Last week, President Goodluck Jonathan made his way to Eagle Square in Abuja; and, surrounded by a large crowd of cheering supporters, firmly and formally declared his intention to run for a second term in 2015.

By Donu Kogbara On Tuesday, the Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, Air   Marshal Alex Badeh, announced that he accepted full responsibility for the Nigerian Army’s failure to effectively deal with Boko Haram insurgents in the North East. Speaking to State House correspondents in Abuja, Badeh – whose Adamawa State hometown has been overrun by rampaging […]

Last week, I congratulated President Goodluck Jonathan for managing the Ebola problem well; but I also expressed disappointment in his overall performance and said that I used to support him because he is a fellow Niger Deltan but now believe that it’s wrong to base electoral choices on ethnic or regional considerations.

By Donu Kogbara LAST week, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari, the former military Head of State, formally declared his interest in replacing President Goodluck Jonathan. This declaration surprised nobody, given that Buhari has been doggedly trying to re-possess the Number One slot for many years. And, until recently, I had reservations about his refusal to abandon this […]

SOMEONE just sent me a fascinating article. Written by a US-based Zambian called Field Ruwe in January 2012, it is based on a conversation he had with a White man he met on a plane on New Year’s Eve, 2011.

Mr Imeh Usuah, a heroically honest taxi driver who returned N18 million that was left in his cab by a foreigner; Mr Onuh Isaac Michael, the diligent Chief Steward at the Presidential Villa, who has served nine Heads of State; Corporal Solomon Dauda, a dancing Abuja traffic warden who approaches his duties with a cheerful dedication that puts smiles on the faces of the motorists he entertains; and Mr Taiwo Akinkunmi, an elderly gent who designed our flag.

Last week, I complained about justice being delayed. I was referring to the fact that the Federal Government and Ministry of Petroleum had not even started to implement a 3 year-old United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) report.

EARLIER on this week, the Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, released a statement about Ebola Virus Disease, EVD, in Nigeria.

The Minister said that, as of Wednesday, the total number of confirmed cases of EVD in Nigeria was 19 (15 in Lagos, four in Port Harcourt) and that the total number of deaths was seven (five in Lagos, two in Port Harcourt).

Last week, I commented on Chief Tom Ikimi, the veteran politician who started off with the PDP, then cross-carpeted to a rival party that eventually became the APC…and then recently decided to ditch the APC to re-join the PDP.

My dear friends, Nasir and Hadiza El-Rufai, have lost two children in three years. First (in 2011), their beautiful daughter, Yasmin, passed away after suffering a seizure in the bathroom of her residence in London, where she was studying. Then (last month), their darling son, Hamza, died in a car accident in Abuja.