Internationalist Segun Osoba, reunites Nigerian radicals, by Owei Lakemfa
The internationalist, intellectual, radical historian and generally accepted leader of the Nigerian Left, Olusegun Osoba, left on May 14, 2026, at 92. What followed the exit of a man who greatly influenced and led three generations of Nigerian radicals was a twenty-six-day programme of celebrating his life, times and works. It was as if a father […]
Epitaph for the living
By Owei Lakemfa A NUMBER of European leaders harbour the quixotic thought that as the first year of the War in Ukraine rolls by today, February 24, 2023, the Ukrainians will militarily defeat Russia. They prefer a continuation of the war, and, their writing the epitaph of Russian and Ukrainian youths who will be killed, […]
Hapless Nigerians caught in party and Supreme Court politics
By Owei Lakemfa The raging arguments today include whether or not President Muhammadu Buhari should have obeyed the Supreme Court ruling on the continued use of the old currencies. One argument is that it was the Federal Government that was sued, not the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN. But our forebears have a wise saying: […]
It’s easy defending criminality when you’re not the victim
By Owei Lakemfa I EXPECTED a backlash when on February 3, 2023, I published a piece: “Recreating the Holocaust in their own image.” It came as expected. The various reactions reinforce my position that our world can be a far better place if only otherwise decent humans would not rationalise evil. But it is quite […]
Affliction strikes Nigerians the second time
By Owei Lakemfa I AM walking back from the position of many Nigerians that these are the worse of times for the country. It would have been difficult to dispute what appears to be a truism. We are buffeted by rampant cases of terrorism, banditry and sectarian violence. Inflation is over 20 per cent, we […]
George Muchai: Murder of a trade unionist
By Owei Lakemfa IT has taken me eight years to get around to writing this. George Muchai, Deputy Secretary General of the Kenyan Central Organisation of Trade Unions, COTU, was also the serving Member of Parliament for the Kabete Constituency. I was the Secretary General of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity, OATUU, the […]
When government prompts the citizenry to violence
By Owei Lakemfa A Lebanese man on September 16, 2022, wielding a gun, held up the Byblos Bank in Ghazieh, Southern Lebanon. No, not to rob the bank or its customers. Just to retrieve part of his money trapped in the country’s banks! So, to retrieve part of his money, he had to hold up […]
Democracy without democrats, leadership without honour
By Owei Lakemfa IN Geneva, Switzerland, an acquaintance once apologised that he was some minutes late for our appointment because he went to vote that morning. Everywhere and everything appeared normal. There was no indication of voting going on. I reflected that back home, elections even at state level are emergencies in which curfew is […]
In the dark alleys of human trafficking
By Owei Lakemfa OVER the course of 400 years, 15 million men, women, and children were transported across the Atlantic as slaves, but the statistics for human trafficking, particularly the sex trade, are far worse. Conservatively, 800,000 people are trafficked annually, with 80 per cent being women and half of these being minors. The global […]
Governance by ambush
By Owei Lakemfa The mass media reported that as Nigerians slept on January 19, 2023, the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, again, increased the price of petrol. This time from N170 per litre to N185. Twenty four hours later, the Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, denied that government gave the order for […]
Ramaphosa, Nyusi, Buhari: In the dark recess of African leaders
By Owei Lakemfa BILLIONS of the faithful believe that in the beginning, when God created the world, darkness was upon the face of the earth until the Almighty said: “Let there be light,” and there was light. Since then, humanity has worked to bring more light into the world, with electricity being the most ambitious. […]
