“If Amupitan digs in, as is likely, and his appointor, Tinubu, indulges him, the commission will struggle to retain public trust. INEC may argue that suspicion is not proof and that, in any case, no forensic, platform-level evidence has been found against it. That is precisely what the National Assembly should do: Initiate a forensic probe. INEC is independent, but not unaccountable”
Amupitan’s Yanga Wakes Trouble Read More »
Delisting the ADC’s leaders was hasty and prone to needless controversy. Whatever its legal department may be telling the commission, Amupitan, a professor of law and senior advocate, should know that INEC’s action gives the impression that the commission is an interested party in the dispute, and calls his judgment and independence into question…I offer a comfort phrase to the ADC’s distressed leadership from the diminishing repertoire of street Latin: Potestas non est ad libitum – power is not given at one’s pleasure. It’s not served a la carte
INEC, ADC and the Latin Phrase: Another View Read More »
“Adebayo Adelabu has performed so disastrously, saying he failed would be an honour. But it’s not his fault – it’s the fault of the President who appointed him and the Senate that cleared him for a job that he was clearly incompetent to perform, either based on his record or based on any hope of redemption”
Adelabu’s Power Lines as Laundry Lines Read More »
“This Obi is a Peter of clay – malleable, confused, and lacking in staying power. He’s drifting, mistaking a jungle for a zoo. This should be a great source of worry for his troops, especially the social media-based avatars (without voter cards), who deify Obi and whose political signature tune is “Obi-way or the highway.”
Obi’s Transition From Serious Contender to Mascot Read More »
“I don’t know what other conspiracy the ADC might find before the next market day, but I think the party is its own biggest problem. If it continues this way, before the APC kills it, it will be long dead, and on its grave would be the epitaph: here lies the remains of a party that thought it would get power à la carte!”
ADC’s Problem is ADC, not APC Read More »
“One major apprehension stems from the fear of abuse by state governors – quasi dictators who run riot over the state legislature, judiciary and local government administration. The fear is that adding the police to the above superstructure will make governors into wrecking balls. Economic and fiscal arguments have also been advanced against state police. For instance, most states are not economically viable or financially self-sustaining beyond relying on revenue disbursements from the Federation Account. While the fear of abuse by states and funding concerns are valid, they are insufficient to delay the commencement of state police”
Saving the Police from Itself Read More »
“Like the previous Gulf Wars, the current one poses severe economic risks to Africa, particularly for oil producers like Nigeria, Angola, Algeria, and Libya. Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, which handles 20 percent of global oil shipping, could spike energy prices worldwide, benefiting producers in the short term with higher revenues but fuelling inflation and import costs on the continent”
Africa and the Deadly Dust from Iran Read More »
“I’ve often joked that even if you beheaded El-Rufai and minced his skull, his tongue would still be wagging. Those who have been in his crosshairs might agree. He once said even if President Muhammadu Buhari were hit on the head with a Blackberry phone, the former president might still not know the difference between the phone and a blackberry fruit”
El-Rufai: What A Good Turn Didn’t Deserve Read More »
“Collis’s book is a personal encounter. It is part social observation, part memoir, and part travelogue – a journey through the heart of a country, where once upon a time, the lamb and the lion lay side by side, and people were kind to each other as if their lives depended entirely on charity. And they travelled with nothing to fear. Many Nigerians in their late 20s or early 30s might find it hard to believe there was indeed such a country where you were not afraid to travel alone at any time and didn’t need to share your live location or use a Google Map to get there safely. Safety feels like a very distant memory, a nightmare”
The Road to A Doctor’s Nigeria Read More »
Two days of protests are good, but they will not be enough to hold the politicians and INEC to account this time next year. Voters, civil society, and the press must continue to exert pressure and maintain vigilance for free and fair elections. The ingenuity of the amended Bill is that it gives protesters a sense of victory while still retaining its pernicious essence: allowing INEC to determine what to do with election results and how
To Catch an Election Thief Read More »