Public Affairs Analyst

It was a rainbow coalition of academic juggernauts. They came from private and public universities. Vice chancellors, professors, doctors as well as those who have their PhDs in view, all of them gathered to brainstorm on the recently held Nigeria’s 2015 general elections. The two day forum held in Abuja on July 27 and 28, 2015 was organised by The Electoral Institute arm of the Independent National Electoral Commission.   The event was tagged “National Conference on The 2015 General Elections in Nigeria: The Real Issues.”   In attendance at the opening ceremony were the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais, the chairman of the Board of Electoral Institute, Ambassador Lawrence Nwuruku, the Director General of TEI, Prof. Abubakar Momoh, some national commissioners of INEC, Directors in the electoral commission, members of the donor community, and INEC partners. Prof. Adele Jinadu gave a keynote address. I was there too, even though I felt l...

Oftentimes, we blame our country’s underdevelopment on bad leadership. We point accusing fingers at the political elite, particularly the elected public office holders, blaming them for the country’s woes. In the development work that I have been involved for close to two decades, the buzz words after the elections are on citizens’ engagement to hold government to account. We always mount pressure on elected representatives at both the legislative and executive arms of government to deliver on their campaign promises. We classify such pledges made during the electioneering period as social contract between the government and the citizens which must be fulfilled. I duly and truly subscribe to the mobilisation of the citizens to demand and indeed fight for their rights and even privileges. However, the citizenry, I dare say, cannot solely be on the demand side of good governance. They have to also be on the supply side. How do I mean? For me, while it is a good and noble thing to dema...

“One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain”    –Bob Marley I love good music. If there is one thing I am addicted to, it is soulful, joyful noises. I listen to all genres of music from the traditional to the contemporary. I have a stockpile of downloaded music on my phones and personal computers. I have also invested a small fortune buying musical cassettes and compact discs. They range from indigenous juju, fuji, apala, Afro-beat, highlife, and sakara to the contemporary hip-hop, pop, jazz, and rap. I am also in love with country music and gospel. As rightly observed by Taylor Swift, “People haven’t always been there for me but music always has.” What do I love in music? I love the inspiration, the idioms, the creativity, the originality and the relaxation that good music offers. ADVERTISEMENT Among my Nigerian music icons are Sir Victor Abimbola Olaiya, I.K. Dairo, Adeolu Akinsanya (Baba Eto), Tunji Oyelana, Chief Commander Ebenezer Obey, King...

The death that will kill a man begins as an appetite. – Nigerian proverb Since 1987, June 26 of every year is observed as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. The General Assembly of the United Nations “recognised that despite continued and increased efforts by the international community, the world drug problem continues to constitute a serious threat to public health, the safety and well-being of humanity, young people in particular, and the national security and sovereignty of states, and that it undermines socio-economic and political stability and sustainable development.” This year’s theme is “Lets Develop — Our Lives — Our Communities — Our Identities — Without Drugs.” According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes, “Drug trafficking is a global illicit trade involving the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws.” While the United Nations in 1997 established UNODC to ...

On the eve of the expiration of the tenure of Prof. Attahiru Jega on June 30, 2015, I granted an interview to RayPower 100.5 FM on the tenure of the cerebral political scientist as the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission. In the discourse which was aired last Wednesday, I analysed his achievements, challenges and pointed the way forward for the electoral management body. In fact, Jega and his team could be said to have come, seen and conquered. Among the unprecedented things Jega’s tenure did at INEC are the many reforms he initiated. Among the innovations brought to bear on the country’s electoral process are the introduction of the chip-embedded Permanent Voter Card and smart card reader. These two increased the integrity quotient of Nigeria’s electoral process. Jega conducted a wholesale voter registration in January/February 2011 and thereafter Continuous Voter Registration. I recall that after the 2011 elections, INEC under Jega went through a lot of restr...

In an article in this column on Wednesday, June 18, 2014, entitled, “Spot the difference between PDP and APC”, I stated inter alia that “I have asked myself if there is truly a difference between the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party. As far as I can see, the difference between the two is that between six and half-a-dozen. Perhaps, the difference lies in nomenclature. Yes, the wordings of their party manifestoes may be different but in terms of governance, it will seem they are copying from the same textbook.” Even though in that piece my primary focus was the appraisal of the party’s congresses and national convention of Friday, June 13, 2014 where forced “consensus” option led to the emergence of Chief John Odigie-Oyegun as the national chairman of the party; since that time a lot of water has passed under the proverbial bridge. The APC has since moved from being the most vibrant and vociferous opposition party to becoming the ruling party at the federal and...

On June 22 and 23, 2015, the Political Parties Leadership and Policy Development Centre (PPLDC) of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru in Plateau State   organized a stakeholders conference on 2015 elections with a theme “Political Parties and the 2015 Elections: Lessons Learned and Way Forward.” The conference was held with the support from United Nations Development Programme, Democratic Governance for Development II.     Present at the two day dialogue which was held in Abuja were party chairmen and their secretaries, academics and members of the civil society.   I have the honor of participating as one of the panelists that discussed the paper presented by Professor Abubakar Momoh, the Director General of The Electoral Institute of the Independent National Electoral Commission. The session was chaired by the renowned academic, Professor Etannibi Alemika of the University of Jos. At the colloquium, the chairman of the Inter Pa...