Politics – Page 2

A Straight Line from Rwanda to Nigeria

June 5, 2022June 5, 2022 Jilomes

Of all the genocides in recorded history, the Rwandan Genocide of 1994 arguably takes pole position for the level of brutality and carnage that saw around a million persons (varying estimates) butchered within a period of 100 days. To put the scale of death in context, the Rwandan population in 1994 was about 6 million persons. Via a recent trip to Rwanda, I learned a bit more about the infamous genocide and could not avoid seeing parallels between 1994 Rwanda and today’s Nigeria.

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Change, Politics

A Nation in Need of Redemption

April 4, 2022 Jilomes

In November 2018, over 100 Nigerian soldiers were gruesomely slaughtered at a town called Metele by a contingent of Boko Haram terrorists. That sad event influenced an article in which I argued that losing that many soldiers in one sitting should mark a turning point in existing attempts to exterminate the murderous gang. But Metele was brushed aside and almost four years later, Nigeria continues to face existential threats to its continued existence and a loss of faith by citizens that the people who should know, know what they should know.

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Change, Politics

Of Easy Wins and Persistent Troubles

March 13, 2022 Jilomes

Behold an article that has been on my mind for some time, morphing as I consider one scenario after another. A quote by the American Chuck Norris might dare to succinctly capture my thoughts as I type this article.

“I’ve always found that anything worth achieving will always have obstacles in the way and you’ve got to have that drive and determination to overcome those obstacles en route to whatever it is that you want to accomplish.”
Chuck Norris

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Change, Politics

#EndSARS: 365 Days from October the Twentieth

October 20, 2021 Jilomes

French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr declared in 1849 that “the more things change, the more they stay the same”. From a literal interpretation, if things that are changing end up being like the former state, how much more when no attempt is made at creating a change, or when such change, though promised, takes up residence in a large void filled with disclaimed promises. One year after the popular protests tagged #EndSARS, has anything really changed with Nigerian policing?

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Politics

Of Biafra, IPOB and Diabolic Strategies

September 27, 2021May 23, 2022 Jilomes

“So, Jonah, what do you think about IPOB?” This question, posed by an Igbo friend, would lead to a discussion between myself, the questioner, and a second Igbo friend; none of us fans of IPOB, and has also triggered this article. In case you are uninitiated, IPOB stands for the Indigenous People of Biafra, an organisation that seeks the formation of a new country called Biafra, and that appears to assume that someone like me, a non-Igbo from Rivers State, is automatically and unquestionably a citizen of Biafra.

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Change, Politics

Saving Nigeria Through Resource Control

July 3, 2021July 3, 2021 Jilomes

Of all the myriad issues that have plagued Nigeria since its independence in 1960, resource control is one of the biggest, arguably resent-laced issues that straddles everything from equity, political control, to plain expropriation. Nigeria is currently in the process of another piecemeal constitutional amendment, with resource control being a recurring demand from the oil producing region, while an affiliated demand seems to have contributed to delaying the Petroleum Industry Bill. Is there a way to redefine the pie and allow all stakeholders to go home happy?

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Politics

Of a Food Blockade and Common Sense

March 3, 2021March 3, 2021 Jilomes

“Babe, the market is scanty. Many fresh food sellers did not show up, and those around said food supplies are limited.” My wife’s voice on the phone finally made it personal. I had been following reports online of a “food blockade” on Southern Nigeria by Northern Nigeria, but now it had gone beyond mere news reports to something that would make our family spend more on food this month. Fortunately, we could stomach the higher cost of limited supplies at the market, but I wondered about the infamous pyrrhic victory and a seemingly maniacal drive by some persons to cut off their nose to spite their face.

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Change, Politics

Frustration 601: When Brethren Fight

February 14, 2021 Jilomes

They say the grasses suffer when two elephants fight, but I wonder what happens to the elephants when the grasses fight over their lowly state. While you may cringe at the impossible metaphor of grasses fighting themselves, I have chosen it to highlight a paradoxical happening in society where one group of oppressed persons would take out their frustrations on another group of oppressed persons, while the oppressors pick out pieces of meat stuck in their fortunate teeth from a continuous meal of oppression.

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Change, Politics

A Litany of Bad Choices

January 29, 2021 Jilomes

If you had to choose between eating your cake and having it, what would you choose, and how would you make this choice? Would your choice be logical, emotional, a blend of the two, or a clean random pick? Whichever you choose, you would be aware that every choice has a consequence one way or the other. However, looking at the national development angle in Nigeria, it looks like we make weird choices and later wonder why things took a wrong turn. Whereas there are several factors behind our woes in Nigeria, one common denominator for our dysfunctional state is a litany of imprudent choices.

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Politics

America: A Tale of Two Conspiracists

January 18, 2021 Jilomes

One of the most popular retellings of Jesus’s ministry is his encounter with the adulterous woman and a band of sanctimonious accusers. In that event, although wrapped in a cloak of love, Jesus rightly showed his disdain for sin, but made it clear that the accusers lacked moral standing against the accused. In today’s article, let me stand in for Jesus, with the penitent woman represented (poorly) by the unrepentant Trump, while the righteous accusers be played by the political Left.

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