Captain Bode Olubiyi was my Uncle. He died on the 20th of April 2012. He had been ill for three years. In the stretch of his career as an airline pilot, he had flown for most of the major airlines in Nigeria: Nigerian Airways, Okada Air, Chachangi Airways, Virgin Airways etc. His career spanned over thirty years in flying Nigerians on Nigerian planes. I was of the opinion that he had impeccable instincts where his job was concerned.

The crash of the DANA Air aircraft in Iju, a Lagos suburb, no doubt has dealt a heavy blow on the nation’s aviation industry. This is not just because of the crash itself but also because of the hasty actions so far taken by government.

EDO State was recently in the forefront of national news as a result of several fatal incidents which occurred in the State.

DEMOCRACY ensures peaceful transfer of power because it recognises the people as the ultimate repository of power. And as such, power is derived solely from the will of the people. Democracy does not guarantee the election of good leaders. However, it empowers the people to peacefully remove bad and/or discredited leaders.

On Thursday, June 7, President Goodluck Jonathan flagged off a mass book distribution initiative aimed at returning the country to the days of qualitative learning with a view to building a critical foundation for the general development of the nation.

IT was a conversation we had several times. If he had to choose between Youth Development and Sports, what would it be? That was a question Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the Minister of Sports who until few weeks ago was also in charge of the Youth beat, found difficult to answer. And his dilemma was understandable.

EVEN though the 2015 general elections are not around the corner, the polity is already being overheated by the debate over the zone that would produce Nigeria’s next president.

ON February 14, 2012 the governor of Bayelsa State, Seriake Dickson exhibiting his love, zeal and passion for effective and functional education delivery pronounced a policy of free education for all, and went further to declare a state of emergency in the sector.

THE current security challenges facing the country, especially in the North remind Nigerians, most especially Ndigbo of the predicament and frustrations faced by their people at the peak of kidnapping in the South East zone. Worst hit by the menace then was Abia State with its commercial city, Aba, overtaken by the dare devil kidnappers. Residents of the city fled en masse and the once bubbling and ever-busy city became deserted.

IN two years time, the office of the Governor of Anambra State will be vacant. By then Governor Peter Obi, now in his second term in office, would have spent eight years.