WHO would have thought that a simple tax report would shatter one of Nigeria’s most enduring prejudices? Yet here we are, staring at figures that tell a story quite different from the usual narratives peddled in beer parlors and social media echo chambers. For decades, we’ve lived with tired stereotypes: the Hausa gateman in every Nollywood movie, the Calabar domestic help, and most persistently, the notion that the North is somehow a parasitic region feeding off the South’s prosperity. Trust Nigerians to cling to these prejudices with the tenacity of a tick on a dog’s ear. Let’s even talk about…
Author: Jonathan Nda-Isaiah
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ANOTHER day, another tanker explosion, another harvest of death. The latest tragedy at Dikko Junction, Niger State, which claimed 88 lives, is just another statistic in an endless cycle of avoidable deaths that has become a national embarrassment. Let’s put this in perspective. In just five months, 265 Nigerians have been roasted alive in tanker explosions. Not from Boko Haram, not from bandits, but from their own conscious decision to risk their lives for a few liters of fuel. If this isn’t madness, I don’t know what is. President Bola Tinubu’s response – setting up a high-powered committee – follows…
SOMETHING is deeply troubling about how casually Nigerians disregard the rule of law. From our airports to our streets, there’s a growing culture of “I’ll do as I please” that should alarm anyone who cares about our collective future. Consider the recent chaos at a Nigerian airport where one passenger effectively held 89 others hostage because she couldn’t have her way. The scene that unfolded on that Ibom Air flight wasn’t just about delayed luggage – it was a perfect illustration of how entitled some Nigerians feel about breaking rules that don’t suit their convenience. To be sure, anyone who…
WHEN news filtered in that the Nigeria Football Federation had appointed Eric Chelle as the Super Eagles coach, I thought some mischief makers were at it again on social media. An African coach for the Super Eagles? Surely, this must be fake news. But as reality set in, so did the gravity of this unprecedented decision. Let’s call a spade a spade – this appointment is either going to be a masterstroke or a catastrophic failure. There’s no middle ground. Nigeria, a football powerhouse that has produced legends like Jay-Jay Okocha, Nwankwo Kanu, Victor Ikepba and Mikel Obi, has never…