The Enyi Mba Enyi war song should have been put off. But no; we rushed it; we rolled that lyrics out in old world tapestry to clothe us. We wanted to run down coal-tarred roadways, in a stampede of angry men, chanting to bolster our eagerness to go to a war we were not ready to fight. —Don Okolo Gestation, as in conception and growth, is everything. Period. When birth occurs, and it is premature,...
The African media has closely followed the Black Lives Matter protests in the United States, almost always in solidarity with the protesters. Especially among African human rights groups, the American focus on police brutality resonates strongly. While generalization is risky about a continent with more than fifty states and one billion people, it can be said that for most Africans, the policeman is not your friend. The popular perception is that police brutality is the...
Moral and ethical weakness, exacerbated by irresponsible government creates enabling environment for fraud in Nigeria. Most Nigerians simply want money desperately. ―Ebuka Onyekwelu Nigeria has gradually become deeply associated with fraud such that the phrase “internet fraud” on Google search will throw up several news reports on internet fraud in connection with young Nigerians. Fraud is the new epidemic sweeping across Nigeria; taking captive, many young Nigerians in their 20s and early 30s, with many...
In that same shallowness, The sewer dweller in Aso Rock believes he has the knife and the roasted yam tuber to feed her people. This impoverished, morally bankrupt monarch of the savannah is ready to slice away: Therefore, one can only eat when one receives a slice of yam from him. ― Don Okolo IF YOU HAVE TEARS, PREPARE TO SHED THEM NOW. (Shakespeare) This is a lamentation…a requiem of sorts regarding the most painful,...
Nigeria owes the Igbos. The issues of the Civil War genocide have not been properly addressed. The system since the war has been so predatory to the Igbos in every sphere of social, political, and economic development. Yet, Igbos as a group do not need a ‘gift’ of any elected position as ‘reparation’ for decades of dehumanizing constitutional policies. ― Dr. Anthony Obi Ogbo Various Igbo activist groups have emerged in recent times advocating, demanding,...
Indeed, I believed and hoped that our current president—with so much energy and the many years spent persistently lobbying for another opportunity to govern Nigeria—would embark upon a titanic legacy of progress, reconciliation, and harmony in Nigeria as President Jonathan did in 2015, and as Lincoln did with the abolishment of slavery more than a century and a half ago in the United States. —Dr. I. D. Onwudiwe, The distribution of a $22.7 billion loan...
How many times must I fall from my toe against your feet Before I count my teeth with my tongue, Mr. Despot? My expectations such as are your countrymen’s respite, How many declining expectations on account of fiat? We winged our dreams in great heights to herald our hopes, We must now jettison all aspirations to accommodate fear, Where freedom has lost all responsibility to bear, Whose aspiration inspires such thuggery, succumb to your dopes?...
Every man has a pair of kidneys. The job of the kidney is to remove waste from the body. Every day, your blood passes through your kidney several times to be filtered. As the blood is filtered, urine is formed and stored in a temporary storage tank called the urinary bladder. If there is no urinary bladder, as you walk around urine will be dropping. And to avoid this, God in His wisdom ran a...
With Nigeria, I am not a happy camper. I am disgruntled…aware that I have been living in this hellhole filled with vipers. ―Don Okolo They couldn’t care one bit about the death of their old master, because they wanted more; they looked up at the man whose face was hidden behind a mask, expecting more of the two-pound romp of meat blocks he threw at them. Instead, the man reloaded and blew both dogs away...
Nigeria has again taken the big brother posturing that is of no significance whatsoever to the country’s reputation and international relevance especially within the African region. ──Ebuka Onyekwelu Nigeria’s territorial integrity has been violated by Ghana in a most crude and unmistaken manner. That demolition of Nigeria’s property within Nigeria’s High Commission in Ghana is a big slap to Nigeria and it is important that it is seen for what it is; a deliberate attempt...
