One of the most concerning subjects in Nigeria today is the renewed call for the liberalization of access to the ownership of guns, in the face of the worsening state of insecurity in the country. This is not the. first time such a call would be made. With insecurity ravaging Nigeria in the last two decades in the form of banditry, terrorism, kidnapping, sectarian violence, ethnic strife and religious conflicts resulting in an orgy of killings, and destruction of property, the displacement of persons, and a persistently apparent inability of…
Tag: Reuben Abati
Nigeria’s delegation at COP 28 in Dubai, by Reuben Abati
The biggest story in Nigeria at the moment is the size of Nigeria’s delegation to the Conference of Parties of the United Nations Summit on Climate Change, otherwise known as COP 28. In simple terms, the objective of the Conference of Parties is to secure multilateral, bilateral agreements on the consensus by a panel of international, intergovernmental, climate change scientists (IPCC) that for our world to be save, global temperatures must be kept at a level not above 1.5C, as adopted in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, beyond which the…
Lessons From The Supreme Court ,by Reuben Abati
On Thursday, October 26, the Supreme Court of Nigeria gave its judgment in the appeals by Waziri Atiku Abubakar and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and Mr. Peter Obi and the Labour Party (LP) challenging the September 6 judgment of the Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) which affirmed Tinubu’s victory in the February 25 Presidential election. The appellants sued on the common ground that the lower court erred in law in its rulings on Tinubu’s failure to obtain 25% of the total votes cast in the Federal Capital Territory and…
Taking Odia Seriously: Honour to the poet, by Reuben Abati
Last Thursday, I was invited to review a book on Odia Ofeimun, one of Africa’s leading poets and public intellectuals, a committed, “empathetic scholar” as Professor Tunji Olaopa describes him elsewhere. Our own Odia is not a man to be disappointed, he is our “Baba”, our ‘Owalen” as many of his brothers from his Iruekpen clan or Esan West kingdom of Edo State call him. But Lagos, the subject of Ofeimun’s anthology: “Lagos Of the Poets” can be often multi-dimensionally treacherous, the product of the chaos that is built into…
Tinubu’s Ministers And Nigeria’s Dilemma,By Reuben Abati
Yesterday, 45 Ministers took the oath of office as Ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria pursuant to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu exercising executive powers as granted under Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution, and in line with Section 147(3). These Ministers of the “Restored Hope Agenda”, we are told have a mandate to deliver Tinubu’s eight-point agenda as stated in his election manifesto to wit: national security, economy, agriculture, power, oil and gas, transportation, education, and healthcare, with special emphasis on economy and security. What immediately stands out about…
Asari Dokubo, Tinubu and oil theft, by Reuben Abati
Different dance forms in the world Asari Dokubo, the self-styled Niger Delta activist and revolutionary who came into prominence during the struggle for self-determination in the Niger Delta, finally got the attention that he may have been looking for. He came into prominence in the 2000s as an activist until the Umaru Yar’Adua administration launched an amnesty programme and the embattled militants were later allowed to have a look at what is “in the pipelines of Abuja”, turning former warlords of the creeks into overnight billionaires and contractors. He was…
Fuel Subsidy And The God of Jonathan By Reuben Abati
One of the first things that had been cited as evidence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu showing courage and wisdom and hitting the ground running as the 16th President of Nigeria, has been his announcement that “fuel subsidy is gone”. In his inaugural speech on May 29, 2023, he did not state how but within 24 hours, his rather speculative declaration was given effect. Oil marketers and managers at fuel stations adjusted their operations, shifting prices per litre of petrol upwards. By the following day, the NNPC Limited, the country’s…
Tales the country told me: Hilda Baci and Seun Kuti, by Reuben Abati
Two major events dominated the headlines in the weekend that just passed in Nigeria: the heroism, determination and the example of Ms. Hilda Effiong Bassey, known as Hilda Baci for short, and the sordid drama of Seun Kuti, son of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, the eternal music icon, pushing, slapping and assaulting a policeman in uniform. Both subjects deserve commentary. But let’s start on a positive note, represented by Hilda Effiong Bassey, the Nigerian food entrepreneur, or chef, 27, who made up her mind that she wanted to get into the Guinness…
2023 Elections and the Danger of Violence,by Reuben Abati
In Africa, this year, there would be a total of more than 10 general elections in countries across the continent, particularly Sierra Leone in June, Sudan in July, Zimbabwe in July, Liberia in October, Gabon in October, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in December but Nigeria’s general election, the seventh in the cycle since the country’ return to civilian rule in 1999 is the bellwether election, given Nigeria’s leadership position in the continent, the country’s population which grants it many automatic advantages from market to political leverage, and that makes…
INEC, CBN And The Weekend of Extensions ,By Reuben Abati
Over the weekend, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) decided to extend the deadline for the collection of Permanent Voters Cards (popularly known as PVCs) by an additional week. The PVC collection that was scheduled to end on January 29, was extended till February 5, according to a statement by the INEC National Commissioner in charge of Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye. INEC further extended collection hours by an additional two hours, from 9 am till 5 pm including Saturdays and Sundays. It was the second time within a…