Opinion

At the 2-day presidential retreat that preceded the inauguration of new ministers, President Muhammadu Buhari apprised the appointees on the enormity of the tasks ahead.

Four centuries ago, the first 20 documented African slaves arrived on the shores of Virginia. In the years that followed, millions more were shipped in dehumanizing conditions across the ocean and enslaved. Slavery had, of course, existed before. But this indicated the beginning of a mechanized trade that saw human beings reduced to property on an unprecedented scale.

President Muhammadu Buhari has called for the abolition of slavery in all modern forms in a opinion article he published in The Washington Post to mark the International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition.

Today marks another milestone in the history of my second term in Office, after Nigerians overwhelmingly voted the All Progressives Congress during the 2019 general elections. The outcome of the election was a clear testimony of the strong confidence of our people in this Administration, and we must not let them down.

Church marketers are purpose-driven, but their purpose is neither Christ nor the gospel.

The satanic Boko Haram sect was officially banned in Nigeria by the federal government and declared a terrorist network in June 2013. The office of the Attorney-General of the Federation has since successfully prosecuted many of the members of the sect for sundry offences under the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act.

First, it was laughable, now it gets progressively pitiable, to see and hear efforts by presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the last general elections, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, appeal to the emotions of Nigerians, particularly members of the judiciary, perchance it would influence decision in the ongoing legal tussle over the result of the presidential poll.

The incessant clashes between the police and adherents of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria, known as Shi’ites, have raised fears that another conflict is about to get out of hand in the country.

Since the issue is of momentous concern to all well-meaning and all right-thinking Nigerians, it must be of great concern to you, and collective thinking and dialoguing is the best way of finding an appropriate and adequate solution to the problem.

Somehow and, understandably, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, the national chair of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), has become an issue in the ever-increasing conversations around leadership and reforms in our party.

The Supreme Court of Nigeria delivered the final judgment on Friday, July 5, in the matter of the September 22 Gubernatorial election, and the September 27 re-run in Osun State.

If the SEC goes ahead with this action it will be in clear violation of the interim injunction obtained by Oando’s principals Adewale Tinubu, the Group Chief Executive and Omamofe Boyo, the Deputy Group Chief Executive which restrains SEC, its servants and agents from directing or requesting any agency of the Government to act upon its decisions contained in its letter of 31st May pending the hearing.

There must be something about political power that makes otherwise good men to act contrary to expectations once in power. And it can be very dispiriting. Let me mention immediately that I do not know Governor Emeka Ihedioha from Adam.

The above is an excerpt from one of many brilliant works of poetry by the late American writer and poet, Maya Angelou. In the expository tome, “ALL GOD’S CHILDREN NEED TRAVELLING SHOES”, Angelou reminds us all about the attribute of the place a man calls home.

All Praise is due to GOD Almighty Who spared our lives to be present at this great occasion. We give thanks also that the democratic process has been further entrenched and strengthened.

The closure of media houses was a common phenomenon under the defunct military dictatorship in Nigeria. Since the restoration of civil rule 20 years ago, the dangerous trend has continued under succesive regimes either through military invasion of media houses or seizure of copies of newspapers.

There are three arms of government, no doubt: the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. They are very pivotal to sustainability of any democracy. Other institutions of democracy include the Election Management Bodies such as the Independent National Electoral Commission and State Independent Electoral Commission, Civil Society Organisations, the media and the political parties. Members of political parties are called politicians.

There is the increasing wave of suicide across the country; there is decaying standard of education and so many other ways a first lady could bring her competences to bear on the development of a nation at a non-governmental level. Such a legacy of selfless service to fatherland without playing to the gallery or publicly detracting from her husband’s efforts, no matter how futile it seems to be, is what Mrs Aisha Buhari should consider for the next four years.