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Editorial
As Nigeria continues to grapple with the challenge of strengthening its democratic institutions, one issue that persistently undermines inclusiveness in the political process is the high cost of nomination and expression of interest forms imposed by political parties. While parties have the constitutional right to regulate their internal processes, the exorbitant fees attached to these ...
Editorial
The ongoing trial of former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has taken on significance that reaches well beyond the immediate legal contest before the court. It now stands as a defining moment for Nigeria’s justice system and a measure of how far the country has advanced in building institutions that are credible and independent. At ...
Editorial
Nigeria’s electricity sector stands at a precarious crossroads. A massive structural liquidity crisis is currently endangering not only the stability of the national grid but the health of the entire economy. Under these dire circumstances, the government, private operators, regulators, and consumers must move beyond finger-pointing toward coordinated, immediate action. At the core of this ...
Editorial
The recent arrest of Staff Sgt. Amoke Simon, a serving soldier in the Nigerian Army Engineers Corps, reads like a script from a crime thriller. Apprehended at the Port Harcourt International Airport while allegedly attempting to flee, Simon is accused of orchestrating a staggering N114 million fraud and fabricating an elaborate history of military heroism. ...
Editorial
As the countdown to the 2027 general elections steadily accelerates, the Nigerian media space finds itself at a critical crossroads. In an era where information travels at the speed of a keystroke, the immense power wielded by media platforms and organizations cannot be overstated. With this power comes a profound civic responsibility, one that, unfortunately, ...
Editorial
The persistent failure of the Nigerian national grid to sustain a steady flow of electricity has moved beyond a mere technical inconvenience to become a systemic threat to national security and economic sovereignty. While the generation and distribution segments of the Power Sector Value Chain (PSVC) were unbundled and handed to private players over a ...
Editorial
The survival of Nigeria’s vibrant media landscape reached a critical juncture last Friday, March 13, 2026. During a landmark meeting at the State House, Frank Aigbogun, President of the Nigeria Press Organisation (NPO) and Publisher of BusinessDay, delivered a stark message to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu arguing that without immediate federal intervention, the Fourth Estate ...
Editorial
The soaring cost of petrol, diesel, and cooking gas has once again thrust Nigeria’s energy architecture into the center of a heated national discourse. Across the federation, households and businesses are reeling from an era where petrol prices frequently exceed one thousand naira per litre, while the costs of diesel and liquefied petroleum gas climb ...
Editorial
The drums of war in the Middle East, specifically the escalating conflict involving Iran, have traditionally sent tremors through the global energy market. For Nigeria, these tremors are felt as a paradoxical double-edged sword. While the immediate reaction to the 2026 hostilities has been a sharp spike in Brent crude prices surpassing $90 per barrel ...
Editorial
The Kano State House of Assembly’s move to impeach Deputy Governor Aminu Abdussalam Gwarzo over the alleged diversion of ₦1.6 billion in local government funds presents a troubling paradox in Nigeria’s democratic journey. While the scale of the accusations involving monthly kickbacks and questionable pharmaceutical contracts is staggering and demands a thorough investigation, the timing ...
Editorial
A danfo driver pulls into a filling station in Oshodi, wipes the sweat from his brow and counts the last notes in his pocket. Yesterday he bought petrol at ₦875 per litre. Today the attendant informs him it is ₦980. Another ₦100 has vanished in a single stroke. Replicate that moment across Lagos, Abuja, Kano ...
Editorial
Picture this: a danfo driver in Oshodi, sweat on his brow, counting the last notes in his pocket before he pulls up to the pump. Yesterday it was ₦875. Today, the attendant shrugs and says, “Oga, na ₦980 now.” The man’s face falls. Another ₦100 gone, just like that. Multiply that pain across Lagos, Abuja, ...
Editorial
The fiscal paralysis currently gripping the nation in early 2026 is the predictable result of a three-year traffic jam where the ghost of 2024 and the stalled machinery of 2025 have collided with the aspirations of the current year. We find ourselves in a budgetary twilight zone where the government is attempting to execute three ...
Editorial
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) recently released a damning interim report that confirms what every Nigerian traveler already felt in their pocketbook: domestic airlines engaged in blatant price manipulation during the 2025 festive season. By uncovering evidence of coordinated manipulation and arbitrary pricing, the Commission has exposed a systemic rot in our ...
Editorial
For decades, Nigeria’s power sector has been haunted by the grid-centric fallacy, a belief that a centralized, fragile national grid would eventually reach the most remote corners of our vast nation. However, the reality on the ground told a different story of persistent darkness in rural communities and neglected public institutions. Today, the NewsDirect editorial ...
