Opinion

Remembering Mamman Shata, 33 Years After

Remembering Mamman Shata, 33 Years After

By SHEDDY OZOENE House number 43, Idi Maska Road in Funtua, Katsina State, was just like any other building in the busy neighbourhood adjourning the Funtua Central Motor Park, save for the unending stream of visitors that trooped in and out of it. Some of the callers were friends of its famous occupant while others were members of the Social Democratic Party, (SPD). The building, a one-storey affair, green in colour, was the residence of the legendary Hausa  folk musician, poet and politician, Alhaji Mamman Shata who was at the time, chairman of the SDP in Funtua Local Government Area.…
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When Supreme Court Dodged A Bullet

When Supreme Court Dodged A Bullet

In Kano, Plateau and Zamfara, the Supreme Court and President Bola Tinubu simply dodged a bullet on Friday, January 12. The judgements revalidating the mandates of Abba Kabir Yusuf, Caleb Muftwang and Lawal Dauda, who were earlier sacked by the Court of Appeal, were not altruistic. Enlightened self-interest informed both the apex court and the presidency – Siamese twins – that the cost of judicial malfeasance in those three states will be colossal. They were, therefore, forced to back down from their sinister plot. They don’t deserve the praises heaped on them by impressionistic Nigerians. By IKECHUKWU AMAECHI  Since the…
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Just Before We Crucify Betta Edu

Just Before We Crucify Betta Edu

By SHEDDY OZOENE The news that the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, had ordered the transfer of N585.2 million into the private bank account of a civil servant, hit the nation like a thunderbolt. It was enough to rouse Nigerians from the sleepy start to a new year and it quickly rose to a buzz when a cascade of other official indiscretions from the ministry came to the fore. Few days before this, the Minister had suspended a senior staff in the ministry for financial impropriety. Betta Edu A leaked memo showed that the minister…
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DIEZANI, SADIYA AND BETTA: Interrogating Why Beautiful women Seem Worse Treasury Looters

DIEZANI, SADIYA AND BETTA: Interrogating Why Beautiful women Seem Worse Treasury Looters

By STEVE OSUJI THE BEAUTIFUL THIEVES:Should we make a law urgently that our beautiful women should never be allowed near the national till? Has anyone else noticed the seeming emerging trend of our women public officials outdoing the men in making a mess of our national treasury? The womenfolk seem to take no prisoners when they have opportunity to attack and they show exceptional impunity and the iron balls of hardened pyrates. In May 2014, this column (then appearing in The Nation newspaper), had described Diezani Alison-Madueke as “the beautiful thief”). Diezani was minister in charge of Petroleum under President…
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Pa Allen: Inspirational Man of the Year

Pa Allen: Inspirational Man of the Year

By IKEDDY ISIGUZO WHAT is on a man’s mind? The answer, over the years, tended to anchor on the phallocentric psychological theories of the Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist, Sigmund Freud (born Sigismund Schlomo Freud) 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939; co-founder of the psychoanalytic school of psychology. Libidinous as his tendencies were, the profundity of a man’s mind is doubtless. Freud’s theories probed many aspects of the mind, but they were inconclusive, conflicting and added to the mysteries about the complexities of the mind and things that motivate it.Better still, what is on the mind of a 90-year-old man?…
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Kwankwaso After The Supreme Court

Kwankwaso After The Supreme Court

BY AZU ISHIEKWENE In the last one and a half decades, Rabiu Kwankwaso has been the most charismatic politician out of Kano after the passing of Abubakar Rimi. Kwankwaso is not just charismatic; he is consequential, with a cult-like following that responds twice, even when he calls once. He is facing yet another defining moment in his political career. The outcome of the ruling of the supreme court in the case between the Kano state Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and his rival, Nasiru Gawuna, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), could well determine…
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The Lure Of Akwa Ibom

The Lure Of Akwa Ibom

By SHEDDY OZOENE For several reasons, Akwa Ibom State has emerged as the destination of choice for tourism in Nigeria. The capital city of Uyo is the preferred venue for conferences and retreats by corporate organizations, social clubs, government and non-governmental organizations, just as individuals visiting for business and leisure. It was exciting when the Nigerian Guild of Editors also chose that city for the 2023 edition of the All Nigerian Editors Conference. It was for many of us, one more opportunity to explore the state and the attractions of its burstling capital. Nigerian Senators had just concluded their retreat…
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Breaking Enugu’s Water Supply Jinx: The Morning After

Breaking Enugu’s Water Supply Jinx: The Morning After

By SHEDDY OZOENE On Saturday 27th May, 2023, two days before his inauguration as Enugu State governor, I spent about 20 minutes with Dr. Peter Mbah. We discussed several issues but it finally crystallized around his vision for Enugu State. For a man on the cusp of history, his calmness was notable while the general ambience of his Zoo Estate home was rather tranquil. The flurry of activities was there alright but they were more organized than you would find elsewhere in such circumstances. It portrayed to me a man who had depth and focus. At a point in our…
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PATRIOT, PACIFIST: Interrogating Peter Obi’s Speech

PATRIOT, PACIFIST: Interrogating Peter Obi’s Speech

EXPRESSO 》By Steve Osuji Why did it take Peter Obi all of 10 day to speak up? This of course,  is the first point to note. In the rise and ebb of historic moments, timing could be everything. Like a surfer, you must catch the wave of events at its crest or lose the moment for good. This is why not a few Nigerians were troubled about Obi’s silence after the  Supreme Court  “miscarriage” on the last Presidential Election even though he is generally believed to have been robbed of the mandate.One day passed. One week passed. Many began to see…
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G-5: Running With The Hare, Hunting With The Hound

G-5: Running With The Hare, Hunting With The Hound

By SHEDDY OZOENE Since the appointment of former Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, the thinking was that all will be calm at Wadata Plaza, headquarters of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. Wike was believed to have found enough comfort in the ruling All Progressives Congress as to let PDP be. Those who think in that direction are wrong. It has become obvious that Wike and his team of some former PDP governors, codenamed G-5 or the Integrity Group, have more duties to perform. If they have helped bring the party to its…
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