By STELLA JOHNSON OGBOVOVEH EVERY basket of tomatoes, every bag of rice, and every tuber of yam that reaches Nigerian markets carries an invisible tax — a toll extracted not by law, but by corruption. Across the nation’s highways, truck drivers ferrying food items are bled dry at countless checkpoints manned by police, soldiers, road […]
By ANDERSON (ANDY) CLIFF IN an age when strongmen tighten their grip and democracy teeters under the weight of repression, the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize could hardly have found a more fitting recipient. The Norwegian Nobel Committee’s decision to honour Maria Corina Machado, Venezuela’s opposition leader and relentless advocate for democracy, is more than an […]
By TAYO TAIWO (T.T.) OLUWOLE FOR Nigerian football fans, the countdown to 2026 isn’t just about the next World Cup — it’s about a season of action, transformation, and opportunity. From the NPFL’s renewed energy to a reinvented Champions League and the much-anticipated AFCON in Morocco, the coming months promise to be a rare convergence […]
By IFEOMA IZUCHUKWU NIGERIA’S House of Representatives has launched a coordinated pushback against a bill before the United States Senate that seeks to classify Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) over alleged violations of religious freedom. The motion, sponsored by Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, was debated under Matters of Urgent Public Importance on […]
By TAYO TAIWO (T.T.) OLUWOLE NIGERIA’S Green Falcons sent a strong message of intent on Tuesday, thrashing Ghana’s Leopardess 40–0 in a dominant rugby friendly at the Alaro City Pitch, Lagos. The emphatic win showcased Nigeria’s speed, structure, and superior teamwork as they fine-tune preparations for the World Rugby Series in Canada later this month. […]
By FIDELUS ZWANSON NIGERIA needs to generate at least 27 million new formal jobs by 2030 to prevent an escalating unemployment crisis as its working-age population grows to 168 million, the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) has cautioned. In its new report, “From Hustle to Decent Work: Unlocking Jobs and Productivity for Economic Transformation in […]
By TIMOTHY HAGGERTY-NWOKOLO IN international politics, nothing ever “just happens.” Every conflict, coup, and crisis often fits into a well-worn pattern — one that begins with a problem, escalates into chaos, and ends with a “solution” that benefits everyone except the people on the ground. Across Africa, that script appears to be replaying itself once […]
By DAVID JOHN-FLUKE ON a breezy Saturday in Abuja, Nkechi’s gold lace shimmered under the wedding lights as she watched her childhood friend walk down the aisle. But behind her forced smile lay heartbreak — her own fiancé had ended their long-distance engagement from Canada just a week earlier. “Life is moving fast here. I’ve […]
By MELVIN KOFFA ACROSS Nigeria, governors are facing growing public anger and scrutiny — not because of a lack of funds, but because of what analysts describe as a lack of vision, accountability, and willpower to translate the ongoing revenue windfall into real progress. Over the past year, allocations to states from the Federation Account […]
By STELLA JOHNSON OGBOVOVEH WHEN the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, announced that commercial sex workers — popularly called “runs girls” — would be taxed under Nigeria’s new fiscal regime taking effect in January 2026, it sounded like satire. But it wasn’t. “If somebody is doing runs […]