okey ndibe

Arrows of Rain by Okey Ndibe; Bookcraft, Ibadan, Nigeria; 20th Anniversary Edition 2021; 230pp Okey Ndibe’s acclaimed debut novel Arrows of Rain was published in Year 2000 as one of…

There’s a chance that President Muhammadu Buhari would have come back to Nigeria by the time you read this column, but the fact that he had twice postponed his return…

I have argued before that the Nigerian state appears organized around the principle of inflicting maximum emotional aggravation, and, often, severe physical pain, on citizens and other occupants of the…

One of the rituals of my childhood was writing down New Year resolutions. Under instruction from our parents, my siblings and I distilled our hopes and dreams into written acts.…

A few days ago, a friend sent me a video of a choir made up of members of Nigeria’s security agencies singing “Feliz Navidad,” a popular Christmas song. The rendition…

President Muhammadu Buhari should admit, today, not tomorrow, that his so-called war against corruption is unserious, tiresome, illegitimate, hypocritical, and a waste of Nigerians’ time. Right away, he ought to…

I have said this before: one of the hardest tasks is to predict how Nigerians would react in any given situation. We are a perplexing bunch, able to defy the…

Except in extremely isolated cases—for example, as an act of self-defense—it is morally indefensible for individuals to engage in extra-judicial killing. When a government makes it its business to slaughter…

There’s something about this year’s presidential election in the US that is oddly reminiscent of Nigeria’s 2015 presidential polls. Many Americans, Democrats and Republicans alike, can’t quite fathom how the…

Last Friday, my wife and I traveled from New York City to Canton, upstate New York State, the location of St. Lawrence University. We were fortunate to be invited to…

On May 29, 2015, Nigerians handed the ball of change to President Muhammadu Buhari (aka Captain Buhar), a self-acclaimed wizard of change. From the sidelines, they commenced the business of…

I have written before about the profound pain that attaches to the vocation of commenting regularly on Nigeria. I wake up each day hoping, nay praying, that those who occupy…

South Africa is in the midst—some would say the very incipient stage—of a major political and cultural revolt. One of the most remarkable things about this movement is that young…

I’m deeply troubled by what appears to me to be Nigeria’s growing industry of making and exhibiting corpses. The Nigerian state—represented by its police and military—continues to refine its capacity…

A peculiarly Nigerian type of frenzy happened last week. The event was triggered by a report that a young woman named Amina Ali Nkeki, one of the more than 200…