Opinions

Nigeria has always had a talent for theatrical statecraft; the grand gesture abroad masking the slow collapse at home. But even by its own standards, Nigeria’s decision to deploy troops to the Republic of Benin in the name of “defending democracy” would be laughable if it were not so grotesque. A government that cannot secure […]

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) achieved something remarkable in Edo State: it conducted one primary election and produced two winners, two vote tallies, two returning officers and, judging by the arithmetic involved, perhaps two entirely separate realities. In one universe, Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama won comfortably with 27,154 votes. In another, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu triumphed magnificently […]

There are few sights more revealing than an African billionaire discovering that immigration law applies to him; and his money cannot purchase exemption from the very dysfunction the African continent has perfected into an administrative art form. Abdul Samad Rabiu, chairman of BUA Group and one of Africa’s richest industrialists, arrived in Cape Town expecting […]

My big brother and friend, Mr Tony Elumelu has every right to be angry. A lie was manufactured, amplified and flung recklessly into the digital marketplace by bloggers and social-media scavengers hunting for clicks, engagement and monetization. The false report alleging that he had divorced his wife was not journalism. It was gossip industrialized. It […]

There are few miracles in Nigerian politics, but Goodluck Jonathan once performed one. In 2015, after losing a fiercely contested election, he conceded defeat peacefully and handed over power without dragging the republic through the familiar swamp of judicial acrobatics, military whispers, and elite sabotage. In a political culture where incumbents often cling to office […]

Nigeria’s political parties have perfected a quiet, devastating art: turning democracy into a luxury commodity. The latest example arrived last week when the African Democratic Congress (ADC) released its timetable for the 2026 primaries; and with it, a price list that reads less like an invitation to public service and more like an auction sale […]

In the long catalogue of reputational hazards confronting Nigeria, few are as corrosive, or as stubborn as the perception that it is a country unusually tolerant of fraud. That caricature, often exaggerated and sometimes unfair, has nevertheless proved remarkably durable. It is reinforced not only by the activities of petty scammers operating in the digital […]

Nigeria’s president, Bola Tinubu, has spent a better part of his time doing what his predecessors often did in private but rarely admitted in public: phoning foreign leaders in search of weapons, training and political cover. His latest call was to Emmanuel Macron. The French president, fresh from being chased out of Mali, Burkina Faso […]

Once upon a time, elections in Nigeria were fought in town halls, party secretariats, and the noisy arenas of Abuja and Lagos where political legitimacy was earned through persuasion, coalition building, and the unpredictable alchemy of Nigerian democracy. Today, the political class has discovered a more glamorous battlefield and a grotesque new theatre has emerged: […]

In most governments, the departure of a senior minister is a moment for dignity: a handshake, a statement, perhaps even a photograph of forced smiles. In Nigeria, it has become an exercise in improvisational theatre. The exit of Wale Edun; finance minister, long-time confidant of President Bola Tinubu, and one of the last surviving members […]

Wale Edun’s recent fall from grace is more than a cabinet reshuffle; it is a parable about power, loyalty, and the increasingly narrow political space around President Bola Tinubu as Nigeria heads toward the 2027 elections. In President Tinubu’s court, loyalty is rarely a permanent condition. It is a currency to be spent, replenished, and […]

The Federal Government’s plan to reintegrate nearly 800 individuals described as “repentant terrorists” into Nigerian communities demands far more scrutiny than it has received. The proposal is presented as a gesture of reconciliation, a step toward healing, a humane alternative to endless conflict. But the country has been down this road before, and the results […]