By Babafemi Ojudu I have read with amusement, the vituperations of some idle urchins on social media. Each time I write something critical about their hirer, they sneer: “He said he was retiring to The Farm. Where is his farm?” Others mock: “Don’t mind him; it’s just his house on Iworoko Road, Ado Ekiti.” They […]
By Babafemi Ojudu I READ Ray Ekpu’s moving tribute to our departed brother, Dan Agbese, with a mixture of sadness and admiration. Sadness, because we have lost a fine mind and a gentleman of the craft. Admiration, because even in grief Ray’s pen remains as evocative and commanding as ever. Ray has endured three personal […]
By Babafemi Ojudu I SPENT more than an hour this morning listening to Edmund Obilo’s interview with Col. Victor Banjo’s daughter, Prof. Oluyinka Omigbodun. As she narrated her father’s life — his brilliance, his courage, his idealism — what leapt out at me was the gaping, almost tragic strain of naïveté that ran through his […]...
By Babafemi Ojudu A LOT happens in Nigeria that, if you did not witness it yourself, you would swear it was impossible. Some events are so bizarre, so grotesque in their violation of common sense and morality, that even D.O. Fágúnwà’s magical adventures in Ìrìnkèrindò Nínú Igbo Elegbeje pale beside them. Yet these are not […]...
By Babafemi Ojudu I FIND it deeply troubling—and frankly, disappointing—the virulent mob outrage currently directed at a young woman whose only real offense appears to be that she dares to be different. That she dressed in a way some consider unconventional, that she spoke with a cultural tone shaped not by our narrow expectations but [&helli...
By Babafemi Ojudu, CON “To reclaim our future, we must remember and revive the values of our past. Education once shaped minds, not just CVs. It’s time to walk that road again.” LAST WEEK, I wrote about the past—the glorious era of our education system. It was a time when deliberate efforts were made to […]
By Senator Babafemi Ojudu, CON ON THE danger of digital thuggery and the ignorance of democratic principles Some intolerant children of ignorance have recently invaded my Facebook page and directed messages to hurl insults at me. Their offense? That I failed to praise their “god” — the President — in a simple, innocuous piece where […]...
By Babafemi Ojudu IN MANY parts of our hinterland—and even in our cities—sudden death is often attributed to what the Yoruba call apepa—a mystical demise believed to be caused by malevolent forces who summon a person’s soul from afar. One is said to have been “called,” their life abruptly and mysteriously ended. This belief, though […]...
By Senator Babafemi Ojudu, CON IT IS a privilege to share this rich, erudite, and deeply reflective review of my book, “Adventures of a Guerrilla Journalist,” by Prof. Toyin Falola—one of Africa’s most respected historians and public intellectuals. In this sweeping critique, Prof. Falola not only interrogates the themes and tensio...
By Babafemi Ojudu ACROSS THE Black world — from Harlem to Lagos, from Kingston to Johannesburg, many are keeping a close and anxious watch over Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the young president of Burkina Faso. In him, we see the spirit of a continent yearning to be free, dignified, and prosperous. Every voice we can raise […]
