Africa: New scramble by forces of insecurity
Africa is witnessing a scramble for control, but this time the contestants are not colonial powers planting flags. They are terrorist organisations, criminal syndicates, traffickers, mercenaries, kidnappers, and armed groups exploiting Africa’s weaknesses. The result is a continent where insecurity is becoming an alternative system of power. The warning from US Africa Command (AFRICOM) should […]
Proposed fuel tax for infrastructure
Nigerians are outraged at the prospect of an additional tax burden following the Federal Government’s announcement that it will soon start implementing a five per cent tax on fossil fuels for roads and bridges construction and maintenance. The tax is built into the Nigerian Tax Administration Act, NTAA, which President Bola Tinubu recently signed into […]
As Gov. Fubara resumes today
Over the weekend, Administrator of Rivers State, retired Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas, started wrapping up his controversial assignment. This was a clear indication that the six-month suspension clamped on Governor Siminalayi Fubara and all democratic structures in the State would not be extended. The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, issued […]
Protecting our domestic refiners
The subtle war of interests between domestic refiners of petroleum products and their counterparts who import same is normal in a liberalised economy like ours. The letters and spirit of the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, 2021 intend that both should exist side by side, and this has ensured adequate, reliable and sustainable petroleum products availability, […]
Developing a reliable social register
The vexed issue of evolving a professionally designed and operated National Social Register, NSR, to help the most vulnerable elements of our society came up once again at a stakeholder forum in Lagos last week under the theme: “Advancing Social Protection Through the National Social Register, NSR”. At the event, the National Coordinator of the […]
Getting serious about basic education
The United Nations International Children’s Education Fund, UNICEF’s, warning is clear: every child has the right to education, but Nigeria is failing to uphold this most basic of rights. With one in every five out-of-school children in the world found in Nigeria, the crisis has reached a breaking point. Indeed, Nigeria holds the dubious “world […]
