Public Affairs Analyst

  “We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal. We can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts.   If we show a little tolerance and humility.   If we’re willing to stand in the other person’s shoes just for a moment.   Because here is the thing about life: There is no accounting for what fate will deal you.” –Joe Biden, 46th President of USA, in his inaugural speech on Wednesday, January 20, 2021. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were inaugurated as the president and vice president of the United States of America respectively last Wednesday, January 20, 2021. Biden as the 46th president and Kamala as the 49th Vice President of the USA. The inauguration took place against the backdrop of what turned out to be fake predictions by some Nigerian clerics that Biden would not win the presidency and that if he did, he would never be inaugurated as president and that Donald Trump would continue ...

  Travelling, they say, is part of education. I have travelled far and wide, outside and within Nigeria. Out of the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, I have been to all but four until last week. By the end of the week, out of the initial four, namely Borno, Yobe, Taraba and Kebbi states, I had the privilege of visiting Maiduguri, the Borno State capital from January 13–15, 2021. I was there on a study visit. By the time I left the town last Friday, it made a lasting impression on me. Borno is located in northeastern Nigeria and is one of the six states in that geopolitical zone. Others include Adamawa, Taraba, Yobe, Bauchi, and Gombe. The state was created in 1976 and was subdivided in 1991 when Yobe State was carved out of it. It was part of the old Kanem-Borno Empire and is predominantly made up of Kanuris and other tribes such as the Lapang, Babur/Bura, Marghi and Shuwa Arabs. It currently has 27 Local Government Areas. Some of the illustrious people who came from B...

  Introduction Having National Identity Numbers (NIN) and linking it with Subscriber Identification Modules (SIM) is a welcome development. According to the Nigerian Communication Commission, “Apart from enhancing our general safety, this will help in such vital exercises like National Budgeting, Policy Planning, Social Intervention programmes and many more.” As desirable as this exercise is, is the NCC and National Identity Management Commission going about it the right way? Is the exercise enhancing or impeding public health, particularly against the background of the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic? Are there no better ways to handle this national assignment? Order from above Recall that on December 15, 2020, the Federal Government declared that after December 30, 2020, all SIMs that were not registered with valid NINs on the network of telecommunications companies would be blocked. The press release signed by the Director Public Affairs of Nigeria Communications Commissi...

  On Wednesday, January 6, 2021, I began my own TV show on Independent Television, Abuja. The programme themed, Development Focus with Jide Ojo, is scheduled to hold every mid-week from 7 – 9:30am. On the maiden edition, I hosted two gentlemen, a lawyer and human rights activist, Mike Utsaha and the Regional Director of Chartered Institute of Leadership and Governance (USA), Nigerian Chapter, Dr. Segun Ojarotade. On the programme, we analysed developmental projections for Nigeria in 2021. My forecast for Nigeria this year is that this may actually be a tougher year than the preceding 2020. Recall that the country ended last year by slipping into economic recession, the worst in over 30 years and second time in five years. While Nigeria’s economic team members such as the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed and the Central Bank of Nigeria governor, Godwin Emefiele, expressed optimism that Nigeria will be out of recession sooner than later, not many...

  “As a government, we are committed to actively engaging with the creative energies of our young people. In this regard, we will partner the legislature to develop an enabling environment to turn their passions into ideas that can be supported, groomed and scaled across regions. This will create vast opportunities in fintech, agriculture, business process startups and in the entertainment industry.”   – President Muhammadu Buhari during his 2021 New Year broadcast It’s another new year and people are wont to making New Year resolutions. If 2021 were to be a child, what name would you have christened it? I heard that on Boss 95.5 FM on Tuesday morning. That got me thinking. After all, the United Nations celebrates many days in the year with different themes set for those days. Also, many Pentecostal churches prophetically name each year. For instance, a church may say 2021 is the church members’ ‘Year of Laughter’ or ‘Progress’ or ‘Abundance’. Furthermore, federal and stat...