Our Columnists
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NNPC v Dangote: Where The Truth Lies
If products from the Dangote Refinery currently exceed the Sulphur levels – as Dangote had also said on a different occasion – why can’t the regulator work with the refinery to fix it without a scandalous press conference?
Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, is not a stranger to adversity or its more sinister cousin, sabotage. One of the bitterest battles he has fought in the last 25 years – the cement war – was against his kinsman and founder of BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu. Folks close to both men have tried to patch […] More
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Local Government Matters Most
Local governments have struggled to perform their roles effectively due to their dependence on state governments for funding and administrative directives.
Wale Adedayo, the former chairman of Ijebu East Local Government Area (LGA) of Ogun state, is a man I admire. He fought for himself, his pals, his people and the constitution when he dared the Governor of Ogun State, Dapo Abiodun in 2023. Although he lost the fight, Adedayo did not lose the battle. The […] More
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In This Difficult Marriage, Democrats Must Love Biden
The election in November is not about Africa. It’s about whether an exceptional country that lost its way in 2016 – with horrific consequences for the rest of the world – is determined to lose it yet again.
The assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13 at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania has sucked the oxygen from the debate on President Joe Biden’s fitness for a second term. The discussion will resurface, but Democrats should forget it. The party is stuck with Biden. The odds are daunting. It must feel […] More
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Ajibola Ogunshola: Triumph Of The Non-newspaperman
Though he was a star in the insurance world (former Managing Director of Niger Insurance) and one of Africa’s leading actuaries (a consultant to the UN on pensions), he did not know jack about newspapers, if you get what I mean.
I’ve written this before. Ten years ago, but this man’s story is new every time. To me. And to many who have crossed his path. On his 80th birthday on July 14, I’m repeating this story with the zeal and delight I shared it ten years ago: If the lot had fallen on Chief Ajibola […] More
More Columns
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Olatunji Dare: To Repay Is To Owe More
Without this man, I might have turned out to be a literary plumber or perhaps a motor park journalist, but nothing near the second-eleven of a craft that I owe so much.
Ten years ago, this article appeared under a different title, “The Debt I Owe.” Professor Olatunji Dare was 70 at the time. Ten years later, on Dare’s 80th birthday coming up on July 17, I’m republishing the article with minor changes. Without this man, I might have turned out to be a literary plumber or […] More
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Why Jollof And Nigerians Lose Colour In The Tomato Crisis
If we can step back and apply a common sense approach to the issue, we may begin to see that many challenges facing Nigeria can be resolved faster or ameliorated to a large extent by the people, without government intervention.
Life can be upended when everyday food like peppers and tomatoes become suddenly scarce. Jollof rice has to look and taste exactly right and when it doesn’t, people can lose their colour, composure and temper. That’s what’s been happening to Nigerians for two months under a tomato crisis. All nations deal with scarcity of essential […] More
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Rishi Sunak’s Next Life
As Britain goes to the polls, Sunak has only one in four chances of keeping his seat, and the Tories are bracing for one of the worst defeats ever in nearly two centuries.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak came to the job as an afterthought, yet his days in Number 10 were numbered before he received the ceremonial blessings of King Charles III. For a long time after Brexit, the Tories and sections of the British public, still in post-Brexit ecstasy, were madly in love with Boris Johnson. […] More
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The Book After Trial Of Nuhu Ribadu
The unique quality of the book is that it combines the seasons that fostered my career, to borrow from Sonala Olumhense’s blurb, with a narrative of how younger writers can take advantage and be rewarded by evolving trends in the media.
It was different 16 years ago. Very different. At that time, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was relatively new and walking where angels feared to tread. That was unusual for a government institution, especially a law enforcement agency. So unusual that one of Nigeria’s most courageous social crusaders, Gani Fawehinmi, a thorn in […] More
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Writing For Media And Monetising It: An Entrepreneur’s Perspective – By Max amuchie
No other person is more suited to write this book than Azu, a media management guru, content producer and columnist who has made his mark nationally and internationally.
Last December, on my last day of work before Christmas, I sat alone in my office in Abuja, reflecting on my life’s journey. I thought about my years in the media, especially the few years since I ventured into entrepreneurship. I remembered my post on Facebook in June 2015 announcing my resignation as Managing Editor […] More
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A Reckoning In June
Nigeria is far from the promise of 1993 or 1999, but it has produced some of the world’s most insulted presidents who, by and large, we can still call goats and get away scot-free.
It’s been 31 years since a seismic event triggered by the June 12, 1993 election nearly brought Nigeria to its knees. The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), M.K.O Abiola, was on the cusp of a resounding victory when the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida interrupted and later annulled the election. That […] More
