Former Nigerian Ambassador to Ethiopia and now a member of the House of Representatives where she represents Calabar/ Odukpani Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, Hon. Nkoyo Toyo has been in the forefront of civil society movement. The founder of Gender and Development Action-GADA, Nkoyo is a veteran in gender advocacy and issues pertaining to governance. In this interview, she speaks on the attainment of the much desired 35% affirmative action, reveals why the cost of governance is expensive in Nigeria and also urges women to take advantage of laws provided for their protection. Enjoy!

Nice job if you can get it. No wonder the Nigerian Lawmaker fights tooth and nail to stay on the gravy train. It is a known fact that Nigerian Lawmakers are the highest paid in world.

This country today is awash with ill-feelings. The land crawls with bad faith. Anguish and bitterness compete for space, and our vision is blurred by bad faith in high places.

It was a languid Sunday; one of those days that seemed to stretch and I was at a loose end. So I decided to spend some quality time with a mentor. Only he had a prior appointment and wouldn’t be home. He then asked me if I could join him and his ‘date’ at Freedom Park for 6pm.

ACCORDING to elder statesman, Alhaji Yusuf Maitama Sule, who was once our Permanent Representative at the United Nations, the current Northern leadership has failed woefully because it has neglected the legacy of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the late Sardauna and Premier of Northern Nigeria.

From the time when Independence (with democracy) was joyfully handed over to Nigeria and Nigerians on a golden plate by the British colonial masters and to the period when the military rulers under General Abdulsalami Abubakar repackaged democracy in the 1999 Constitution, Nigeria and its people have witnessed many changes in social, economic and political spheres.

I once wrote that I was yet to see serious efforts to change our London Olympics poor performance to a medal-winning one at the Rio Games in three years time.

WITH the virtual collapse of the African welfare system, it was thought that the pension scheme would cater for the welfare needs of the worker at old age.

HURRAY! I say it again: hurray!! The Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria have announced the elimination of Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, the religious sect that put Nigeria on the prime spot of terrorism map of the world.

LAST week, former President, Olusegun Obasanjo was keynote speaker at the fourth annual Ibadan Sustainable Development Summit, organised by the University of Ibadan. Against the backdrop of heightening political tension in the country, he surveyed the landscape and delivered what the French call a coup-de-poing, against the “younger” generation of political leaders, especially those who emerged as the crop of leaders from 1999.