than serving the purposes of efficient national planning—the officially touted reasons for holding them—censuses in underdeveloped societies like ours use purported…

Tuesday, 28 March 2023 03:58

The Big Tent odyssey and saving democracy in Nigeria - Pat Utomi

There are many still in shock about February 25th and March 18 elections. This is understandable. In the week before the 20th of February it appeared the Obidient movement had pulled off a miracle and already made good of the first part of the first promise of the Obi/Datti manifesto: To unite and secure Nigeria. From Sokoto to Sagbama, Lagos to the lungus of Borno the youth of Nigeria were gyrating to the same beat of the president we need. Were we finally close to the words of our first national anthem, “though tribe and tongue may differ, in brotherhood…

Monday, 27 March 2023 03:34

Rigged elections and the moral burden of illegitimacy - Hope Eghagha

Adamu: A man who rigs his way to power carries a moral burden!Orezime: A moral what?Adamu: You heard me, didn’t you?Orezime: I’m not sure I heard you right. Moral what you said?Adamu: A moral burden, I said!Orezime: Hahahahahahaha! You make me laugh! Are you from the moon?Gani: Or Mars? Emeka: In which country? In Nigeria? That principle does not apply in Nigeria! There is no moral burden on anybody in this country! The election which produced Bubu in 2015 was rigged. Where are the two million voters from Kano State who voted in 2015? Was an INEC official not burnt…

Monday, 27 March 2023 03:32

Artificial idiocy - Slavoj Žižek

There is nothing new about “chatbots” that are capable of maintaining a conversation in natural language, understanding a user’s basic intent, and offering responses based on preset rules and data. But the capacity of such chatbots has been dramatically augmented in recent months, leading to handwringing and panic in many circles. Much has been said about chatbots auguring the end of the traditional student essay. But an issue that warrants closer attention is how chatbots should respond when human interlocutors use aggressive, sexist, or racist remarks to prompt the bot to present its own foul-mouthed fantasies in return. Should AIs…

Sunday, 26 March 2023 04:11

The CJN on wheelchair - Festus Adedayo

“If you are unlucky not to have a representative in the judicial council, even if you are innocent, you can be found guilty – B’eyan o l’eni ni’gbimo, bo ro’jo are, ebi lo mi a je.” This very profound saying of the Yoruba, translated into a pithy musical line in one of the tracks of Ayinla Omowura, late Yoruba Apala musician, point unmistakably to the fact that corruption and favouritism predate colonialism in Africa. When you jointly read this line and D. O. Olagoke’s 1962-written play entitled The Incorruptible Judge, you will understand why it is almost an impossibility for…

Sunday, 26 March 2023 04:09

Walking In the realm of wonders - Taiwo Akinola

From whence hath this man these things? and what wisdom is this which is given unto him, that even such mighty works are wrought by his hands? ~ Mark 6:2b. Introduction As we think about the life of Jesus Christ, we stand all amazed in every way! For example, we can’t mistake the uniqueness of the circumstances surrounding His coming to earth — His conception and His birth. All the works He did, and is still doing, both for us and through us, are simply wrapped up in absolute wonders. Indeed, Jesus Christ performed wonders without number! He defeated evil…

Sunday, 26 March 2023 04:08

Article of faith: Salvation from life (2) - Femi Aribisala

If we want to live, we first must die. Are you saved from life or death? Would you like to be saved from happiness? Would you like to be saved from riches? Would you like to be saved from the pride of life? Have you ever seen a man who was saved from happiness before? Men are usually saved from adversity. But in his case they said please save him because happiness is going to kill him. What exactly does he need? He needs a little bit of suffering. He needs a little bit of affliction. And so, many are…

Friday, 24 March 2023 03:15

Louis Odion: The matter of ‘Capacity’ - Azu Ishiekwene

Sometimes it feels like we have been childhood friends. That we have known each other forever. For over 30 years since our paths crossed, I can’t remember how many times I’ve called him “Louis,” much less “Louis Osaretin Odion.” Even now, it feels awkward to write it. I call him by the name that the closest circle of his friends has come to know and call him for nearly three decades: “Capacity!” And that’s what he calls me too, even though he retains the proprietary right to the moniker. He earned it from the odysseys of a life of sailing…

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Friday, 24 March 2023 03:14

The dangers of ethnic profiling in Lagos - Pelumi Olugbenga

It was a warm July 2018 evening in Pittsburgh. People from all around the world gathered in an apartment to discuss careers, dreams, and global issues. We introduced ourselves to each other. It was my turn: “Hi, I am Pelumi. I am from Nigeria”. My friend from the other side of the world suddenly developed cold feet. I wondered why until when he brought up the issue of the “Nigerian Prince”(meaning: ‘Yahoo Boy’ in local Nigerian parlance). I know that being a Nigerian can sometimes feel like a full-time job and the Nigerian Prince conversation ruined my entire evening on…

Thursday, 23 March 2023 02:56

Ubuntu and Omoluabi: Kindred spirit or what? - Bola Bolawole

Babafemi Badejo is not a stranger to this column; today, he x-rays the Yoruba “Omoluabi” and the “Ubundu” ethos taking firm roots especially in Paul Kigame's Rwanda, after its horrendous genocidal war of 1994. What are the similarities between both and where do they part ways, if at all? Hear from Badejo: “The first part of my Zimbabwe experience was titled 'Quick Visit to Zimbabwe: My Case for the Rekindling of the Ubuntu spirit in Africa'. I got diverse reactions, including some on the meaning of 'Ubuntu' itself. I think I should share an interesting exchange that arose from my…

Wednesday, 22 March 2023 03:47

Sanwo-olu has lost the plot - Ayodele Adio

As the results of the 25 February presidential election filtered in, it shocked many, especially the political elites in Lagos, that Bola Tinubu (now president-elect) had lost his home state to the candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi. Although the All Progressives Congress (APC) also failed to pull a win in Kano, Osun, Katsina, and the FCT, Abuja, losing Lagos seemed to cut deeper. A post-mortem of the shocking result in Lagos yielded two significant conclusions. The first was that the ruling party in Lagos had lost the support of young voters – a critical demographic in the 2023…

Tuesday, 21 March 2023 05:46

2023 Lagos gubernatorial election and the weaponisation of bigotry - Ahmed Olayinka Sule

At the recently concluded Lagos State Gubernatorial election, Babajide Sanwo-Olu secured the mandate to govern Lagos for the next four years. With the election over, now is an excellent time to carry out an election post-mortem. Before I continue, let me declare my bona fides. My name is Ahmed Olayinka Sule, and I am a Yoruba. I am a scion of the Balogun Kuku family of Ijebu. I am neither a BATified, Obidient, nor Atikulated supporter, as I believe that Nigeria's solution does not lie with a messianic political figure, especially one who is an exponent of neo-liberal ideologies. For…

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