In all ramifications, it appears the euphoria and excitement that greeted President Bola Tinubu’s assumption of office are gradually ebbing away. Quite expectedly, having started with the tough decisions of fuel subsidy removal and floating of the forex, the President now needs to do more and urgently too. Both policies have since worsened the woes of the Naira and Nigerians. From accusation of being surrounded by “Lagos boys”, (his cabinet as Lagos State Governor between 1999 to 2003), to policy somersaults to somehow nepotistic appointments (and vengeful dismissal of some CEOs), questions are being asked about Tinubu’s pro-people and pan-Nigerian…
Author: Zainab Suleiman Okino
The most experimental leader in Africa in contemporary time is former Nigerian military leader, General Ibrahim Babangida. He ruled between 1985 and 1993. But while he was in charge, he toyed with many innovative ideas on leadership recruitment —from the political bureau, new breed-grassroots politics, option A-4 to a form of diarchy, where political power is shared between civilians and the military. Love or hate him, the General’scontribution to the political development of the country, even if ignored, has remained a reference point especially in the light of recent happenings around us in Africa. Although, it is safe to assert that despite his best efforts and only stepping aside, his later effort at political engineering was unable to bring…
Nigeria has always been about influence peddling, nepotism and favourotism, with an insignificant mix of tokenism, which the authorities brandish to prove the point that merit matters. However, in the last eight years of the Buhari presidency, even that infinitesimal proportion (of tokenism) was supplanted by the influence of more money to buy jobs. Hence all available jobs at MDAs and even key political appointments were offered and bought at the highest bidders. It was an open secret. It became a topic for discussion at elite gatherings and relaxation spots. It was public knowledge that those close to power were…
A seeming innocuous incident, but of utmost importance, happened on the day, the Niger Republic military adventurists announced the closure of the country’s airspace in a show of force or to rebuff the condemnation that trailed their coup. A British Airways Airbus A380 from Johannesburg to London Heathrow was reported to have gone on a 10-hour “flight to nowhere”, when Niger’s airspace was suddenly closed after the plane had taken off. And because airspace of Sudan and Libya is already closed, coupists’ action means 2,600 miles of Africa’s airspace from Western Niger to the Red Sea is blocked to flights. Other flights from Cape Town…
The eight-year administration of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, was amongst others, characterized by indulgence and generosity to state governors in form of bailouts to their states. Variously called salary arears bailout, bridge financing facility, budget support, recession and excess crude facility, the previous government, as at 2021 had doled out N1.7 trillion to states. However instead of the funds being utilised to improve lives and provide massive infrastructure, much of it is alleged to have found its way to the private accounts of state governors as it became another window for their profligacy and lavish lifestyle. The outcry and complaints that trailed the mismanagement of the bailout once prompted the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission…
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…
A recent media report revealed plans by African countries to send a peace mission to Ukraine and Russia. The report indicated that six African leaders would travel to Russia and Ukraine “as soon as possible” to go proffer solutions to the ongoing war between the two countries. It was disclosed (perhaps conceived) by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who added that that President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have “agreed to receive the mission and the African heads of state, in both Moscow and Kiev in separate “telephone calls”. The south African leader went further to present “an…
The untouchables going scot-free: At the behest of the legendary Mr. Dan Agbese, renown journalist and author, the article below is a re-publication. The revered writer, master of style and elder statesman drew my attention to The Guardian story of May 19, 2023 headlined Aviation minister scores self 100% on failed carrier, MRO, airport concession, accompanied with a complimentary remark, “please republish your column, Hadi Sirika’s ego trip and other Buhari untouchables, see The Guardian lead of today. It was a courageous piece. The Guardian vindicated you”, hence this revised version. The story is a summary of underperformance of the Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika under the outgoing government of President Muhammadu Buhari, and part…
In February 2022, the Ukraine-Russia war broke out and left about 16,000 African students studying there stranded, among which are at least 1000 Nigerian students. Many were traumatised for days before they were finally evacuated back home, some others found their way to nearby Poland, Hungary, Germany, Slovakia and Europe generally despite the racial abuse at the borders and repatriation difficulties for those who headed home to Nigeria. Yet, others opted for online classes, which only provided temporary succour for some and unable to fill the void for practical oriented courses like medicine and engineering. I have a colleague-family friend…
Nigeria is in transition, and interplay of issues is rearing their heads. Expectedly, security is top on the list, and reviewing past issues and setting an agenda for the incoming government is appropriate. This and more are what Whiteink Institute for Strategy Education and Research Nigeria (WISER) set out to do on April 13, 2023, when it brought together active players in security intelligentsia and civil society to deliberate on the future of security in Nigeria. Tagged Introspection into a Decade of Security Sector Governance for Nigeria, the intervention began the “2023 Nigerian political transition policy-level advisory conversation on defence, law enforcement, intelligence, and human themes”, as reeled out by its convener. This set the…
