Opinion

Senator Orji Uzor Kalu: I have an idea why and who put him in prison unjustly 

Senator Orji Uzor Kalu: I have an idea why and who put him in prison unjustly 

By Emeka Ugwuonye As I watched Senator Orji Uzor Kalu’s speech on the floor of the Senate, tears came to my eyes too. For the six months he spent in unjust and wrongful imprisonment in Kuje Prison, I spent average of two hours with him every day. He is one of the best Nigerian leaders when you get to know him well. I am sure you have never seen me praise any Nigerian politician publicly, not even Zik, not even Awo, not even M. I. Okpara. But I have no hesitation in praising OUK. And if you recalled, he was…
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Facelift to Nigeria as Tax-to-GDP Ratio Increases to 10.86 percent

Facelift to Nigeria as Tax-to-GDP Ratio Increases to 10.86 percent

By Kelechi Okoronkwo For a long time, more than twelve years, Nigeria wore a “Lowest Tax-to-GDP (Gross Domestic Product) Ratio” in the whole world like a garment. In tax and economy conferences and public discussions both local and internal, Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP status was always on the front-burner. While some people showed genuine concern, others scorned Nigeria for having a Tax-to-GDP ratio quoted as hovering around five to six percent. Earlier in May, 2023, the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) expressed genuine worry about Nigeria’s tax system and the Tax-to-GDP ratio. The CITN was not alone in expressing concerns…
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President Buhari: The End of A Disastrous Eight Years, By Osita Chidoka

President Buhari: The End of A Disastrous Eight Years, By Osita Chidoka

In 2015, a day before the election that brought President Buhari to office, I made a last-ditch effort to warn Nigerians about the impending doom of electing a man whose leadership credentials were uninspiring and laden with evidence of failure. I published “The Death of the African Big Man” on March 28, 2015, Presidential elections. The article generated virulent attacks from the All Progressives Congress (APC) mob, whose major defining quality was an inability to reason. In the article, I argued that Gen. Buhari did not possess the acumen, intellect, energy, and managerial capacity to run the modern, large, and…
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Celebrating a great achiever, Dr, Mrs Elizabeth Jack-Rich At 30, By Comrade Gambo Jagindi

Celebrating a great achiever, Dr, Mrs Elizabeth Jack-Rich At 30, By Comrade Gambo Jagindi

From the old ancient town of Owoh, Ondo State, precisely on May 18, 1993, a healthy baby girl emerged, Elizabeth Itunnuayo, whose cry was hilariously sweet, echoed and lit up the lives of a Jewish-Nigerian couple,... 30 years down the road, the world has gathered to celebrate this rare Amazon, a delectable beauty queen with matching brains, a kind and ambitious woman, whose goal is to impact humanity by improving the lives of the less privileged, contributing to global social and economic development, and supporting Nigeria’s political growth. The Harvard graduate, and wife of oil magnate and philanthropist, Tein Jack-Rich,…
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Senate presidency: Akpabio’s past haunting him?

Senate presidency: Akpabio’s past haunting him?

By James Eme Senator Godswill Akpabio’s ambition to become the president of the 10th Senate has obviously assumed desperate proportions with suppositions and accusations of some highly placed individuals working against him. It is against this backdrop that rumour mill has come alive with information circulating in Akwa Ibom State that Governor Udom Emmanuel is ferociously against Senator Akpabio’s emergence as senate president. While it is commonplace that the animosity between these two eminent personalities of Akwa Ibom State is at a feverish pitch, it is important for the media spin doctors of Senator Akpabio to address a few grey…
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Buhari’s last-minute provocations of Bola Tinubu, by Farooq Kperogi

Buhari’s last-minute provocations of Bola Tinubu, by Farooq Kperogi

After failing to stop him from emerging as APC’s flag bearer in 2022 and mounting steep hurdles for him in the 2023 election, Muhammadu Buhari increasingly comes across as intentionally charting courses of action designed to provoke pre-inauguration confrontation with Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Or am I missing something? Take, for example, Buhari’s request to the National Assembly, just days to the end of his term, to approve an $800 million loan for the purpose of distributing “N5,000 per month to 10.2 million, poor and low-income households for a period of six months with a multiplier effect on about 60 million…
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VIGILANTE SERVICES: A Panacea for Effective Security Protection of Ohafia Communities 

VIGILANTE SERVICES: A Panacea for Effective Security Protection of Ohafia Communities 

By Engr. Sunny Mbila (Ugwumba Ohafia). INTRODUCTION The concept of vigilante service as a security outfit is mostly composed of non-state committed volunteers, operating under the mandate of communal consensus to fight crime at the micro level of our communities. The law establishing the vigilante groups in Nigeria stipulates that vigilante groups should work in collaboration with the Nigeria Police to ensure security of lives and property. It is therefore an arrangement of a comprehensive security plan needed in Ohafia that will create a new emphasis with a view to making our communities active participants in the process of solving…
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Diligence In Leadership — The Track Of Chief (Engr.) Sunny Mbila 

Diligence In Leadership — The Track Of Chief (Engr.) Sunny Mbila 

By Obadiah Mbila "See a man diligent in his business, he shall stand before Kings" Proverbs 22 vs 29. Chief Sunny Mbila’s leadership style is a valuable subject for the study of leadership in humanity and community development. The aforementioned verse from the Bible accurately portrays the character of an esteemed security professional, intelligence analyst, socialite, and community leader. Hailing from the esteemed lineage of the Very Reverend & Mrs Ochu Mbila of Ndi Uduma Awoke in Ohafia, Abia State, young Mbila achieved his initial academic milestone by acquiring his First School Leaving Certificate from Ndi Uduma Awoke in 1970.…
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Muhammad Nami: Double honour for the nation’s tax czar

Muhammad Nami: Double honour for the nation’s tax czar

By Nkem Precious Esq The aphorism that there is no hiding place for the golden fish was practically manifested last week when the Executive Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Muhammad Mamman Nami deservedly bagged double awards from reputable organisations. The nation’s number one tax collector at separate events was named winner of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) Merit Award and the winner of the BusinessDay Excellence in Public Service Award. Since his assumption of office as the Executive Chairman of the FIRS in 2019, Mr Muhammad Nami has been going about his duty with uncommon…
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Countdown To May 29— Abia’s Harvest Of Absurdities, By Chief Umeh Kalu (SAN)

Countdown To May 29— Abia’s Harvest Of Absurdities, By Chief Umeh Kalu (SAN)

Countdown To May 29— Abia's Harvest Of Absurdities  By Chief Umeh Kalu SAN The days between when you are reading this piece and May 29, 2023 are really seasons of extreme absurdities in Abia. Strange moments are here with us and the reasons for all these new trends stem from the prevailing season. It is a season of immense frenzy. A season when some will desire hours to be extended to days and days to be extended to weeks and even months. It is a season to mop up what is left and even a season to take care of…
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