Governor Sanwo-Olu, talk is cheap, By Abimbola Adelakun

In retrospect, one should have expected that the ethnic attacks that blow up in Lagos State around election seasons would be intense this time round. First, this election was the first time since 1999 that another party came close to blowing the lid off the All Progressives Congress’ much-vaunted “structure.” From the traditional rulers to […]

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Does Nigeria really have a voter apathy problem?, By Abimbola Adelakun

Months ago, when the Independent National Electoral Commission announced its voter register listed a whopping 93.4 million potential voters, it was an exciting promise of how the elections would go. At the end of the day, the presidential election—which typically attracts more voters—ended up with an underwhelming figure. With all the raucous noise that the […]

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Yorùbá ro’nú, yes, ro’nú!, By Abimbola Adelakun

The ethnic irredentists who regularly punctuate the atmosphere with the dog whistle of Yorùbá ro’nú are not sincerely invested in the gains of contemplation. If they were, they would deploy the same gusto to call for a reflection on the Yorùbá condition within this contraption called Nigeria. We would be asked to ponder if this is all […]

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What does Peter Obi do next?, By Abimbola Adelakun

Those whose understanding of Saturday’s presidential election is that the Labour Party played the “spoiler” for the Peoples Democratic Party miss the significance of the moment. As of now, the PDP is effectively dead and the LP is the new opposition party. The PDP presidential candidate might have won many votes, but they lost on […]

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Which truth will triumph on Saturday?, By Abimbola Adelakun

Electoral choices in a democracy ultimately boil down to affirming one’s version of the truth that should reign in the nation. Casting one’s ballot expresses our vision of the country, individual or collective. While some people vote simply as a mundane exercise, many do so because they believe that the ballot conveys the truth of […]

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Don’t buy Tinubu’s parasitism, By Abimbola Adelakun

Since the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate Bola Tinubu made his infamous speech about saboteurs trying to scuttle his election in Ogun State, recently the airwaves have been agog with conspiracy theories. Of course, he did not name anyone but he gave speculators enough homework when he lamented that the protracted fuel crisis and the […]

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Tinubu vs Atiku’s òjóró cancel òjóró, By Abimbola Adelakun

In one of those moments of comic relief only Nigeria can throw up, the All Progressives Congress presidential campaign demanded that anti-corruption agencies arrest their opponent, the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, over allegations of corruption by his former aide. In an electoral season, it is not unusual for party spokespersons to feign […]

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Which president can remove fuel subsidy?, By Abimbola Adelakun

Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi has reiterated his commitment to removing the subsidies on fuel. At the Channels Television town hall on Sunday, he called the monies “an organised crime” and promised they would not stay a day longer if he were elected president. All I can say to him for now is, good luck […]

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2023, our year of election, By Abimbola Adelakun

The ushering in of the new year has hastened the countdown for Nigeria as it hobbles towards the biggest event that ever happens in respective African countries: elections. In terms of the high expectations that precede it and even its ability to momentarily remind people fragmented of their shared identity, elections in Africa are equivalent […]

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The Buhari scam keeps unravelling, By Abimbola Adelakun

On Sunday night presidential media aide released a statement to relay a Christmas Day event at the presidential villa. The otherwise routine release stated that the President, Maj. Gen Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), hosted the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Mohammed Bello, and some residents of the nation’s capital. The statement contained the now tiring rant about […]

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The DSS needs intelligent officers, By Abimbola Adelakun

If you thought that the characteristic display of sloppiness, laxity, and an outright lack of acumen by the Department of State Services can no longer embarrass you, then you should read the submission of the judge that refused to grant their prayer to arrest and detain the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor over alleged terrorism […]

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Abortion and Nigeria’s hypocrisy, By Abimbola Adelakun

In June, the Lagos State Government announced a policy document to guide safe abortions of pregnancy. The move was surprising. Abortion is one of those Nigerian realities we pretend does not exist. Abortion is hardly legal in Nigeria, but people still get it. From skilled doctors in their private hospitals to unskilled drug dispensers in local […]

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For those of you who justify vulgarism, By Abimbola Adelakun

Some of our fellow country people have made a nasty habit of finding justification for virtually every instance of vulgarism. Whether such vulgar act revolves around power abuse, lack of accountability code, ethical violations, or any other random act of indecency, these people will insist on its propriety. They can be so fiery in their […]

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New naira notes will buy you nothing, By Abimbola Adelakun

On Wednesday, Nigeria’s President, Maj. Gen Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), along with the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, and some other high-ranking public officials formally unveiled the re-designed N1,000, N500, and N200 notes. Such a gathering is, of course, expectedly full of festivity, bluster, and the regurgitation of the same vapid and […]

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NBC’s tyranny cannot hide their moral cowardice, By Abimbola Adelakun

The Nigerian Broadcasting Commission’s imposition of a N2m fine on AriseTV for the sin of airing a contrived report about a presidential candidate is one of those curious instances of bureaucratic efficiency. Coming after some government agencies had indicated they would not be pursuing the substantial issue of this presidential candidate’s association with narcotics, it is funny […]

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Joke Silva and the right to not be, By Abimbola Adelakun

By now, you must have come across dozens of opinions on the blowback actor Joke Silva received for fraternising with the All Progressives Congress presidential campaign. Much of the commentary, steeped in tawdry “woke” ideologies, did not take their analysis on the issues beyond trite arguments of Silva’s “right to choose” and “freedom of speech/expression.” […]

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Has the end of ASUU truly come?, By Abimbola Adelakun

Preliminary media analyses of the Federal Government’s formal recognition of other university trade unions are forecasting the end of the Academic Staff Union of Universities. Since the ongoing strike began on February 14, the Federal Government has tried different tactics to end it. From obtaining a court order asking lecturers to resume duties, to issuing […]

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