In politics, there are no permanent friends and foes, and it will be naïve of me to expect otherwise in the build up to the 2023 general election and its aftermath. Perhaps, what we didn’t envisage was how the outcome of the election would deeply divide and turn people against one another; persons considered as heroes in some quarters have suddenly become villains in the eyes of those who once revered them as if there will never be another election in Nigeria. It was also not conceivable that the hitherto united voice of the South against their perceived Northern hegemons…
Since upturning presidential election is near impossible and has never happened in Nigeria’s political history, it is almost certain that the ruling APC’s Asiwaju Bola Tinubu will be sworn in on 29th May and he will in turn swear in the National Assembly members in June. All eyes are now on the legislative arm of government, so the battle about its potential leadership has also shifted there, albeit covertly. Even as underground horse-trading is ongoing, there should be interplay of issues for consideration in the choice of NASS leaders with the hope that the mistakes of the past will be…
Recent developments in our polity have proved once again that our strongman mentality rather than strong institutions has rubbed off on some institutions we thought were fairly independent. Instead of ensuring strong institutions, we have only succeeded in institutionalising failures in high places. For the purpose of this write up, we draw examples from the unending fuel scarcity, the impact of the CBN currency redesign and recent fallouts from the conduct of the presidential and National Assembly election by INEC which has been very controversial. As much as one tries to ignore cries of rigging, where voting in the last…
As imperfect as any human endeavour is, as disappointing as the election turned out to be, compared with the pre-election optimism, and as certain as winning and losing is, this presidential election, is for the first time in the history of election in Nigeria, the most competitive, revealing, shocking and anticipated. Apart from the almost 25 million voters, the election has produced so many upsets and thrown up issues and persons that were not in the front burner in political discourse previously. Is it the outpouring of youth in the participation process? Is it the incumbent party struggling for survival?…
It does not matter what the naysayers say and the doubts are.By the time the presidential election is concluded this weekend, Nigeria would have written its name in gold, for overcoming all odds, in the most consequential election in recent time. In the past, the coast would have been clear and winner waiting to be “crowned”, few days to D-Day. Not this election. Here is an election that provides no clear proof of its outcome; because it is too close to call. We have seen pundits and pollsters dishing out opinions as polls results. Understandably, there has been no consensus among them; nor is their verdict sacrosanct. This…
No one can discountenance the disenchantment in the land. It is written all over the place; on our countenance; on our body language; in our action, or inaction. By this time, almost eight years ago, there was excitement in the air; the joy of a new dawn, a new government and a new direction in the certainty of a Buhari presidency. That government is on its way out; and instead of celebrating accomplishments hoped for, we are singing a dirge. Misery and desolation. Such is the case of the man I encountered last Friday somewhere around the market not too…
A close relation has just lost an opportunity to secure a visa to the United Arab Emirates because he is a Nigerian. In December, the chap got an offer from a university in the UAE for both PhD and scholarship, and had gone through all the processes of registration, writing a TOEFL examination and police clearance back home. All was set, including access to his portal and was already chatting with his professors before his visa request was denied. As depressing as this is, there are many more out there who are in dire situation of health crisis, whose visa…
2023 election Last week, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), disclosed that it has 93.4 million voters in its voter register. Not all these people will vote because of other intervening forces, but it marked a significant leap in the registeration of voters compared with previous elections. It also shows that voter consciousness is improving day by day, in addition to other factors that will make the next presidential election the most competitive and dramatic. With improved technology as allowed by the 2022 Electoral Act came Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) and INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), which have made…
by Zainab Suleiman Okino Thank God it’s January, the month that will unravel so many things. Governor Nyesom Wike, the arrowhead of the G-5 rebellious governors of the PDP, also known as Integrity Group, will finally reveal his presidential candidate. February and March will finally put the drama, theatrics, hose-trading, name-calling and negative vibes of the 2023 election campaigns behind us, so we can focus on governance, good governance that is, direly required by Nigerians to bring it back from the road to perdition it has been in the last few months. Hopefully. But in the interim, the five governors—governors…
In far-away Washington DC, United States of America, President Muhammadu Buhari declared that he has given the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) the resources needed for the conduct of the 2023 general election. While Buhari was in his known element in not taking responsibility for failure even under him, he sounded that note early with regard to the 2023 election. “I made sure they (INEC) were given all the resources they asked for because I don’t want any excuses that they were denied funds by the government.” However, beyond resources, Buhari did deliver a more valuable legacy by assenting to…
