One striking feature of a capital city in any developed country is cleanliness. Most of the capital cities are very clean and this announces to visitors that they are in a capital city. No heap of refuse, no abandoned broken down vehicles, no abandoned bloated dead bodies on the road and no suicide beggars competing with moving vehicles and almost threatening to harm a motorist who fails to give out alms.

I was invited to deliver the keynote address at this year’s special event on “Human Rights, Sexuality and the Law”, an annual symposium organized to promote awareness on issues relating to the plight of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Intersex (LGBTQI) Community in Nigeria. When this was announced on social media by the organizers, The Initiative For Equal Rights (TIERS) and @YNaija, hell practically broke loose within the LGBTQI community.

BUCCANEERING in governance of Nigeria at different times has constituted a major draw back to the economic development of the country. Painfully organised slaughter by raiders of the National treasury against the nation and her people has pushed the national economy crashing to the ground, with the Nigerian degraded on daily.

On the political implications of President Muhammadu Buhari extending his medical/holiday period abroad, it keeps the nation on ethno-religious tenterhooks,dangerous precipice, uncomfortable tension, anxiety and a dark pall on government and governance.

The story of Onyebuchi Emecheta whom the world knew as Buchi, is at the same time that of a personal and communal triumph; the triumph of the personal will and communal efforts over the vicissitudes of life.

CHINESE foreign minister Mr. Wang Yi’s visit to Nigeria in conclusion of his highly successful five – nation’s African tour, reaffirmed the core principles of Nigeria – China bilateral relations. In a joint communiqué signed by the visiting Chinese foreign minister, Mr. Wang Yi and his Nigerian counterpart, Mr. Geoffrey Onyema, they both vowed a commitment that the two countries would strengthen “the longstanding friendship and co-operation between them to the benefit of their peoples”, and further reaffirmed “their respect for each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity”.

While the Catholic Church and other Christian groups were praying for a country free of corruption and a country out of distress, Muhammadu Buhari came.

Nigeria’s economic outlook is gloomy. Her over dependence on crude oil as the only veritable source of foreign exchange earnings has become an albatross due to vandalisation of crude oil pipelines by militants in the Niger Delta region. This has made it impossible for the nation to meet its projected 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil production, thereby losing big money.

Right from its inception, hardly any week has gone by without one form of destructive criticism or malicious attack on the Governor Ifeanyi Okowa led administration in Delta State appearing on print or social media. Some rather unfortunate developments of the last few weeks are the latest installment in this trend and have only served to expose the opposition in Delta as one utterly lacking in credibility.

Since his appointment over two years ago, this administrative colossus has embarked on projects that are not only visible but also beneficial to generations yet unborn.