SHE is young. Her dressing gives the impression of a religious-minded lady. She is identified or identified herself by 42 different names. But her real name is unknown. It might not be impossible that among the 42 names, is buried her true name. On the other hand, she might have been too smart to fill her real name. But she is not faceless, and if our country had a good fingerprint database, she might have been identified and arrested.

ONE of the most memorable places I have ever visited is the Corinthia Hotel on Nile Street, Khartoum. My favourite past time each time I visited, was having an early morning breakfast in the high rise restaurant in the hotel. There, I sit facing the confluence where the White Nile which began its life-enriching journey from Burundi’s Ruvyironza waters and those of Rwanda’s Nyungwe, flowing into the Kagera River in Tanzania from where it embarks on a 3,700-kilometre journey, to meet the Blue Nile. The colours of the later which began its 1,450-kilometre journey from Lake Tania, in Ethiopia are clearly distinguishable from the White Nile.

MANY of us who organised the bloody mass street protests, stay-at-home and sustained a five-year campaign to force the military de-annul June 12, 1993, presidential election did not believe in that year’s elections.

THE government of President Muhammadu Buhari could hardly contain its excitement. Professor Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, the country’s permanent representative to the United Nations was going to be elected the President of the United Nations General Assembly, UNGA. It appeared a major diplomatic achievement. Like a groom stretching its neck to find out when the bride would step into the registry, the government  strained its neck to look into the UNGA.

The Nigerian political system is characterised by lack of mass participation, a mainly unaccountable leadership, violent elections lacking in credibility, and political parties that parade programmes without the input of those they want to govern.

A NIGERIAN genius, Odia Ofeimun asked me a rhetorical question: “How does a minority, which takes control of the majority, retain power?” He answered: “By force or falsehood.” I added: “Or both.” Although he raised it within  the context of the ethnocentric power relations in Nigeria, it is also true of Britain.

There is a pretence of a debate over the practice and funding of local governments in the country. The Federal Government, putting up a facade of defending local governments, rolled out new guidelines on their expenditure, including a maximum daily N500,000 cash withdrawal.

GOVERNOR Mohammed Abubakar of Bauchi State is a learned lawyer. He meant well for the state. One of the most laudable steps he took was signing into law the bill establishing the Public Property and Funds Recovery Tribunal 2017 aimed at recovering all stolen public assets and funds. The Tribunal has the mandate to recover state assets, including properties and monies stolen by past government officials, civil servants, companies, individuals and also prosecute looters.

IT was Sunday, May 12 near the port of Fujairah, in the Gulf of Oman, United Arab Emirate, UAE, when four commercial ships were bombed. Two of them, Amjad and Al Marzoqah are tankers owned by Saudi Arabia, the third, A. Michel, an UAE flagged fuel bunker barge and the fourth, a Norwegian tanker, the Andrea Victory.

IN my first year at the University of Ife (now OAU) a ‘National Sailing’ by a secret confraternity was scheduled for the campus. On the eve, the local branch held a procession at midnight. The procession stopped an ambulance conveying a student to the hospital asking it to switch off its lights. Tragically, the student later died.  A mourning student populace was enraged when news filtered that the confraternity had stopped the ambulance, even though it was for a few seconds.