OWOLOWO

June 12: Political Struggle as the Pathway to Egalitarianism and Future of Nigeria’s Development (Lecture)   Before we proceed, I want use this opportunity to remember Chief MKO Abiola. We cannot but acknowledge that without MKO Abiola, June 12 would not have been possible. It must be explicitly emphasized that MKO Abiola had the option to renounce his mandate, and be generously rewarded for it, but chose not to.   The Muslim-Muslim ticket was possible then, is it possible now? How far have we come since June 12 1993 elections? What has been the impact of democracy on the average person since 1999? There are so many questions about the impact of the annulment of that spectacular election on our polity.   “The Abiola chapter in Nigerian politics was historic in more ways than one, because he represented the dream of a new Nigeria and a modern Nigeria.” - Pa Anthony Enahoro   This presentation will be addressed via three cardinal sections: Political Struggle , Egalit...

Our Nothingness! A Summation of Our Collective Insignificance    All praise and glorification is due to Allah: The Lord of all the known and unknown worlds. The Creator of everything that exists, but was not created. The Beginning, without a beginning, and the ending, without an end. The essence of our being, and the Being of our essence. The One. The Absolute. The Initiator.  We are currently living in unprecedented times; the world has been shook by the “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus” (SARS-CoV-2) or Covid-19. As the pandemic unfolded, I remembered the joke about the atheist insisting on seeing God as a condition for accepting God’s existence, but running scared from what can't be seen. Evidently, the “seeing is believing” mantra is not always applicable, especially in this unprecedented scenario!   In actuality, though the coronavirus can't be seen with normal human vision, there are some specialized equipments that can be utilised...

US Protests and the House Negro Syndrome Since the George Floyd protests started, opposition has come from a particular demographic – outright racists and non- racists who are in denial about their role. However, a particular group of individuals caught my attention – ‘blacks’ that are countering the efforts of anti-racists who come from various backgrounds. White supremacist ideologies must never be condoned in any way, shape or form. Those at the receiving end will never see anything good or beneficial in protests. To the beneficiaries of social inequalities, protests portend a change in status quo. Protests by their very essence are spontaneous, and could take many forms – riots to revolutions. For example, the French Revolution would not have been encouraged by the ruling elite, but it was a catalyst that led to societal change. In analysing intricacies associated with the protests, Malcolm X's ‘House Negro’ terminology comes to mind, with particular emphasis ...

June 12: 20 Years of Democracy     Over the years I have celebrated June 12, and to commemorate the event I usually wrote articles. Some of those articles include:  “June 12: Hope and The ‘Dividends’ of Democracy”, “June 12: Sacrifices, Unity & Politics of Division and “June 12: Blood Democracy & Spirit of Reconciliation”. This year I am in a celebrative and reflective mood, and this will probably be my last commemorative June 12 article. When President Muhammadu Buhari made the June 12 pronouncement in 2018, his critics wrongly assumed it was primarily about his 2019 re-election bid, but nothing could be farther from the truth. The President has since won his re-election and could have reneged on his promise if the pronouncement was solely about electioneering. However, being a man of his word, President Buhari marked June 12 in grand style. The President graciously postponed his inaugural speech and associative events from May 29   to June 12, 2019;...