Nigeria’s annual celebration of her democracy day was formerly marked on the 29th of May until it was moved to the 12th of June by the Buhari-led federal government in 2018. Also, June 12 had been a day for the official remembrance of the late M.K.O Abiola. The beginning of democracy in Nigeria brought an end to her former military regime. It is recognized to have officially begun in 1999 following the inauguration of the...
There is absolutely no doubt that Peter Obi the candidate of Labour Party is the most talked-about presidential candidate in the 2023 General Election in Nigeria. It would appear that the most suitable conversation about 2023 centres on Peter Obi and Labour Party. Many supporters of PDP and APC have been giving unsolicited advice to Obi’s growing support base on social media, on how to behave well while supporting Obi. Some say Obi’s supporters should...
“It is going to be a rough and bumpy ride to 2023” ― Anthony Obi Ogbo How can a lame-duck president with zero legislative support lead a people out of system inequality in a predominantly hostile political environment? In a democracy, the president does not have the authority to make laws or facilitate major structural transformations. The Igbo community is yearning for equal justice and equity through sweeping governance restructure. So, what kind of candidates...
We need a president, a solid person with the integrity, wisdom, knowledge, power, capacity, and love of the country to change our nation for good. —Dr. I. D. Onwudiwe _______________ After the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Primary Elections, one presidential aspirant complained bitterly about being “betrayed” by the other governors, hence his second placement for the PDP-nominated flag-bearer’s position. Atiku Abubaker won the tally while governor Nyesom Nwike from Rivers State lost resplendently. The governor’s...
The outcome of party presidential primaries appears to signal the end of post-military elite political consensus. Insofar as the axle of political contestation in Nigeria is the struggle for power between the northern and southern elite blocs, systemic stability hinges on the moral understanding that power will rotate between the two regions. The order of succession since the inauguration of the Fourth Republic in 1999 has largely followed the logic of this entente, starting...
No political party can win any serious election without strong membership that can rival or contain the membership of its closest opposition. That is what party structure is all about. During election seasons in Nigeria, the concept of party structure is one of the most used phrases. Much so that the meaning of the concept is now trapped in confusion of sorts. Some say money is the ultimate party structure. Others say it is voters....
Horrendous killing of college sophomore highlights the country’s ethnoreligious fault line, but interdenominational rivalry in the south is of no less moment. All in all, reactions to the murder of Ms. Deborah Yakubu, a 200-level home economics student of the Shehu Shagari College of Education in Sokoto, have exposed Nigeria’s deepest political fractures and lingering questions over citizenship, national identity, and secularity. On May 12, following disagreement over a WhatsApp voice note deemed to have been...
“Obi’s latest political move contradicts his own gospel of being indispensable, and it hurts his credibility moving forward.” Just a few days before his People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was due for its national convention, Nigerian presidential hopeful Peter Obi shocked his camp with an announcement. Mr. Obi announced his resignation from the party and also his withdrawal from the presidential race on his party’s slate. There were, however, rumors that he would join the Labour...
Since 2020, I devoted time to analyzing the chances of securing Nigeria’s president of Igbo extraction. At the time, I had argued that Nigeria’s president of Igbo extraction is not a Nigerian project but an Igbo project and hence, Igbo political elites should own it and drive it. But this never happened. Up till a little over two months ago, Peter Obi had maintained that he was not contesting for the highest office in the...
Before 2011, it was uncommon for governors who have served for eight years in their states to aspire to the senate. Between 1999 and 2007, governors after serving their tenures simply moved on to something else. Most of the governors have now been forgotten. However, a handful of them have found their way into the senate between 2011 and 2019. But since 2011, it has become trendy for former governors to go to the senate....
