Punch

An octogenarian uncle, who is not likely to be too excited if his name were mentioned here, called to draw attention to a cover page story, titled, “Nigeria to spend N750 billion on fuel subsidy in 2020,” in The PUNCH of Wednesday, December 11, 2019. After 34 minutes on the telephone, the octogenarian left no doubt of…

You must admit from the outset, that as much as it is said to have Greek origin, democracy received plenty of influence from Judeo-Christian traditions, the same  way the indigenous administrative style of Northern Nigerian monarchy is largely derived from Islamic traditions. In other words, whereas the indigenous political and administrative structures in Southern Nigeria…

An articulated vehicle has various parts, joined with rivets, bolts, and knots: It has the cabin, housing for the driver and his mate, and a flatbed, that may bear a container for goods, all fashioned to function as a unit. That its components are joined, and not compacted, like a car, explains why such a…

In what some may consider a shocking revelation about Nigeria’s realpolitik, Ismaila Isa Funtua, gave an in-your-face, brazen, explanation of why the Igbo may not be able to provide Nigeria’s President, not just for the 2023 general election, but also for all times. He certainly stirred the hornet’s nest, if that indeed was his intention….

If the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has personal animus against the Western Nigeria Security Network, code-named, Operation Amotekun, he sure found a not-so-clever way to show it. The deafening silence of the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, and…

An Internally Displaced Person is a refugee in his own country, driven away from his usual place of residence, because of displacement, like war, insurgency, flooding, famine, other natural disasters, even development and economic changes. If you are interested in knowing who a refugee is, Chambers English Dictionary defines him as “one, who flees for refuge (usually…

If you are shocked that the President, Major Geneneral Muhammadu Buhari, (retd.), is “surprised” at the recently escalated level of insecurity in Nigeria, you have good company in many other concerned Nigerians. The President’s tone of helplessness reminds one of military dictator Ibrahim Babangida, who wondered why the Nigerian economy, that he was presiding over,…

The Lagos State Government announced that from Saturday, February 1, 2020, commercial bikes, otherwise known as okada, and tricycles, also known as Keke Marwa, would be banned from operating on bridges, expressways and some inner-city roads of Greater Lagos. Greater Lagos, the most urban part of Lagos State, comprises the sweep from Ikeja, through Ikorodu Road, Surulere, Apapa,…

The CNN reported the other day that all international flights bound for the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, are routinely diverted to Kotoka International Airport, in Accra, Ghana, following poor weather conditions and delays in installing new Instrument Landing System, which is used to check visibility. After six hours into its flight to Lagos, an America’s Delta Airlines,…

Clearly, there is some arm-twisting going on with the operationalisation of the South-West security network, Operation Amotekun. It is increasingly looking like a toothless bulldog – or shall one say, leopard – that will no longer be able to bite. And that is even if it is eventually allowed to survive. The original impression given by…