Public Affairs Analyst

On Tuesday, July 26, 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari commissioned the $1.46bn Abuja – Kaduna rail service which is Nigeria’s first-ever standard gauge rail track to go into operation. It happened to be a project inherited from previous administrations. For me, it underscores that government is a continuum and I look forward to completion of many other projects initiated by previous regimes. On the day of the inauguration, I was a guest on Politics Nationwide, a magazine programme of Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria where I discussed the import and importance of the resuscitation of Nigerian train services. Unknown to new generation of Nigerians, the railway services in Nigeria is over hundred years old. In fact, according to information garnered from the website of Nigerian Railway Corporation, the first rail line in the country was constructed from Lagos to Ibadan (193km) between 1898 and 1901. By 1964 the 640km Kano – Maiduguri rail line, then known as Bornu extension, wa...

What is preventive medicine? According to American College of Preventive Medicine, “It is a branch of medicine that focuses on the health of individuals, communities, and defined populations. Its goal is to protect, promote, and maintain health and well-being and to prevent disease, disability, and death.” There is a popular saying that prevention is better than cure and that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. In developed climes, this aspect of medicine is accorded high priority. Unfortunately, in Nigeria the emphasis seem to be on curative medicine. Preventive medicine or healthcare manifests in a wide range of areas. Experts say there are four layers of prevention which are Primal, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary. For decades, government at all levels in Nigeria has been giving free vaccination to children from 0 – 5 years against six "killer" diseases, namely diphtheria, polio, tetanus, tuberculosis, measles and whooping cough. Unfortunately, ma...

Nigeria for long has been plagued with primordial sentiments. Two of such are ethnic jingoism and religious bigotry. According to the World Factbook,”Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is composed of more than 250 ethnic groups; the most populous and politically influential are: Hausa and the Fulani 29 percent, Yoruba 21 percent, Igbo (Ibo) 18 percent, Ijaw 10 percent, Kanuri 4 percent, Ibibio 3.5 percent, and the   Tiv 2.5 per cent. Interestingly, each ethnic group lays claim to being superior to the other.   Hausas claim that their group is born to rule. The Igbos believes they are the Jews of Nigeria with superior intelligent quotient than all other ethnic groups. They cite their inventive prowess, educational excellence and humongous achievements in commerce and industry to buttress their point. The Yorubas too are not left behind. They claim to be the most sophisticated among the lot. They boasted that they are the most cultured, cultivated and civilised in Nige...

"On this International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking, I call on countries and communities to continue to improve the lives of everyone blighted by drug abuse by integrating security and public safety with a heightened focus on health, human rights, and sustainable development." — UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon By resolution 42/112 of 7 December 1987, the General Assembly decided to observe 26 June as the International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking as an expression of its determination to strengthen action and cooperation to achieve the goal of an international society free of drug abuse. The theme for this year was “Listen First!” As part of the commemoration for 2016, Radio Nigeria on 16 July 2016 hosted three guests on its audience participation network programme, “Radio Link” to discuss the challenge of illicit drug trafficking and abuse. The guests were the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcemen...

There is a near unanimity of opinion that Nigeria is at the brink of collapse. The country is widely believed to be sick and in urgent need of a lifeline. Some analysts are of the opinion that Nigeria has started to manifest all indicators of a failed state. Security and welfare of citizens are no longer guaranteed. About 30 of the 36 states are not able to pay their labour force as at when due. Private enterprises are closing down businesses or downsizing their workforce due to the very inclement operating environment. The workers unions are routinely embarking on industrial actions to press home demands for humane working conditions. Go to various embassies and see how Nigerians are queuing up in droves for visa interviews. They just want to leave the place of their birth in search of greener pasture. Anarchy looms! Before the June 23, 2016 Brexit referendum in the United Kingdom in which our colonial master decided by a narrow margin of 52 per cent to leave the European Union...

I am a culture icon. I love Nigerian culture and have been doing everything to promote it. I prefer our native attires to foreign ones, likewise is my bias for Nigerian cuisines, films, and music. Through the use of social media, I have been promoting my native Yoruba language by delving into my repertoire of our proverbs and translating them into English language for global audience.   I have visited many Nigerian tourist sites and written about the need to harness their potentials for national development.   More so, as we venture to diversify our economy into the non-oil sector. Some of the Nigerian tourist sites I have previously visited include the Obudu Cattle Ranch, Old Residency Museum, and Tinapa Business Resort all in Cross River State. I have also been to Gurara Waterfall and Zuma Rock in Niger State, Shere Hills and Jos Museum in Plateau State; Olumo Rock in Abeokuta and Awo Mausoleum in Ikenne in Ogun State, Kano Tie and Dye Pit and Aminu Kano Mambaya House...

The security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government – Section 14 (2) (b) of 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended. Globally, the greatest danger faced by many countries is not the much parroted economic recession but insecurity. Many hitherto safe havens are now faced with the monster of terrorism. Just last Monday, July 4, 2016, Saudi Arabia was hit by wave of terror attacks which claimed four lives. Not even Medina, one of the holiest sites in Islam – was spared.   Iraq, Syria, Turkey, Belgium, France, United States of America, Ukraine, Niger Republic, Cameroon, Chad, Mali and our dear Nigeria are some of the countries that have in recent past been faced with terror attacks. Indeed, I can say without equivocation that insecurity is one of the top three problems facing Nigeria at present. Since 2009, insurgency has been plaguing the country with about twenty thousands lives lost to the Boko Haram challenge alone. Al...

Since his emergence as the Senate President on June 9, 2015, Senator Bukola Saraki -   medical doctor, former aide to President Olusegun Obasanjo, two term governor of Kwara State, former chairman of Nigeria’s Governor’s Forum and two term Senator – have been in the eye of the storm. His emergence as Senate President allegedly irked his party, All Progressives Congress, leadership. The party executive had thrown its weight behind Senator Ahmed Lawan from Yobe State as the the preferred choice. However, using his political dexterity, the Kwara born political tactician decided to cut deal with senators from his former party, Peoples Democratic Party. He triumphed and was sworn in as Senate president and concomitantly as the chairman of the National Assembly.   As part of the deal, Senator Ike Ekweremadu from the opposing PDP was voted in as Deputy Senate President. APC leadership saw this as an affront, a sacrilege! PDP had ruled Nigeria for 16 years and in the four elect...

"The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda with its pledge to leave no one behind has a particular resonance for widows, who are among the most marginalised and isolated.” –United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon. June 23 of every year has been set aside by the United Nations as International Widow’s Day. This year’s theme is “Never Alone”.   The UN General Assembly declared 23 June 2011 as the first-ever International Widows’ Day to give special recognition to the situation of widows of all ages and across regions and cultures. According to the international organisation, “absent in statistics, unnoticed by researchers, neglected by national and local authorities and mostly overlooked by civil society organisations – the situation of widows is, in effect, invisible. Yet abuse of widows and their children constitutes one of the most serious violations of human rights and obstacles to development today. Millions of the world’s widows endure extreme poverty, ostracism, v...