RECENTLY, faced with escalating violence across Nigeria, the president, Bola Tinubu, reportedly agreed with state governors to establish state police. The news excited those calling for state police in Nigeria. But the agitation for state police is misguided; it is based on shallow reasoning, not on a rational, hard-nosed analysis of the potential consequences.  To […]

BOLA Tinubu, Nigeria’s self-regarding president, says he deserves an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records for his economic reforms. Speaking at the 10th German-Nigerian Business Forum in November last year, Tinubu said: “To me, if you didn’t mention me in the Guinness Book of Records, I would find a way to insert myself because […]

ATIKU Abubakar, former vice president, made his sixth attempt to become Nigeria’s president last year, 30 years after his first foray into presidential politics in 1993. He failed. However, God sparing his life, Atiku wants to make his seventh attempt in 2027, aged 80. Leaving aside the age for the moment, what does Atiku think will […]

The controversies over the Federal Government’s plans to relocate some departments of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and the headquarters of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, from Abuja to Lagos are yet another proof that Nigeria is deeply divided. The country that the British colonialists cobbled together from several ancient kingdoms and […]

OLA Olukoyede, the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, recently appointed by Nigeria’s new president, Bola Tinubu, is saying the right things and making the right noises about fighting corruption in Nigeria. Recently, he struck a chord with me when he called for unexplained wealth legislation in Nigeria. Unexplained wealth laws are the […]

Nigerians, it seems, have moved on from the political events of 2023. Some are already talking about, others planning for, 2027. But the thoughtful and perceptive will not easily forget 2023. For the events of that year will have far-reaching consequences that could unsettle Nigeria for decades. As someone who is heavily invested in Nigeria’s political […]

Professor Wole Soyinka recently said that he would not assess the performance of the Bola Tinubu administration until after its first year in office. His reason? Most presidents “don’t start from ground zero. They often start lower than ground zero and they have to make up.” Professor Soyinka said this had always been his principle. […]

A few years ago, I wrote a piece titled “Lord, give Nigeria bold and incorruptible judges” (Vanguard, April 25, 2019). That was when state security agents invaded the homes of some judges and seized bags full of foreign currencies, and an incumbent Chief Justice of Nigeria was sacked, arrested and arraigned before the Code of Conduct Tribunal […]

I have strong affinities with the two states currently embroiled in political crises in Nigeria. One, Ondo, is my state of origin. The other, Rivers, is where I did my national youth service decades ago and for which I have undiminished affection. Sadly, while the citizens of both states are decent people, their political leaders are charlatans. […]

But leaving aside Nigeria’s mushrooming presence, what pledges did Tinubu’s government make at COP28?