Opinion

It was the famous writer, Chinua Achebe, who said “Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” It is somewhat difficult to write about a man you have never crossed paths with, nor met before. It is much more difficult to …

Let’s continue with the vital questions to our leaders in Western Nigeria on the points at issue in this serial – curious systemic failure (in Yoruba land). As I concluded last week, we need to continue this serial to ask the southwest leaders to pinpoint the future-ready constituency projects they …

07 October 2024   After his Independence Day anniversary speech last week, President Tinubu proceeded on a two-week vacation to the United Kingdom. The trip was tersely announced as usual, to be part of Mr. President’s yearly leave, but instead of resting he had converted it to a working holiday and retreat to …

Monday, 7 October, 2024 Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s 1947 book, ‘Path to Nigerian Freedom’, opens with three quotations. The first tells the reader: “This above all: to thine own self be true…” It is from William Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’. It simply says do not deceive yourself – like the one with a …

Nigeria is grappling with a multitude of significant challenges, each akin to a ‘ticking time bomb’ that threatens national stability. Among these, the most pressing yet underappreciated is food insecurity. Despite its critical nature and its direct link to national security, food insecurity has not received the urgent attention it …

I had planned to attend the 8th Annual Conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) in Lokoja, Kogi State from October 1 – 4. In fact, I was a member of the Planning Committee, but something came up that I had to deal with in Lagos. So, I …

Albert Speer was Hitler’s minister for war production and armaments. He probably was the only officer in the Nazi government who defied Hitler and lived. He was also among the very few who did not commit suicide and were given fairly short prison terms at the trial in Nuremberg. Quite …

For wounds that are emotional, psychological, or physical, the idea of personal development and accountability is essential to the healing process. To gain a deeper understanding, one should journal, seek assistance, read healing-related material, practice self-compassion and mindfulness, reflect on personal experiences, and develop healing objectives. To grow and heal, …

Sunday, October 6, 2024 Nigerians and indeed, the world, watched aghast last week as a South African grisly movie reel began to roll. Full of all the elements of a movie, it was however a real story. The cast was two black women who, on August 17, were shot and …

[email protected] 0705 263 1058 If you have been following the story, before Dr. Segun Osoba’s lecture to the students of the University of Ife, now Obafemi Awolowo University (“Great Ife”), Ile-Ife,  on 1st February, 1974 in commemoration of the 3rd anniversary of the police killing of Kunle Adepeju, an undergraduate student …

September 30, 2024   Prepare today, and tomorrow will thank you Introduction Life’s unpredictability can be overwhelming, catching us off guard and testing our resolve. However, wisdom reminds us that preparation is key to navigating life’s twists and turns. As Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 15:4, Scripture’s endurance and encouragement …

Several good things happen in the bedroom, often the place of rest and renewal. Sometime in 2004, Sam Nda-Isaiah and his wife Zainab conceived the idea of a newspaper there.   She told the story before of how her husband got up in the wee hours, scribbled a few things in …

“Have you heard the news? News! News!! News!!!” So sang Jimmy Cliff, the Jamaican Reggae superstar in a 1975 hit single entitled The News. In that song he detailed his humiliation in Nigeria, a country he had visited for some arranged performances, only to be seized by police and bundled …

The one-party phenomenon that ruined many African countries in the past is being regurgitated in modern-day Nigeria. It’s so obvious that gruesome tragedy is brewing all over the land that used to advertise itself as the Giant of Africa. Nigeria has just marked 64 years of flag independence, but protesters …

Historically, Ikwerre people, just like Ndoni and similar others in today’s Rivers State and environs are of Igbo origin. But, does the origin of any tribe really matter save for historical purposes? After all, other tribes and peoples that settle in various parts of Nigeria and elsewhere also have their …

“A Leader is one, who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way” – John C. Maxwell. Maureen Chigbo, Publisher and Editor of Realnews Magazine, Nigeria’s pioneer online Magazine is the first female and 4th President of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP). She assumed office on …

Yes, that “Igbo bu ofu” – “Igbo people are one” may be correct, but have we ever bothered to find out why some of those people of Igbo origin may never wish to be associated with Ndigbo despite all proofs of their Igbo origin? Most of the Igbo brethren that …

30 September 2024  In the buildup to Edo governorship election 2024, the major concern was whether law enforcement agencies and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would remain above board and stay neutral. It is not only INEC and law enforcers that are responsible for bad elections; political parties and …

Let’s leave Abuja, federal powers and other federalism haters this week again and continue with some self-examination of our Western region we have been celebrating as the pacesetter region that sits on a hill that can’t be hidden. We need to use the passage of the South West Development Commission …

Monday, 30 September, 2024 There was a time in this country when professors earned more than federal permanent secretaries. That was before Nigeria happened to itself. A professor in 1973 was on a consolidated annual salary of £3,000; permanent secretaries earned £2,800. Today, the most senior professors do not take …

Nigeria is in the grip of a severe economic crisis, with high inflation, volatile exchange rates, and a steep rise in the cost of living. The inflation rate, which soared to over 30% in the second quarter of 2024, has put immense strain on household budgets, making it increasingly difficult …

“This was a lynching. Make no mistake, this was state-sanctioned murder of an innocent Black man. Governor Parson had the responsibility to save a life, and he didn’t. When DNA evidence exonerates a man, capital punishment is not justice—it is murder. Trump, McConnell, and the conservative Supreme Court justices now have blood on …

Sunday, September 29, 2024 On February 18, 1947, the Daily Service newspaper published a story whose theme, like the ancient Secretary bird, has remained with Nigeria ever since. It is a story of the affinity between sex and corruption. Son of Alake of Egbaland and a no-nonsense judge, Justice Adetokunbo …

The ultimate recommendation of democracy is this: where a party performs badly it gets voted out. In these shores, it is a different ball game. Even if a party unleashes horrendous hardship on the people, it keeps winning so-called democratic elections. It is only in Nigeria that some characters are …

[email protected] 0705 263 1058 The first part of this topic was the debate between the Marxist scholar at the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile-Ife, Dr. Segun Osoba (as he then was), and another (conservative, foreign) lecturer in the same institution, Professor L. Beverley Halstead over Osoba’s …