Carrying coal to Nescastle, by Muyiwa Adetiba
Regular users tell me that the road from Sagamu interchange to the Lagos end is usually about thirty minutes if the traffic is light and about forty-five minutes if it is heavy, which often happens at weekends. Recently, it took us – my two friends and I – almost four hours to navigate that journeyand […]
Be prepared if you agree to ride the back of a Tiger to power, by Muyiwa Adetiba
Some 25 years ago, during the tenure of a certain General made President by the godfathers of Nigeria, a contact called from Aso Rock to give me a piece of good news. The caller knew of my relationship with someone who was being considered for a top political job and felt I should know before it became […]
Testing Waters: Our slow route to federalism, by Muyiwa Adetiba
I have a very close friend whose father made him an executor to his will ahead of his much older siblings in a large, but affluent polygamous family. That was rather uncommon in a typical African setting. It gets even more uncommon. The very detailed will gave mere stipends from a rather expansive estate to some of […]
Book Launch: The Day A Capone Made A Statement, by Muyiwa Adetiba
I was Editor of the Vanguard Newspapers in 1985 when General Ibrahim Babangida popularly known as IBB became the nation’s Head of State. The goodwill that attended his succession was indescribable, in part because of the harsh rule of his predecessor, but in the main because of his own persona. At the time, I often met people […]
Our country needs healing, by Muyiwa Adetiba
By divine providence, this year turns out to be one of those years that Muslim Ramadan and Christian Lent start about the same time. This March should then mean a Holy Month for the nation called Nigeria given the importance – and influence – of these two major religions in the country. Many Nigerians, including their leaders, […]
Boko Haram Saga: Connecting the dots, by Muyiwa Adetiba
‘A witch chanted yesterday and a child dies today; who does not know that the witch that chanted was responsible for the death of the child’ is a rough translation of a Yoruba adage. In other words, there should be a connection between a chanting witch and a dead child. This popular adage came to […]
In whose interest is the clamour for Sharia in Yorubaland? By Muyiwa Adetiba
One of my fondest memories as a four/five year-old growing up in Ilesha, was sharing time with someone I considered a kind, loving old man. He would tease me about my girlfriends and I would protest vehemently that I had none. He would mention a few female names and I would protest more vehemently. This would […]
Because nobody lives forever…, by Muyiwa Adetiba
Last weekend found me in Ondo town for the funeral of a friend. People close to me know I do not like to travel so it was not an easy decision to make. But I felt a compelling urge to pay my last respects to someone I had been friends with for over four decades. […]
Has the great ‘American dream’ run its course? By Muyiwa Adetiba
During the early years of the Punch Newspaper, I had a colleague who later became a brother. He studied in the US and was besotted with the country. He often talked about life in the US in a way that tickled my curiosity and heightened my expectations. He talked about its system and its advanced technology. Being […]
When Nigeria happens to you, by Muyiwa Adetiba
A friend in the US sent a video clip to me about some Nigerians in the diaspora who had invested in one of the estates about to be demolished to make way for the Coastal Road. My heart went out to them as they narrated their emotional experiences in the video. They not only lost money, they […]
As you lay your bed…, by Muyiwa Adetiba
I have been getting frantic calls and text messages from a sister of a close friend who claims, as usual, that she is short of money for her drugs. My friend had in the past, asked me to ignore the messages and even threatened that ‘pandering’ – my friend’s choice word for the situation – to the […]