The February 2023 general election is almost here. It is that season of the year when politicians move freely from one party to another. In any case it has already been established that there are no ideologies in Nigerian politics and our politicians too have no principles. Like the seasonal migration birds in search of better environments to thrive, the Nigerian politician is at it again, jumping from one party to another, decamping or cross-carpeting in search of better opportunities, greener pastures or wherever food is ready. And like locusts, they can move en-masse to a new place and devour…
The story of the Nigerian child is replete with abandonment and absence of parental care. From growing outside the caring hands of parents to missing out on healthcare and education which are two critical human development indices, the Nigerian child has been largely left in the cold and at the mercy of the street. Amidst the heart-wrenching story of abandonment comes a ray of hope in the messianic gesture of Vine Heritage Home. Call it a home, an orphanage or a humanitarian centre and you won’t be wrong. The Vine Heritage Home is an initiative of two individuals who are…
The Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism recently unveiled a report tagged Hushed Voices and the Media’s Defence of the Civic Space. The report, which spanned 10 years, monitored 150 incidents of infractions of the civic space, as reflected in 33 media organisations. It mirrored civic space infractions as reported in the media, determined the occurrence of infractions and identified their forms. The report also classified civic space infractions perpetuators, as well as identified victims and survivors. I had the privilege of reviewing the report, and focused on four major themes: the imperatives of the civic space; assessment of the…
In less than 60 days, the British people had three prime ministers. Some people attributed it to their conservative political system and mocked them for that, but I beg to disagree. Why wait for four destructive years to challenge or change a government that is lethargic and does not show any sign of promise even in its infancy, if it can be shown the way out in a few weeks or days. That is the difference between the British and our political systems couched as parliamentary and presidential systems. Whatever! The question is in its workability and who the operators…
Penultimate week, I touched briefly on how legislators at the state level are pocketed by their governors such that the former are not just at their beck and call in an arrangement that should make each independent, but that state legislators are like babies bottle-fed by governors. The analogy being referenced was that of Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike and the manner of his derecognition of Celestine Omehia with the legislative support of the state’s House of Assembly. They helped do Omehia in, in Wike’s ego war against his erstwhile ally. That article which was titled Weaning legislatures from executive…
Nigerians do not have faith in government and did not believe when it claimed that it did not pay ransom for the release of the last 23 abductees of the Abuja-Kaduna train attack. Neither are they convinced there was no form of swap of terrorists in detention and those train attack victims. Notwithstanding the doubts, our armed forces, who we were told, planned and executed the release deserve commendation and should be given credit for their relentless efforts and sacrifices to minimise insecurity despite the many criticisms of sloppiness in counterterrorism operation, alleged corruption and compromise of their renegade members.…
As the race for the 2023 general elections formally began last week, the need for scrutiny of candidates justling for various positions has become more important for political parties and gladiators. At this stage of the electoral process, the least you would expect from a candidate or party is to be found on the wrong side of the law, the Electoral Act and Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) guidelines that is. But in Bauchi state, the All-Progressives Congress (APC) appears to be walking a tight rope and undermining itself wittingly or inadvertently, going by the allegation of faulty documentation of…
Against the backdrop of the horse-trading and junkets in preparation for the general elections in 2023, it has been a mixed-bag of old, resuscitated, recycled issues cropping up, just as the political class is strategizing, aligning and realigning themselves to protect their political future, power base and interests. What is absent in all these brickbats and junkets is the interests of the Nigerian people. One man who has succeeded in forcing his own narrative and personal interests on us is Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state. Love or hate him, you cannot ignore him. How can he be ignored when…
By this time in 2015, the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), had become the toast of Nigeria’s voting populace. Buhari was the man to beat, and a beautiful bride at that, having made national security one of the three campaign promises of the party, the other two being anti-corruption war, good governance and economic development. That kind of robust campaign that put the then ruling party, PDP on the edge and in a jittery mode; scared and piqued at the bad outing in the offing, is today near absent even though officially, campaigns are starting in September. This time around,…
Saturday, June 25, 2022, a colleague sent some disturbing pictures and material to me for publishing. The images were reminiscent of war situation, of people in long queues with a few salvaged belongings, babies strapped to their mothers’ back, little ones managing to pace up with their parents, placard-carrying teenagers in staged, meek protest, overloaded Voxwagon golf cars and other pictures of a muffled town that has just been deserted. Welcome to Mada town in Zamfara, though not officially at war, but whose residents, nevertheless had to flee their ancestral homes because of incessant attacks and abduction of people from…
