Focusing on the poetics of the belly
Bibi Bakare-Yusuf, publisher of Cassava Republic Press talks about book publishing in Nigeria.
Category Archives: Nigeria
The Economist interview on Boko Haram
The Africa editor of The Economist talks to Lizzy Donnelly of Chatham House on Boko Haram. I mostly agree with her, mainly because she made sure to express the uncertainties about Boko Haram, the disagreement among ‘Nigeria watchers’ and ‘analysts’ on the group, and the fact that there is so much that is not known… Read More »
Reviews of Achebe’s There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra
First the conclusion of this ‘review’ (really, it is a summary of what the ‘reviewer’ likes in the book; and such a word as review should ideally not be used for it. If, however, we choose to call it a review, we should add that it is at best anodyne) by Noo Saro-Wiwa: The final… Read More »
Three Nigerian states fight over a newly-developed oil field
On August 30, president Goodluck Jonathan flew by helicopter to Aguleri Otu in Anambra state, in south-east Nigeria, to commission the construction of the country’s first privately-owned refinery and declare Anambra Nigeria’s tenth oil-producing state. Hours into the festivities, two bordering states, Kogi and Enugu, issued public statements claiming that the oilfields, OPL 915 and… Read More »
History of corruption in Nigerian leadership
WHEN BABANGIDA SEIZED POWER ON AUGUST 27, 1985, the country owed $12 billion. The squandering regime raised the national debt to $33 billion in only about six years. When he hijacked power, only N11.8 billion naira was in circulation in Nigeria. At the termination of his misrule, General Babangida, Osoba argues, had injected ‘an intolerably… Read More »
Elder’s Corner: A documentary about Nigeria’s musical icons
This is a synopsis: Elder’s Corner is musical journey through pivotal moments in the colorful history of Nigeria as told through the lives and careers of the nations foremost music legends. It is a story about the eroding effects of colonialism, bitter ethnic clashes, politics, oil, power, money and their combined effects on a nation… Read More »
On the case of disappearing penises
A couple of weekends ago we hosted a friend who had just returned from Nigeria. She mentioned that penises were currently being ‘disappeared’ in the country. We smiled, we laughed, and I told the story of how I first learnt about disappearing penises. Like a good, self-respecting, PhD-holding anthropologist, I concluded by insisting that I… Read More »
On Boko Haram
Mao Kaci on NigeriansTalk: Any time I recall scenes from that video showing security officers of the Nigerian state ferret men, young and old, able and disabled, from behind closed doors in their homes and efficiently shoot them to death in the streets of Maiduguri in 2009, I find myself thinking: If that had been… Read More »
Nigerian bragging right of the day
According to the latest dispatch of cables by wikileaks, the Nigerian envoy told US officials that he was shocked that Zimbabweans spent their time in queues without so much as batting an eyelid. “They line up for hours to get a few dollars from their bank accounts,” Adenyaju said. “Then they go home and do… Read More »
Aljazeera focuses on Nigeria
Dr Okonjo-Iweala, the returning finance minister and new economy Czar (couldn’t resist that one) starts talking at about 4:30. She talks about agriculture, manufacturing, job creation and even Nollywood. I don’t yet have an opinion on her and her new team – it is much too early – but in a few months, one should… Read More »