Yesterday, General Sani Abacha clocked 28 years in the grave. Abacha’s sudden expiration at the thick of his maximal and maniacal rule reminds Nigerians, especially those who were old enough in 1998 when he died, of how human beings should never play god. Abacha ruled with iron fist, after his seizure of power. He summarily executed dissidents and political opponents while those who held other views disappeared without trace. A very interesting equation was when he ordered the deaths of Generals Oladipo Diya and Abdukareem Adisa for plotting to sack him. As Epo Akara, the Ibadan Awurebe musical lord, sang,…
Author: Editor-in-chief
This should be worrying times for whosoever loves the APC genuinely. Under the APC, Nigerians have been wallowing in hunger, poverty and misery for the past nine years. Such that they never ever witnessed in the sixteen years rule of the PDP. Yet, the APC, nine years ago, promised Nigerians change. Nigerians have since discovered that the change they were made to endure for eight years under Buhari was nothing but a negative change where things got worse on all fronts. When Bola Ahmed Tinubu came with the mantra of Renewed Hope, though, many Nigerians were sceptical about the honesty…
Esu, the deity, according to traditionalists, is distinct from the devil painted in the Holy Books of the Bible and the Quran. According to traditional belief, the deity, Esu, is not altogether a deity with general evil intentions but one which is capable of doing some good. Incidentally, if you examine most of the stories woven around Esu, you will have no problems in concluding that whoever or whatever Esu was, he was actually a master of confusion and chaos. There was this story of two friends who were so close and cordial to the extent that they did things…
In Africa, when a man loses his virility, he is subject of scorn, ridicule and disdain. Male impotence or infertility is not only disdained but tabooed. In a continent where child-making is almost an obsession, Africa couched a number of hurtful epithets for one who loses his virile member. Failure to get this critical member standing up leaves sour overtones of frustration, pain, social ostracism, stigma, marital instability, discomfiture and even sometimes, suicide. Among the Yoruba, virility victims are named Okobo. The rural Shona tribe in Mhondoro-Ngezi area of Zimbabwe could not stand the virility challenge. To ward off this…
Makinde Will Hand Over A Broken, Battered Oyo State To His Successor ” Pankara” in Yoruba refers to a piece of a broken calabash. There is a Yoruba saying which demonstrates the worthlessness of a ” pankara”. ” Bi onigba ba pe igba re ni pankara, a si baa fi ko Ile”. If the owner of the calabash calls his calabash a broken piece, people will assist him to use the calabash to pack wastes. That is the extent of the worthlessness of a broken calabash. I do not envy whoever God has ordained to take over from Governor Seyi…
I have read a report credited to the Speaker of the Oyo state House of Assembly who also doubles as the Chairman of the Nigerian Conference of Speakers about the position of the Conference and by extension, the Governors, with respect to the burning issue of Local Government Autonomy. I have read the statement of the Oyo state Speaker, Adebo Ogundoyin several times and I must say that I am surprised, disappointed and at the same time, I am neither surprised nor disappointed. I am surprised and disappointed because I know the gentleman fairly well and I can say that…
” A kii ri oku ebi ni titi”, Yorubas believe that no matter how hard things get, you still will not see an incident where people will die as a result of hunger. Those who propounded such theories have been defeated, they have been proved wrong. In Nigeria today, in just one year of president Bola Ahmed Tinubu, lives are being lost in droves as a result of acute hunger, poverty and fear. If anyone were to predict that a time will come in Nigeria when even to feed on Garri, you will require at least four hundred Naira, the…
Governor Seyi Makinde’s Chief Press Secretary, Ap. Sulaimon Olanrewaju was guest on a popular Radio program anchored by Temitayi aka Aabo Oro. He was on the program to x-ray the activities of the Oyo state Government in the past one year of the Governor’s second term. I listened to the program with rapt attention and can not help but to pity the CPS who is said to be an Apostle. An Apostle in Christiandom is a spiritual position that places a very heavy responsibility on the holder of the position. To demonstrate the weight of this position, it will be…
The duo of Abba Yusuf, governor of Kano State, and the Nigerian presidency stand the risk of plunging Kano back into the year 1893. Their weapon would be politics and votes of the over 2 million people of Kano. In the year 1893, in the words of highly rated scholar on Northern emirate administration, C. N. Ubah, a bitterly disputed succession battle plunged the Kano emirate into anarchy and civil war. Indeed, the Kano royal family had overtime been a hotbed of divisions and acrimony. Beginning from the first civil war fought in Kano in 1565, the royal house of…
Tomorrow, 24th of May, 2024, Governor Seyi Makinde will change the baton for a new set of “Ajeles” to the 33 Local Governments in Oyo state. In Yoruba parlance, Ajeles signify proxy authority. What will be the sole responsibility of this gentlemen? The singular responsibility will be to continue the plundering of the Local Government funds as a proxy of the Governor. For the few who think they are going to have a new face of governance at the grassroots, you will be shocked. Those Chairmen were not selected to serve the people. They have specific mandates to serve only…