ISSUES WITH FESTUS FIFEN

By our Reporter. There is no gainsaying that the President Muhammadu Buhari Led administration has less than 17 months to leave office since Nigerians elected him in 2015 in an election that made history in Nigeria as the only Presidential Election where an opposition candidate defeated an incumbent President. With the hopes and expectations for a new and better Nigeria compared to the previous administration of Goodluck Jonathan, one could imagine the level of frustration and disappointment of Nigerians when the Nation slipped into recession within the first two years of President Muhammadu Buhari heading the government.  The increase in inflation, interest rate, and the high cost of food not sparing the overall harsh economic realities left the government on a defensive part for the better part of the first four years of the administration.  Businesses Closed, those that survived the changes in the business environment had to downsize which led to job loss and so many people...

By Festus Fifen Recently the United Kingdom in response to the global red alert on the omicron variant of Covid-19 placed Nigeria as part of the high risk countries which later metamorphose to flight restrictions from Nigeria and other selected African countries by some European countries.  The United Kingdom over the years is a trusted partner as far as Nigeria is concerned. The flight restriction moves from some European countries especially the United Kingdom was perceived as unnecessary and discriminatory by a larger part of Nigerians home and abroad. No wonder the government through the honourable Minister of Information and culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed was very critical of the decision describing it as discriminatory and targeted at Nigerians for a virus that originated from China.  After about two days of the story making the rounds on different media platforms across the country, myself and the former Director General of the Nigeria Center for Disease Control, Professor...

By Festus Ejiroghene Fifen It is no longer news that the rate of crime and other related activities in the country has reached an alarming stage.   The average Nigerian has completely lost hope in the government’s security system for protection. Almost every other family across the country that can afford it, has one form of informal security arrangement or the other that they believe could come to their rescue when the need arises. In as much as we all believe in Nigeria as one indivisible entity called Nigeria, the few lines you have read above capture the new reality of things except we want to play the ostrich, a game that has brought us to where we are today as a country. Informal arrangements like Neighborhood Watch, vigilante groups, Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), Bakassi Boys, Egbesu Cult, Yan Banga and a host of others are security arrangements across the six geopolitical zones of the country that eventually gained popularity amongst Nigerians because of ...

By Daniel Osofisan Last week, Fortune, a part of the TIME network released a list of 34 World Leaders who are changing health care globally, and surprise! surprise! Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Chair of Gavi as well as CEO Seth Berkley, made the list.   While receiving awards and recognitions may seem like second nature to Dr Okonjo-Iweala, one is forced to admit that she is the recipient of countless awards because of her contributions to humanity, particularly to Africans where she has shown, time and again, her heart truly lies.   The African continent has fewer voices who remain consistent and constant in their advocacy than Mrs Iweala. In her pursuit for a better life for the African people, she has maintained a consistent stand whether as Gavi Chair, or as a member of the Asian Advisory Board, or as Finance Minister, or in any of the other capacities she has served or continues to serve. Small wonder, the world stops to listen when she speaks. Her achievements, no matter ...

By Festus Fifen. It is no longer news that diversification of the Nigerian economy is one of the recent clichés used in almost every government engagement, event or function, by this I  mean  every level of government from the Federal to State and Local Government/ Area councils.  This has made Political analyst to imagine if the statement is just another Political "Igodomigodo". The All Progressive Congress APC as a political party  during political campaigns and rallies promised to 'CHANGE' Nigeria with 81 campaign promises as aptly compiled by Naij.com an online publication with the reduction of over dependence on oil revenue as the hub of  the 'CHANGE' agenda.  Whether these Promises have been met or is being met  is a story for another day The President did not fail to Echo this in his inaugural speech when he said   "Unemployment, notably youth un-employment features strongly in our Party’s Manifesto. We int...