Opinion

Religion is a lockstep, step-by-step, graded course on the spiral staircase of divine knowledge. Each rung on the staircase is as important as the other, and fulfils the necessary need, without which a piece would be missing in whole of the Divine learning or enlightenment equation By Els William Professor Wole Soyinka recently spoke out condemning the banning of the celebration of Aje Olokun, also known as Isese festival, in Ilorin, capital of Kwara state, North Central Nigeria. While condemning the action of the Emirate, headed by Emir Ibrahim Sulu Gambari, Soyinka asked, “Must we turn the turban of enlightenment into a crown of bigotry. And in a society whose very constitution that supposedly governs us all guarantee freedom of belief, association, and movement. Should r...

By Paul Adams, BBC Diplomatic Correspondent This was not a complete victory for South Africa, or the Palestinians. The ICJ did not order Israel to halt its military campaign - an implied recognition of Israel's right to self defence in the wake of the Hamas attacks on 7 October last year. But the UN's highest legal body has recognised that the situation in Gaza is catastrophic. Crucially, it said that situation was "at serious risk of deteriorating further" before the court delivers its final verdict on the charge of genocide, a process that could take years. As a result, it made several demands of Israel, broadly in line with most of the nine "provisional measures" demanded by South Africa. By large majorities the court's 17 judges ruled that Israel should do eve...

Who is the man who today sits atop the presidency of Nigeria? What is his name? Who are his parents? Who are his childhood friends? What was his childhood like? What primary school did he attend? Where did he attend secondary school? Or, the university? Is he a criminal? Is he a serial forger? On account of the above, can we trust him? Can he be trusted with the destinies of over 200 million Nigerians? Can the rest of the world trust him as the embodiment of Nigeria? Who is the man who today sits atop the presidency of Nigeria? What is his name? Who are his parents? Who are his childhood friends? What was his childhood like? What primary school did he attend? Where did he attend secondary school? Or, the university? Is he a criminal? Is he a serial forger? On account of the above, ...

Saying Dangote left his Kano mega-city with nothing and came to the Lagos mega-city to build “the biggest empire in the world”, the same narrative ascribed to the Igbo success in Lagos, is a talk-down on Dangote and all successful non-indigenes resident in Lagos. By Ochereome Nnanna The first story is about a young Nigerian 45 years ago, and you see the coincidence in the story, 45 years ago, a young Nigerian came to Lagos all the way from another mega-city, Kano, who saw the prosperity, and diversity of our country, who came with nothing but in 45 years has built the biggest empire in the world — Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Lagos State Ordinarily, this statement, which Governor Sanwo-Olu made amidst befitting accolades for Alhaji Aliko Dangote for finally delivering the worl...

By Ali Elias “We come, we go…” That’s the nature of life. Death or translation, just as birth, is as sure as the sunset or sunrise, for as long as the earth endures. But what really is death all about? In my younger days, growing up in the village, death was rare, not so often– but when it occurs, it brings out a grotesque picture of life. The mourning is usually heavy, the mood melancholic and scary. Scary, not of death or dying itself, since it’s always the elderly that dies, but scary because of the perceived thought that the ghost of the departed will be hovering around the village. The fear was always so strong that I could hardly sit at the end of the long bench which served as our chair in the village. I had to sandwich myself in between others. Of course, you dare not...