A party for Nigeria’s latest abductors, by Azu Ishiekwene
Nigeria’s main political parties are in the thick of their primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections. That politicians can still manage to hold primaries in the midst of a worsening wave of horrendous attacks on communities and kidnappings in parts of the country, not to mention the economic hardship, suggests we must be living in […]
The Travails of Malam Nasir El-Rufai
By Azu Ishiekwene The list was long and the contents harsh and threatening. The notices may have been issued separately, but they landed like a packaged digital bomb in my WhatsApp inbox. Eight unions, apart from the central body, had collectively declared war on Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir el-Rufai. The die was cast. The […]
Busybodies outside the Gates
By Azu Ishiekwene Bill and Melinda Gates had barely finished saying the “D” word when all kinds of marriage counsellors and grief-mongers besieged social media with suggestions of why they think the couple is breaking up. The sentiments, ranging from the probable to the bizarre, with a sprinkling of fictional tales in between, have defied the […]
Coup talk and echoes of a banana republic
By Azu Ishiekwene These days, it seems all right to play with fire. The blaze started like a solitary spark in Mali in August when the streets, the elite and jihadists banded to remove President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. The former president had discarded election results and written a version that tightened his grip on power. […]
‘Follow me to the market…’
By Azu Ishiekwene EVERYONE has their meal of the day, and mine happens to be dinner. Having dinner, for me, is a ritual, but one that has evolved over the years. Back in the day, I would not dare have dinner without first taking my bath. My mother said it was “unclean” to eat before […]
First Jollof, now Twitter. What next?
By Azu Ishiekwene SOMETHING Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said reminded me of British political journalist, Andrew Marr. Journalism, Marr wrote in his book, My Trade, is a chaotic form of earning, ragged at the edges and full of snakes and con artists. Last week, Mohammed, furious at Twitter’s decision to start its first Africa […]
The audacity of anarchy
By Azu Ishiekwene THERE was a BBC News story in February that caught me between laughter and bemusement. The news channel reported, in very strong language matched only by the alarming reactions of the persons interviewed, a spate of stabbings across parts of south London that left at least one dead. It’s sad that anyone […]
Generational tension and children up in arms
By Azu Ishiekwene I WAS visiting a senior over the weekend when our conversation devolved into the soul of the Nigerian banter: how is the country going, I asked? He paused. After a moment of reflection, he took a deep breath and said: “There is tension.” I thought that was obvious and required no special gift to […]
Brazil, Zambia and echoes of a $1.5bn Nigerian repair
By Azu Ishiekwene BRAZIL has proved a disaster in the management of COVID-19, but there are other areas where we can use their examples. Like what to do about failing refineries. This hot-button topic returned to the front burner after the Nigerian government recently announced plans to repair the Port Harcourt Refinery. That refinery and the […]
My vaccination story
By Azu Ishiekwene IT wasn’t planned. I was seeing off my neighbour and friend on Thursday evening when one of the officers of our estate residents’ association called out to me. He was in knickers and shirtsleeves, with his right hand clutching his left shoulder. “I’ve just been vaccinated,” he said. “Would you like me […]
Monguno is damned in translation
By Azu Ishiekwene LAST week, Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Mohammed Babagana Monguno, stripped the government bare in public only to try hiding the ugly sight with fig leaves shortly after. The pathetic damage control didn’t work. Monguno, a retired major general, told the BBC Hausa Service in an interview that billions of naira voted by […]
The Story Of The Naira-For-Dollar Promo
By Azu Ishiekwene IT would seem harsh to judge the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, solely by its intentions, especially in the last four or five years. In a weak, fragile and chaotic system where a number of the main actors are either half-asleep, distracted or indifferent, the zeal of the CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, […]
Governors take fools’ ride to next level
By Azu Ishiekwene IF there was any doubt that governors are underworked and overpaid, this week proved it. This is not the old, familiar sitting governor versus godfather nasty fight. It’s a brawl mostly among serving governors of the same party and even the same region, who have no qualms airing their dirty laundry as entertainment. […]
Ganduje’s genius is his hypocrisy
By Azu Ishiekwene THERE’S a model for managing rebels in government that the American political drama, “Designated Survivor”, teaches so well. In one of the episodes after the horrific death of President Robert Richmond, his speech writer, Seth Wright, had a chance meeting with incoming President, Tom Kirkman, in the toilet. In a soliloquy which […]
Can this grandmother save the world?
By Azu Ishiekwene AS the World Trade Organisation, WTO, formally announced the appointment of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as Director General this week, a Swiss newspaper received her with a disgraceful headline: “This grandmother will become the boss of the WTO,” with her photograph under the headline. The headline sparked an outrage, forcing the editors to […]
Nigerian bandits have their cake and eat it
However well-meaning Gumi’s intentions may be, it rubs salt in the injury of the thousands of bereaved families to suggest that those who killed their loved ones should be compensated for the bestiality By Azu Ishiekwene THE fight against terror in Nigeria has been a theatre of the absurd. What began as a tiny spark […]