Editorial
The results of the 2026 FCT Area Council elections are in, and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is eager to pat itself on the back. By moving the needle from a 9.4 percent turnout in 2022 to approximately 15 percent this year, the commission is framing the exercise as a success story of improved ...
Editorial
President Bola Tinubu’s recent executive order mandating the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) to remit all oil and gas revenue directly to the Federation Account is being hailed as the most significant fiscal reform of 2026. By stripping the state-owned giant of its ability to retain 30% of production-sharing contract proceeds for exploration funds and ...
Editorial
The recent viral outcry surrounding the alleged sexual assault of a TikTok user, Mirabel, has once again brought to the fore a deeply troubling reality in Nigeria, the widening chasm between the citizenry and the state’s formal justice institutions. As the hashtag #StopRapingWomen trended across X, a significant segment of the public bypassed traditional law ...
Editorial
The rowdy scenes witnessed today in both the Senate and the House of Representatives are more than just typical parliamentary theater, they represent a fundamental struggle for the soul of Nigerian democracy. At the heart of the chaos lies the Electoral Act (Repeal and Re-Enactment) Bill, 2026, and specifically, the controversial retreat from mandatory electronic ...
Editorial
Nigeria’s infrastructure history is a graveyard of asphalt. For decades, the nation has been trapped in a construct-decay-rehabilitate cycle, where multi-billion naira highways begin to disintegrate within a few rainy seasons. Against this backdrop, President Bola Tinubu’s recent mandate to shift toward reinforced concrete technology promised to last up to a century is not merely ...
Editorial
Nigeria was once again reminded of the fragile security situation that continues to affect communities across the country in the opening two months of 2026. In Kauru, Kaduna State, gunmen attacked a village, killing three residents and abducting more than a dozen, including a Catholic priest. Earlier, deadly raids in Kwara State left scores dead, ...
Editorial
For years, Kwara State has functioned as the State of Harmony, serving as a vital buffer between the volatile security landscapes of the North and the economic heartland of the Southwest. However, that harmony is currently being tested by a creeping tide of insecurity that threatens to submerge the state into the same cycle of ...
Editorial
For decades, Nigeria’s state-owned refineries have been the ultimate black hole of national resources, sinkholes into which billions of dollars vanished, only to return thick clouds of excuses and dry pumps. This week, however, the narrative shifted from delusion to a startling, if not refreshing, honesty. The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Engr. ...
Editorial
For decades, Makoko has been the subject of two irreconcilable narratives. To the romantic, it is the "Venice of Africa", a testament to human resilience and an iconic, stilt-propped heritage of the Egun fishing community. To the state, it is a logistical and environmental nightmare, a sprawling shadow of urban neglect visible from the Third ...
Editorial
The lingering dispute between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and workers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration is more than a routine labour disagreement. It is a stress test for governance in Nigeria’s capital, a confrontation that raises urgent questions about leadership, worker welfare, fiscal discipline, and the social cost ...
Editorial
Nigeria stands at a paradoxical crossroads. On paper, the country is making measurable economic progress, with reforms aimed at stabilising public finances, boosting revenue, and stimulating growth. Yet for millions of citizens, daily life tells a different story one marked by rising food prices, shrinking purchasing power, unemployment, and deepening poverty. The widening gap between ...
Editorial
The admission by the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) this Monday that there was indeed a plot to overthrow the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a chilling vindication of the rumour mongers the military so vehemently vilified just four months ago. On Monday, the Director of Defence Information, Major General Samaila Uba, confirmed that investigations ...
Editorial
The Federal Government, through the Special Adviser on Policy Communication, Mr. Daniel Bwala, recently celebrated a significant milestone: Nigeria’s external reserves have hit the $46 billion mark, the highest in eight years. Almost simultaneously, the Global CEO of Shell Plc, Mr. Wael Sawan, stood in the Presidential Villa and pledged a staggering $20 billion investment, ...
Editorial
Nigeria’s financial markets are undergoing one of the most significant regulatory overhauls in recent memory. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has dramatically increased capital requirements for a wide spectrum of financial firms, including banks, brokers, fund managers, and digital asset platforms. At first glance, the move signals a long-overdue alignment with global best practices: ...
Editorial
In the discourse on Lagos’ urban development, the staggering statistics of the housing deficit are often recited with a sense of helpless inevitability. With millions of Lagosians lacking decent accommodation, the state faces a humanitarian crisis that cannot be solved by new luxury high-rises in Eko Atlantic or gated communities in the suburbs. The solution ...