WAR OF THE WORDS
Ah… sometimes I wistfully ache for the good old days when the media channels for this political war was limited to a predictable daily cycle of newspapers, television and radio. Nowadays the news cycle is twenty-hours and there is, of course, social media and the Internet. The medium might have changed, but the message remains…
THE SUBSISTENCE TRAP
Well… decades on, the hustle is real. Upon reflection, the reference to ‘a Neanderthal appreciation of food and shelter,’ was my own way of describing the lowest rungs of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. With over 90 million Nigerians wallowing in systemic and multi-dimensional poverty, most Nigerians will never climb up that ladder to the point…
THE POLICEMAN’S DILEMMA
Against the increasing call for a comprehensive reform of the Nigeria Police Force, this piece is eerily prescient and relevant. I think that like most national institutions nothing has really changed for the better with our police force in the 37 years this piece was written. Although I now laugh at my youthful earnestness and…
SENTINELS AT WAR
Against the backdrop of the ongoing #EndSars campaign in the public protests against police brutality, the revolutionary impact of Social Media is in sharp contrast to my reality as a young journalist 37 years ago. All I can say is thank God for the Internet and Social Media. The new reality for good, bad and…
PATRIOTISM BY FORCE
This piece along with some others to be published was written during the administration of the then General Buhari. A major policy initiative of his regime was the storied War Against Indiscipline. Upon reflection I now understand why this adaptive challenge could only be framed as a militaristic technical solution akin to warfare. In the…
BUILDING A NIGERIAN NATION
Well, there it is. The cogent submission and guidelines for evolving from a country to a nation in less than 500 words. Now understand that when this was written 36 years ago 75% of Nigerians living today had not been born. Fast forward to present times, we are still more country than the nation and…
WHEN PIGS FLY
When pigs fly as a metaphor for a probable Nigerian utopia is one of my favourite piece. As I read it again, I could feel the same rush of emotions come flooding in. As a young man I believed that a Nigerian pig could fly, now I understand that pigs typically don’t fly Enjoy! Although…
DIVIDED WE STAND?
‘To keep Nigeria one is a task that MUST be done!’ I still remember this ubiquitous radio PSA issued by the Military authorities during the turbulence of the civil war between 1966 to January 1970. This and a handful of memorable jingles are etched in the subconscious minds of a generation of Lagosians physically removed…
THEATRE OF THE ABSURD, II
But all hope is not lost for Nigeria, despite the foreboding. We can if we are prepared to make sacrifices, redeem – somewhat – and refurbish our sullied image. All our most bizarre quirks can actually be harnessed and put to work for us, instead of against us. And so, instead of trying to swim…
THEATRE OF THE ABSURD, I
Hmmmmmmm… Nigeria and absurdity! What can I possibly say? My anguished bemusement and anger as a young man have since given way to a jaded acceptance of the reality of Nigeria as it is..not as it ought to be. Nigeria is beyond satire. Even Franz Kafka would strain to write about Nigeria. This two-part series…