*77 aspirants jostle for 17 national offices
Members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will, on Saturday, converge on the nation’s capital city, Abuja to correct a self-afflicted mistake, that is, conduct a Special National Convention where members of the National Working Committee, NWC, who resigned June 20 will be re-elected or replaced.

TO resolve the lingering crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South-west, the National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamangar Tukur, yesterday, met with members of the party in Lagos State.

N365billion is a lot of money. Worse, N365billion is a lot of money to lose in just one month. In any currency, in any clime, under any circumstance and for any people, that amount is huge. To put it in proper context, consider this: N365billion naira is the equivalent of not less than $2.25bilion.

THE Prelate of Methodist Church Nigeria, Dr. Sunday Olatunji Amos Makinde, whose investiture took place on November 12, 2006 at Trinity Methodist Church, Tinubu, Lagos, will retire as the administrative head of the church in October this year having attained the age of 70 as prescribed by the church constitution.

President Jonathan certainly did not wish this to happen. But, whether the country will be willing to stomach four more years of Mrs Patience Jonathan, or not, has suddenly become a campaign issue – even before the struggle for Aso Rock 2015 starts. However, before going into the details, permit me to bring the issue into historical, global and political perspective – if not for anything else but because of those who already concluded that Dele Sobowale hates Jonathan.

The ill-advised action of Lagos state government with respect to the deportation from the state of some destitute of Igbo extraction sometime ago has once again brought to the front seat of public consciousness one of the gaping fault lines in the geopolitical contraption called Nigeria – pernicious ethnicity.

A new book is about to be brought to the reading public. Or perhaps to put it better, a new idea is soon to be officially parachuted down and unveiled to Nigerians. Dr Jimanze Ego-Alowes has just come up with what must amount to an incontrovertibly ground-breaking, if not controversial work. With the paradoxical title, Minorities as Competitive Overlords, the book challenges old certainties as much as it offers new vistas.

THE need to reposition the Nigerian movie industry known as Nollywood for it to be able to promote the nation’s cultural diplomacy, was the focus of the 4th Annual Public Lecture organized by the National Institute for Cultural Orientation (NICO).

THE battle for Governor Peter Obi’s successor has begun in earnest and, as is customary with Anambra elections, intrigues and manipulations are already in the air.

There is uneasy calm among northern political leaders following the registration of the Peoples Democratic Movement, PDM, barely two weeks after the historic birth of the All Progressive Congress, APC.

Nigeria Football Federation has submitted a provisional 35-man list of the players to represent the country at the FIFA U-17 World Cup to the World Football governing body.

Delta sports officials plan to storm Lagos with a multitude of supports as Warri Wolves aim to win their first piece of silverware when they play Enyimba of Aba in the final of the 2013 Federation Cup to be decided at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos.

Power supply in Nasarawa State is in a deplorable situation. The Business Manager, Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), Lafia Unit, Engr. Jonamaha, explains to Sunday Vanguard why the situation will continue to remain so or get worse if nothing is done.

The place of the third-tier government, that is local government administration in Nigeria, has remained the thorniest and contentious issue in Nigerian federalism. It has to be, principally because it actually has led to general distortions in public service delivery at the most crucial levels of government.

The Deji of Akure, Oba Adebiyi Adesida, has lauded Globacom for improving the socio-economic situation of the people.