Lindsay Barrett and Mia Mottley: The Pull of the Diaspora, by Owei Lakemfa
Lindsay Carlton Eseoghene Barrett was a twenty-five-year-old Jamaican when he came from Britain to Nigeria in July 1966 on a few weeks’ visit. Those weeks have stretched to over sixty years, with the playwright, poet, journalist and photographer becoming one of the best-known Nigerians. He was eighty-five years on September 15, and not unexpectedly, I […]
Exorcising Twitter and other witches
I blame the handlers of President Muhammadu Buhari for leading him into the Twitter nest. In the first place, how could they have allowed the President of the largest Black nation in the universe to be chirruping like a bird? Worse still, he would have been lured to tweeting any time of the day like […]
Standing the world on its head
SOME years ago, as Secretary General of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity, OATUU, I had diplomatic immunity provided directly by my host, Ghana; my country, Nigeria and the African Union which extended to me the privilege of its diplomatic passport. With the AU passport, I entered and exited countless African countries without visa […]
The Battles of Ibadan in the June 12 Uprising
By Owei Lakemfa The bloody five-year pro-democracy uprising that forced the military back to the barracks after a cumulative 29-year military dictatorship began on Monday July 5, 1993. Hundreds of lives were lost. Some of the bloodiest battles were fought in Ibadan on Tuesday April 14 and Friday May 1, 1998. Ibadan is the traditional […]
Perpetrators, apologists and heirs of genocide
By Owei Lakemfa They were five days that began to reset the world. Days in which significant steps were taken to redress years of senseless and mind boggling genocide against hapless peoples while the rest of humanity watched unconcerned. The five days of May 27 to June 1, 2021 provided some relief, and assurance that humanity […]
Aregbesola and Africa’s problematic search for leadership
By Owei Lakemfa Abdulrauf Adesoji Aregbesola, the Minister of Internal Affairs is an enigma with a knack for attracting youths and maintaining a devoted followership. Since his days as the chief mass mobiliser in Alimosho-Lagos, Works Commissioner in Lagos State, berthing in Osun State with his ‘governance unusual’ and current station, his work and charisma […]
