The year 2025 ended with the humbling of the Nigerian state by a foreign power. That humiliation began in November when Donald Trump, the US president, described Nigeria as “that now-disgraced country” and designated it as a “Country of Particular Concern” after alleging it harboured “Christian genocide”. Having tagged Nigeria with those derogatory labels, Trump threatened to […]

Today is January 1, 2026 and if you are reading this, it means only one thing: you are alive, one of those who survived 2025, a year that turned out, to borrow late Queen Elizabeth II’s Latin phrase, an “annus horribilis” (horrible year). Last year was dreadful for many Nigerians – a year of significant personal and […]

Every January, Chidi does the same thing. He opens a fresh notebook-the kind with the inspiring quote on the cover-and writes down his goals for the year. This past January, like the three Januaries before it, “Improve my public speaking” made the list. So did “Network more effectively” and “Write more consistently.” He underlined them. He felt […]

In ‘Nigeria’s problem comes from the north’, this column’s commentary of November 26, 2025, I dwelt on the issue of mass kidnappings and attacks on worship centres following the terrorist attack on the Christ Apostolic Church in Eruku, Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara state. I examined that incident against the responses of northern, particularly Fulani leaders’ […]

“A nation’s foreign policy begins where its sense of isolation ends”, Premier Zhou Enlai Any serious analysis of China’s overtures towards Africa must be grounded firmly in global geo-politics. When China’s Foreign Minister and State Councillor, Wang Yi, begins his annual diplomatic pilgrimage to Africa on 1 January 2026, he will be doing far more than observing […]

Poetic License was like a dream seeker’s expression when we were in the university. The fact that a writer could be at liberty to use words freely and loosely and also actually ascribe meanings to them, was something totally new and tantalizingly inviting to the creative writing world which already had a lineup of patriarchs and matriarchs […]

From last week continues the narrative on the constitutional roles of traditional rulers in the first republic. It also highlights their little recognition in the 1979 constitution and the non recognition in the 1999 constitution. The 1999 Constitution has no role for traditional rulers in the country. This contradicts the 1979 Constitution, which provided a little role […]

A society does not unravel only when guns drown out laws.  It also weakens when citizens begin to suspect that the text meant to govern them can be quietly adjusted after the ceremony has ended. Once a law loses credibility, enforcement becomes a contest of power rather than a discipline of legitimacy. Compliance turns into a […]

Life isn’t a matter of milestones, but of moments”– Rose Kennedy. There are periods which represent watersheds in the lives of nations. They reveal real potential to trigger and witness changes and events that will affect lives in more ways than other moments. The year 2026 appears to be one of them. It could set […]

“A Judge who takes advantage of the judicial office for personal gain or for gain by his or her relative or relation abuses power…. such abuse of power profoundly violates the public’s trust in the judiciary.”– Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Rule 8:3 (2016) Eight and a half […]

Shola Ayebola was one of the most principled student leaders that emerged from the University of Lagos, UNILAG in the late 1980s. Equally, he was one of the leaders of the 1990s proDemocracy movement that eventually forced the military out of power. During one of the mass protests, he led the leaders in the Sango […]

By Chidi Anselm Odinkalu “A Judge who takes advantage of the judicial office for personal gain or for gain by his or her relative or relation abuses power…. such abuse of power profoundly violates the public’s trust in the judiciary.” Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Rule 8:3 (2016) […]

By Azu Ishiekwene  I intended to write about something else, but changed my mind halfway through. Apart from making New Year’s resolutions a habit, which nearly half of adult Americans engage in, another common feature of this time of year in many parts of the world is making predictions.  It’s as hazardous as knowing a […]

By Owei Lakemfa Madness. This will be a fitting description of 2025 as it casts its last shadows on humanity.   My conclusion is not just based on the mindless slaughter in Gaza where even the Devil will willingly take lessons. What can be more evil than luring  starving people to supposed food centres and […]

Last week, we talked about the problem of over introducing yourself-that exhausting habit of piling on credentials, experiences, and qualifications until your listener’s eyes glaze over. We explored why people do it (fear of being underestimated, uncertainty about their value) and why it backfires (it signals insecurity rather than confidence, and it drains attention before delivering substance).  […]