SANMI ADEKOLA BLOG

There is no doubt that this is not the best of times for Nigerians: no light, no fuel and it is like the last person who went to hell forgot to lock the gate behind him. Suffice to say, the heat is quite becoming unbearable. The prices of goods and services are equally on the increase. So for a Minister of the caliber of our Petroleum Minister (Dr Ibe Kachikwu) to come and tell us the pain we are experiencing with respect to shortage and scarcity of fuel is still to continue till May of this year is quite unbearable  (so many Nigerians think).  But the Minister was merely speaking the truth to a populace who are quite use to lies. Ordinarily, Nigerians would have expected the Minister to be more political in his statement. They would have loved him to say the fuel will be over in a matter of week even though the fuel persists for weeks more. Why? It is because they have been subjected to serious pain by  years of bad governance.  Unfortunately (and perhaps fortunately), the

Literally speaking, election is said to be a contest of ideas. It is the process through which the electorates choose people whom they deem fit are capable to represent them at various capacity be at executive or legislative level in a peaceful, fair and frequent manner; but Nigeria seems to have a different definition. Elections in Nigeria has become a do or die affair. Indeed, Nigeria is repleted with history of election rigging and mal-practices. One cannot forget in a hurry, the violence that characterized the Western election of 1964/1965 which ultimately led to the inglorious end of the first republic. What about the 'operation wetie' of 1983 in Ondo State. The 1993 election debacle not less the 2003, 2007, 2011 and the recent 2015 electoral violence are still fresh in our memory. Be that as it may, the recent impunity in Rivers State is quite becoming unbecoming with lives been maimed and killed all because some people want to win election at all cost. Or what

There is no perfect beginning only humble beginning, but we can rise to perfection through continuous hard-work, determination and perspiration. Indeed, only God knows how many dreams and visions have been wasted and jettisoned on the altar of perfect beginning. A search through history shows that most great names behind great empires and corporations we see around us today started from nowhere and anyhow, but today, they determine what happens in our world. Our lives is like building blocks, we build it block by block, day by day, step by step till they become edifice that will become the cynosure of all eyes. In the process of rising to the top, we are bound to fall and falter by the way sides, but we must not give up our quest to greatness. Our ideas and dreams, we must learn to pursue vigorously if we hope to make a mark in the world. Even Jesus Christ, the Master perfection did not start his life with a perfect beginning. After all, he was born in manger, and chose the u

Watching my erudite and brilliant Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo exchanged agreement with  the Swiss government delegations on how the Abacha loot will be repatriated back to the country three days ago, I felt like crying. Perhaps, this has to do with my little knowledge of international politics and relations. As a student of International Law & Diplomacy, one of the fundamental principles of States relations is the equality of all States; which means every State irrespective of size, resources, and population is a sovereign who command and enjoin similar status with other States. It was therefore embarrassing to me to see the Swiss government demanding for the purpose for which our illegally fraudulently stolen wealth by Abacha will be used for, before the money can be returned. Similarly, I cannot blamed the Swiss government nor the present Nigeria government for going that way; as  a lot of questions need to be raised and answered  on how the previously recov

Some days ago, I commented on twitter that the current Senate under the leadership of Senator Bukola Saraki is hell-bent on bringing down the government of President Muhammodu Buhari; some people took it personal. But the events as they unfold to me seem to be in that light. The present Senate started on an acrimony note when they choose to go against the wishes of the ruling party - All Progressives Congress leadership hierarchy by electing the principal officers of their own. I have no objection to that; it is their internal arrangement. However, many of the resolutions and motions of the upper legislature in recent times may demand further and more scrutiny. Yes, we cannot forget in a hurry the intrigues and politics that surrounded and pervaded the screening of the ministerial nominees. Following that is the attempt to make a mockery of the 2016 budget in which the Senate invented  new budget lexicons: 'Missing Budget', 'Padded Budget'; which academic

Now that NNPC has shut down nationwide, and PHCN is on strike, I wonder if things can go wrong than this; am however perturbed that Nigerians especially those who are benefiting from the wroth are not willing to allow things to move forward.  The case of Nigerians seems to be like the more things get better the more things go worse. Some weeks ago, the government announced that our electricity generation has hit an all time record of 5000 megawatts; but the week has hardly run out when some hoodlums went ahead to blow PHCN installation facilities. Same is with the refinery at Port Harcourt. The question on my leap is how long shall we continue to meander on the same issue? Do we actually want to have meaningful change? This is because I wonder how a sane man will go ahead to destroy public properties. We as a people must as a matter of fact think because we cannot continue like this if we hope to move forward. But beyond the people, how about the government itself, there

From time immemorial, the journey of life, and in particular, greatness has never been a bed of roses and may never be till the Earth wind up its existence. This is because in man's quest for survival and relevance, he constantly bites more than he can chew. Suffice to say, he create mountains which he must necessary subdue.   The analogy is simple: from pregnancy, we struggle to come out; we hardly come out than we strive to crawl, as we learn to crawl, we discover that we can do better by learning to walk. So the race for greatness and relevance continues. As we takes these leaps, we constantly faced with challenges to overcome. It is therefore not surprising that behind the smiles of most people are storms and tempest to be weather. Indeed, within the closets of most people that walk about in ambiance and glamour, are hours spend in tears and worrying. In this regards, Shakespeare rightly remarked: problem is to man, what maternity is to a woman! Persistently theref

Gradually, the road to the White House is becoming narrow and narrower every day. Suffice to say the boys are being separated from the men. If the result of the foregoing primary elections of both the Republican Party and the Democratic Party are anything to go by, then one can say the race is strictly between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump though no one can say for sure that is yet uhuru. The likes of Ben Carson, Ted Cruz,  Bernie Sanders and  Marco Rubio seem to be fading out. However, with  Hillary Clinton winning   Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia, eight States in all; and Donald  Trump :  Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Vermont and Virginia; the coast appears to be clearing. In this regard, a global analyst remarked thus: "Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton both took one step closer to securing nominations for the 2016 US presidential race with commanding victories on a night of caucuse