Curses and magical beliefs are woven together in African politics. A study found out that virtually all African leaders come to power emboldened by beliefs in local magical spells. Francisco Macias Nguema, first president of Equatorial Guinea from the time of the country’s independence in 1968, till 1979 when he was overthrown, was a perfect fit of this. A strongman and one of the most brutal dictators in human history, Nguema reportedly killed between 20,000, to 80,000 out of the total Guinea population of about 200,000 to 300,000 people. This led to his country being nicknamed the Dachau of Africa.…
Author: Editor-in-chief
Leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) staged a protest on Monday against recent appointments made by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, alleging that he prioritizes his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) loyalists over their members. During a press conference in Abuja, FCT party leaders expressed their discontent and urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene and prevent Wike from undermining their political structure in the nation’s capital. According to The Punch, it was reported that the FCT minister, Nyesom Wike, has faced criticism for his appointments since he assumed office, with appointments such as Chidi…
The Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, has asked the House of Representatives to grant him the power to arbitrarily spend funds under the controversial “security vote” scheme. Mr Wike, while appearing before the House Committee on FCT on Monday to defend the N1.1 trillion budget of his ministry, said he needs the security vote to tackle the insecurity currently ravaging the Nigerian capital. The security vote is a controversial and corruption-ridden scheme often used by state governors to spend money arbitrarily without any form of transparency. Anti-corruption advocates have long argued that the security vote has become a conduit for…
Exactly a year ago today, Oyo state APC was thrown to the wolves. An electoral coup triggered from the inside saw to the comprehensive albeit shocking annihilation of the APC in Oyo state. It was the day Oyo state voters went to the polls to either extend Makinde’s Government for another four years or give Teslim Kolawole Folarin of the APC a start in the Government House. Prior to the day, presidential and National Assembly election have held and expectedly, Oyo APC soared high, winning the presidential election in style and clinching all three Senatorial seats plus nine out of…
The Centre for Public Accountability has described a recent petition, credited to a self styled Society for Women Empowerment SWE, addressed to the National Leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as baseless, and another in the series of the desperate campaign of calumny, against the Ondo State Governor, Mr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, by some desperate politicians, ahead of the forthcoming governorship primary, as they become increasingly uncomfortable,with the soaring popularity, of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa. The group, in a statement signed by its Executive Director, Conrade Olufemi Lawson, said “after careful examination, it has become evident that the so called “Society…
There is a portion in Book of Genesis that chronicled how God resolved to create Man in His own image. The Bible recorded that God discussed with, His Angels, I suppose and asked them, “come, let us make Man in our own image”. There are a lot of lessons that could be learned from the decision of God to ask His Angels to be involved in the process of making Man. After all, God had made a lot of creatures before Man. Certainly, Man is the most important creature to God and even though, He could go ahead and make…
There is an interesting story about the Ofa people of Kwara state. It is about an event that have since become a custom and festivities. It is about the traditional cutting of a piece of yam that signifies the calling of a truce between rival brothers centuries ago. During the festival to mark the truce, a piece of yam will be cut into two equal proportions. This incident symbolizes equity and fairness. That is why oriki of the Ofa people goes thus, “…ikan o gbodo ju kan..” that is, the piece of yam, when cut, during the festival, must be…
The Chairman of Bellagio Airlines Limited, Dr. Oludare Akande OON, has extended his condolences to Ali Okunmade royal family, the Olubadan-in-Council, the Oyo State Government and the people of Ibadanland over the death of the. 42rd Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Senator (Dr.) Mohood Olalekan Balogun. Dr. Akande in his condolence message made available to journalists on Friday said the death of Oba Ali Okunmade II is a monumental loss not only to Yorubaland but also Nigeria traditional institution. The business icon described the first-class monarch as an epitome of humility, promoter of peace and peaceful coexistence while alive. “Even though…
The Nigerian Student Loan Scheme, eagerly awaited by many hopefuls, faced yet another setback as the Federal Government announced an indefinite postponement of its launch. Akintunde Sawyer, the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund, conveyed this disappointing news during an interview with ARISE NEWS. The scheme, originally slated to kick off between September and October 2023 after President Bola Tinubu signed the bill into law, encountered repeated delays. Femi Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, championed the bill with high hopes for its swift implementation. Despite Tinubu’s reassurances that the programme would commence in January…
Except for someone who is sold on deceiving himself, Oyo APC is presently an orphan. The process of making the state chapter of the APC an orphan commenced the day Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu as presidential candidate entered into an agreement with the Group of five rebellious PDP Governors known as the G-5. That singular act resulted in the seemingly crushing defeat the APC suffered in Oyo state in the gubernatorial and House of Assembly elections. The process of making the state chapter of the APC an orphan have been completed by the president through his consistent snubbing of the…