Category: Opinion - Page 28

Aug

12

2022

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By People&Politics

Niger Republic as Nigeria’s 37th state

Opinion

No matter how hard this government tries to rationalize Buhari’s unforced leadership gaffes, the president’s illicit dalliance with Niger Republic at the expense of Nigerians is the stuff quislings are made of. By Ikechukwu Amaechi Constitutionally, Nigeria has 36 states and a Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. But under President Muhammadu Buhari’s watch, the country seems to have added one more state – Niger Republic – making it 37. The 37th state, ironically enjoys more federal attention and presence than some of the country’s bona-fide states. Nigeriens in their country enjoy more dividends of democracy, courtesy of the munificence of…

Aug

09

2022

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God Save the Jagaban

Opinion

By Victor Anazonwu In a proper democracy, the APC would not be contesting Nigeria's Presidential Elections in 2023. Not in any real sense. It would, quite rightly, consider 2023 a lost cause. It would be content to take a few seats in the Senate and House of Representatives. And maybe a few governorship stools also. The party would be in deep anguish and sorrow, begging for forgiveness, groveling to rebuild its tattered image and depleted human stock. It would be hoping to groom some decent candidates with whom to make a fresh bid, perhaps in 2027 or 2031. By which…

Aug

05

2022

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Still On Sam Omatseye’s Obituary

Opinion

Being in the crosshairs of Tinubu’s vaunting political ambition is the only excuse that Omatseye needs to assume the role of a vicious attack dog. By IKECHUKWU AMAECH When a friend of mine called on Monday afternoon to ask if I had read Sam Omatseye’s obituary in The Nation newspaper, my heart skipped a beat. I have not seen The Nation newspaper’s editorial board chairman this year and not being one of my favourite columnists because of his penchant for puerile exuberance and indecency, I hardly read him. His solecism in the guise of intellectualism puts me off. Did I…

Aug

03

2022

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SAM OMATSEYE – A Matter Of Character

Opinion

By VICTOR ANAZONWU I have carefully read Obi-tuary by Sam Omatseye. I must say that, once again, Sam did not disappoint as an elegant purveyor of prose. But beyond his effervescent style and intellectual sophistry, Sam came up morally short. He set out to portray Peter Obi and the emerging Obidient Movement as a narrow ethnic (Igbo) affair and as separatist militancy in disguise. He failed woefully. Linking Peter Obi with IPOB is as logical as linking Bishop Hassan Kukah with Boko Haram. Saying that OBIDIENCE is a strictly Igbo movement is an insult to the intelligence of millions of…

Aug

03

2022

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(OPINION) Everyone’s Obituary Is Inevitable

Opinion

By CHUKS ILOEGBUNAM Chuks Iloegbunam tells Sam Omatseye to cleanse his journalism_ Some have called you foolish, dear Sam Omatseye. Others insist that you are plain stupid. There are those who hold you to be beneath contempt. Their howls of execration upon you are in reaction to your August 1, 2022 article entitled Obi-tuary (https://thenationonlineng.net/obi-tuary/). For me, however, you are a dear friend. Our friendship started in the 1980s at Newswatch magazine where both of us practiced journalism before you travelled to the United States for further studies. It continued upon your return and strengthened to the point that, sometimes,…

Jul

28

2022

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Asking For Trouble

Opinion

By Azu Ishiekwene Nigeria’s political class has been largely irresponsible, having neither the aptitude to understand and tackle insurgency nor the honesty to admit its complicity. That is why the problem has grown from a few misguided itinerants proselytising for a theocratic state to armed terror. After BBC Africa service promoted a story on Friday of an interview with the bandit warlords of Zamfara State, a senior Nigerian journalist, Kadaria Ahmed, called out the broadcaster in a tweet. Kadaria, an ex-Beeb, said the interview would give the terrorists oxygen, stoke hysteria and bring nothing but pain and misery to hundreds…

Jun

09

2022

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Tinubu: Back story and the morning after

Opinion, Politics

Whereas Tinubu knew that the cabal knew his potential to damage the party in the event that the cabal chose to muscle him out, Osinbajo, with a significantly lower deterrent value, was relying almost 100 percent on Buhari’s benevolence. By Azu Ishiekwene After the feisty, if not bitter, presidential primary of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ended on Wednesday with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu emerging the party’s candidate for the next election, the overriding instinct is to throw the losers under the bus. You can hardly blame Tinubu’s camp. The man had a raw deal right up to the last minute. For seven years, he was literally an outsider in a party…

May

27

2022

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Ogbonnaya Onu: Keeping A Date With Destiny

Opinion, Politics

By KELVIN GILBERT He doesn’t seem like the typical Nigerian politician of this era. Calm and unassuming, former Abia State governor and the immediate past minister of Science and Technology, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, has however managed to remain one of President Muhammadu Buhari’s long serving cabinet members for the better part of his administration until he resigned to contest for the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC). But how far can he go in a contest that is not just crowded but populated by money bags in a highly monetised political system? Onu, like 24 other APC chieftains,…

May

17

2022

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Orji Uzor Kalu: A Lifetime Of Crass Opportunism

Opinion

EXPRESSO 》》》By Steve Osuji You would think people get mature and wiser as they get older. But that's not the case with ORJI UZO KALU. At 60, it seems he has played opportunistic politics all his life. He started out quite early, remember. Selfish interest, self- preservation and crave for lucre at all cost has defined his politics. This would have been tolerable if he doesn't present his primordial and indeed predatory instincts as altruistic acts for the Igboman. Igbo presidential contestants in the two major parties have been travelling about the country trying to convince and win over delegates…Men…

May

13

2022

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OPINION: Double Jeopardy For Buhari’s Ministers

Opinion

BOLAJI ADEBIYI It is never too late to do the right thing. On Wednesday President Muhammadu Buhari directed his ministers and other political appointees as well as heads of ministries, departments and agencies, including extra-ministerial bodies who are interested in political contests in 2023 to quit. No doubt, forced by searing and ceaseless attacks on the perfidy unfolding in his camp, the president had to pull the rug off the feet of his men, who by their conduct had shown a regrettable lack of integrity. The unfortunate saga began when Abubakar Malami, his attorney-general and minister of Justice, at different…