THE GATHERER

Integrating African countries into an economic and political union by African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) has required tortuous and conscious advocacy. Perhaps subconscious advocacy too by non-Africans who, none the wiser, refer to Africa as a country.   It was a delight to watch 50 African heads of governments sign AfCFTA – i.e. African Common Market – into existence at the 2018 Kigali African Union Summit. It will no doubt be one of Africa’s finest moments of the twenty-first century.  As a bloc, ‘African Common Market’ would rank comfortably among the world’s top 10 biggest economies . Besides spurring internal trade by zero-tariff on goods moving within the continent, the African youth requiring nothing than an overnight bag and bank card to visit any African country will boost intra-continental skills exchange and tourism. A borderless Africa is a strong negotiating hand for the 55 countries of the continent when dealing with rest of the wor...

For many, signpost erected at interment site of seventy-three persons killed on New Year’s Day in Benue state, Nigeria, came like a sudden splash of chilled water to their face, shocking their sensitivities. And it’s got them talking, in resistance.  The green metal planted on the sandy site, indicates dates of attack and burial, and further states the ‘massacre’, in both Guma and Logo local government areas of the state, were by ‘Fulani herdsmen.’  It’s the latter that’s caused online comments like “fanning embers of hate”; “incitement against the Fulanis”. Admittedly, this reaction mirrors mine at gauche ‘Islamic terrorists’ in a 9/11 memorial at Owego, New York. But, for Benue, it would seem inelegant language has had a benefit.  Before kidnapping of Chibok girls, and global empathy this elicited when celebrities and world leaders amplified hashtag #bringbackourgirls, no other atrocity in recent times Nigeria had lasted a 72-hours news cycle....

The Modakeke community of southwest Nigeria first mooted the idea around 1937. They would no longer set aside a portion of their farm produce as ‘isakole’ paid annually to Ile-Ife landowning families. They had occupied the land for upwards of one hundred and fifty years and now viewed the Yoruba land custom of expropriating non-natives to make their lessee status unambiguous old-fashioned. And how fair was it that  having settled the land for many generations,  inter-marrying with their hosts (Ooni Abewela who ascended in 1839 was half-Modakeke) and making immense contribution as skilled military and farmhands to the well-being of Ife metropolis, were they,  the self-named Modakeke,  yet considered non-natives without rights to land? This proposal outraged Ife-folk. It appeared to them like a brazen land arrogation attempt by the Modakeke, like a modern-day tenant ripping their ‘tenancy agreement’ and saying they now own the house by virtue of long tenancy....

Although Nigeria is home to people numerously distinguishable linguistically and culturally, idea that everything in life happens for a reason is a collective unconscious of the people. Without labouring the point, this intuitive outlook on life of the Nigerian springs from the settled view that her or his existence is for a purpose (kadara or aka or makoma or destiny) and their lived experiences can thereby not be mere coincidences. The destiny claim underpinning existence unravels, otherwise. Put it in another way. Rejecting coincidence is the root of religion. The belief in destiny seems logical, as it appears a satisfying answer to  the one question that torments mind of anyone capable of  reflection:  ‘Why am I here? ’ However, it can be argued that the Nigerian mind favouring  religious explanation for the world around them as opposed to life being a meaningless coincidence which must be analysed and subdued to aid human existence, is why scien...

One 2003 morning in late summer, the press gathered outside an Illinois Court. Minutes later, a brown-haired man exited. He’d been granted six-figures in compensation. In 1979, he was sentenced to 50-years imprisonment for a rape that never happened. This was the first wrongful conviction overturned by DNA testing. His name was Gary Dotson . By that morning of Mr. Dotson’s compensation, DNA testing had exposed miscarriage of justice on a grand-scale in the United States’ criminal justice system. Combined, exonerated innocent persons had served about 1,100-years in jail.  Unending news headlines of perjury committed by state officials and false victims put the lie to United States’ mantra: a nation of laws, not of men. The public’s faith in their courts system was tainted. To restore public trust, the US criminal justice system launched an inquiry into wrongful convictions. Institutional and unconscious bias was identified, compensation paid, and DNA evidence made stand...

Motor accidents killed 103 children and 1,363 adults in Nigeria within the first three months of this year. That ’s according to Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) . Total motor deaths in 2016 were 5,053 from over eleven thousand road accidents. But no one seems to be suggesting we ban cars to militate against road accidents. Perhaps we understand that a present danger with transporting ourselves in automobiles quicker, efficiently and comfortably is an accident. Likewise, when we use other machines, say, operate forklifts, or fly in airplanes, we are aware of the associated risks but understand the benefits outweigh the risks. It’s the same with freedom of speech and its potential abuse: hate speech. It’s price we pay to live in a free society of equals where no one or idea is beyond criticism and reproach, even when done ignorantly. Indeed, no society is democratic where such freedom of thought, speech, and association are restricted. A quick survey of the world around us may e...

On an October evening in 2011, what many Lagosians had long suspected was confirmed. That besides their acting and musical careers, Yoruba entertainers smuggle narcotics out of Nigeria. It’s said that's majorly how they financed their lifestyles; singing or acting was a cover up. The artiste in the spotlight was multi-award winning Tunde Omidina, who plays vituperative character: Baba Suwe. He was detained at Murtitala Muhammad Airport (MMA) in Lagos enroute Paris. The news broke on Nigeria's Twittersphere to unsurprised comments — “we knew”. The Nigerian Drug Law and Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) paraded the actor in his white-brocade kaftan, looking disorientated. The agency claimed their scanner detected wrapped morsels in his bloated stomach. Mr. Omidina was led like a felon to a holding cell to do under observation the bowel movement we all do in private. Alas, narcotics he was supposed to have swallowed wasn’t there. Backtracking false claims is embarrassing and...