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By Dakuku Peterside Last week, Nigeria’s Supreme Court took a fundamental step towards dismantling the grip of state governors on the local government(LG) system and local government funds. The Supreme Court ruling on a suit filed by the attorney general of the federation, Lateef Fagbemi SAN, pointedly said the governors were undermining the functionality and ...
By Dakuku Peterside Against the run of play, Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State ruffled feathers with his speech at the 2023 annual Leadership Newspaper Conference and Awards held in Abuja last week. This speech was an instant hit online and trended at different times on both Instagram and X (Twitter). Governor Bago’s arguments ...
By Dakuku Peterside Clean-shaven, suave, upwardly mobile, and incurably optimistic, Herbert Onyewumbu Wigwe (HOW) was one of the most recognisable figures in the banking space and corporate Nigeria. His official biography could only be written by him. But I hope his example can inspire and influence us. Accurately describing Herbert in one word can be ...
By Dakuku Peterside On Sunday, August 15, 1971, the United States economy was literally facing a firing squad. The Dollar was in a mess. Price gougers were everywhere and foreign exchange was cruel to the Dollar. The newspaper headlines were of scorn and ridicule but President Richard Nixon did one thing. He faced the issue ...
By Dakuku Peterside The impact of insecurity in Nigeria is significant, encompassing substantial losses in terms of lives, economic setbacks, and the emergence of humanitarian crises. Many citizens find themselves in precarious situations with limited access to basic needs. While this is the case, the effectiveness of the government’s response to insecurity is debatable. Some ...
By Dakuku Peterside Nigeria lately has been lucky, though, for the wrong reasons. Money has metaphorically been falling from the sky when the nation is in severe economic distress and needs every dollar to meet her obligations. First, it was the series of Abacha loots. From the United States alone, approximately $332.4 million were recovered. ...
By Late Prince (Dr) Samuel Ibiyemi, Founding Publisher, Nigerian NewsDirect First published in 2012 The real enemies of subsidy removal are those saddled with the responsibility of checking excesses of government officials but prefer to overlook them. The ultimate aim is either to enhance a financial gain or protect certain political interests. The high rate ...
By Dakuku Peterside It is cultural in Nigeria to wish your loved ones a prosperous new year. There is nothing wrong with having such lofty aspirations. Of concern is that, lately, this culture has crept into governance and development. Our leaders wish us a hunger and poverty-free new year. They extend it to make statements ...
By Dakuku Peterside The world is moving into a new financial epoch. The era of physical currency is fading, making way for the rise of a cashless society thriving on digital transactions. In a cashless world, financial inclusion is both a promise and a challenge of bridging the gap while ensuring security for all. However, ...
By Dakuku Peterside Nigeria faces unprecedented economic uncertainties and desperately needs to “bend the curve” on most economic indices. Even the optimistic people among us struggle with what to hold onto to defend our slide into economic quagmire. This results from several years of economic mismanagement and the devastating global impact of COVID-19. We need ...
By Dakuku Peterside In 1961, the Prime Minister of Nigeria, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, enjoined Justice Adetokunbo Ademola to “never waiver from the truth” and charged him that if he committed a crime and was brought before the justice, he should send him to jail. Balewa understands the importance of judicial independence and the integrity of ...
By Dakuku Peterside In his famous drama, Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare penned one of the most recognisable descriptions of greatness: “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them.” George Oppong Weah of Liberia is one who has achieved greatness in all ramifications. Neither born ...
By Dakuku Peterside The integrity issue in Nigerian politics and public life has been a topic of discussion and concern for many years. Like many other countries, Nigeria has faced challenges related to corruption, lack of transparency, and ethical issues in its political landscape. It lacks integrity in its politics and tolerates acts of impunity, ...
By Dakuku Peterside Statistics should help settle arguments, in theory. We assume they provide stable reference points that everyone – no matter what their opinion, persuasion, belief, or politics is – can agree on. However, there has been a global trend in recent years showcasing that divergent levels of trust in statistics have become one ...
By Dakuku Peterside From the small handguns of the 15th century to the sophisticated machine guns and other small and light weapons of our time, the world has suffered mayhem and wanton destruction due to the rightful and wrongful use of these weapons. In the hands of non-state actors, these weapons are used to challenge ...
By Dakuku Peterside There is fire on the mountain. It seems too far away, and the fire looks more like a smouldering fire than a volcano. However, the molten lava is simmering in the belly of the volcano, waiting to be unleashed. No matter what we do, although living in a faraway land, the lava ...
By Dakuku Peterside President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, in their first 100 days in office, hold the record of the most travelled presidency since 1999. The President’s first trip abroad was to France to participate in the Summit for a New Global Financing Pact. Next was attending the ECOWAS summit in Guinea ...
By Dakuku Peterside It is most unlikely that you will visit China and not notice its great industrialisation success. China’s mesmerizing success in creating jobs, lifting 700m people out of extreme poverty, generating overwhelming wealth, improving living standards and achieved food security for the Chinese people through industrialisation is remarkable. Her speed and precision in industrialisation ...
By Dakuku Peterside Touching down at the bustling Beijing Capital International Airport, you cannot miss that China has again opened to the world after COVID-19 shut down, nor will you miss the pervasive positive spirit and a sense of endless possibilities in the atmosphere. If you have any doubt, a 30-minute drive from the airport ...
By Dakuku Peterside Naira, indeed, has no religion, tribe, or tongue. It is common to all of us, and anything that happens to it affects everybody. The value of the Naira is not determined by some gods, prayers, or incantations, nor by a group of Nigerian eggheads sitting on a round table to apportion value ...
By Dakuku Peterside Three recent developments are the focus of pe ople with a keen interest in the political affairs of Nigeria at the moment. The first is whether ECOWAS, which means Nigeria, in real terms, will go to war in Niger Republic. The second is the brouhaha over the Naira versus Dollar exchange rate, ...
Niger Republic is Nigeria’s next-door neighbour. She is not the best neighbour Nigeria would desire but, as a sovereign nation, we have no control over her. Her economic statistics, population demographics, poverty and security threats - terrorism, insurgency, and inter-communal conflicts - are too much baggage for a neighbour any nation will want to have. ...
By Dakuku Peterside Every new marriage comes with some level of excitement. This may be due to love, lust, anticipation, or newness. The everyday drudgery of living together and following the routines of life stifles excitement, and soon realities of marriage dawn on the couples. Suddenly, the marriage mates that were madly in love before ...
By Dakuku Peterside Democracy is taken for granted as the best form of government. At least the West told us so. We have also accepted it by default. We have tried multiple facets of democratic systems - parliamentary and presidential systems, two-party and multi-party systems - and some are arguing we have a bespoke democracy ...
By Dakuku Peterside Last week I listened to or read the speech of at least a dozen newly elected Governors, and I must confess they were full of hazard warning signs ahead. Citizens have only one option - brace up before going on a roller coaster ride at the sub-national level worse than they experienced ...
