Fidel Castro: The burden of a name by Dele Agekameh

Fidel Castro

It is not only those who attended Castro’s funeral last Sunday that are mourning him. There are lots of other mourners all over the globe. One of them is yours truly. My obsession with Fidel Castro’s persona dates back to 1972. That was my second year as a student at Saint John’s Grammar School, Ile-Ife, present day Osun State. Saint John’s was founded in 1962 by the late Reverend Father Fabian Cloutier. He was a Christian missionary of the Roman Catholic faith who came all the way from Canada to Nigeria for pastoral duties and settled in Ile-Ife where he lived until he retired and relocated to Canada. He died few years ago.
As somebody who

My Fears for Buhari (Part 2) by Dele Agekameh

By Dele Agekameh

Last week, this column dwelt on the president’s 100 days in office. It highlighted the initial hiccups, particularly the unending drama at the National Assembly which, by all account, is still simmering and could slow down the wheel of governance. It also touched on other problems and prospects of the Buhari administration.

Quite refreshingly, Nigerians have embarked on a countdown to the formation of the much-awaited new cabinet which the president has promised to put together before the end of this month. Sure, the composition of the new cabinet will provide a binocular for people to view the direction of the new administration, most importantly, the road it will take to usher in its change agenda.

Only last week, the president insisted that past officials of government, including elected governors, ministers and other appointees who still had in their possession, diplomatic passports, should hand them over immediately. That, in itself, is a departure from the rotten past where former government officials who had ended their services to the country or who were even disgraced out of office, still enjoy the perks of office, including waving their

My fears for Buhari (part 1) by Dele Agekameh

 Dele Agekameh
President Muhammadu Buhari’s 100 days in office is a paradox of mixed feelings. While many people believe his administration is on the right path towards moving the country to greatness, others believe the first 100 days of the president has not brought much hope for a greater future for the country. Whereas everybody is entitled to his or her opinion, we must be careful not to jump into any hasty conclusion on the president’s avowed determination to right the wrongs of the past and put the nation on a new political and economic pedestal that will enable it to compete favourably among the comity of nations.
Nigeria has come a long way in terms of decadence and retrogression such that the nation has not only become a laughing stock all over the place, it is also a country that was almost being avoided globally when it comes to discussing