Robtakes

The occasion was the convocation of the University of Ibadan. The date was 17th November, 1976. The speaker was President of Tanzania, Mwalimu Julius Nyerere. The title of his address was: The Process of Liberation. He identified four periods in the liberation process namely: freedom from colonialism and racist minority rule; freedom from external economic domination; freedom from poverty and from injustice and oppression imposed…

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As Nigeria marches towards the inauguration of the 9th National Assembly in June 2019, calls and counter calls that officers be selected based on the religion they profess have poured into the media so it is a good time to remember the sense in the late Prime Minister’s charge. He gave the warning following the controversies that dogged the government’s decision to negotiate and sign…

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We would continue to chip at the problem. We would continue to probe. We would continue to ask, seek and knock. We would continue to push, push and push. While we wait patiently for our time. We would continue to polish, horn, improve and continue to learn. We would continue to search. We would continue to trust. We would continue to keep grit, effort and…

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Movies have been known to transport viewers to otherworldly territories, and expand their imaginations. They have been known to elicit a mix bag of emotions depending on the story and its execution but what connections might there be between some of our cinema-going habits and liberation struggles? How well or otherwise would we fare should we decide to require all cinema-goers in the country to…

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Africa’s richest man and Nigeria’s pride, Aliko Dangote revealed much about himself recently during an interview with fellow billionaire Mo Ibrahim but the fact that he does not have Angolan visa on his African Union passport got my mind working in many directions, especially to the past.

National Electric Power Authority, NEPA used to be the national parastatal in charge of electricity generation, marketing and distribution. We now have new players carrying out those functions but ‘UP NEPA’ is not likely to leave our lexicon soon. So many homes and offices have had their equipment and machines converted to antiques and monuments by high voltage, power surges and power outages from NEPA….

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In 1962, John D Rockefeller Foundation’s grant of almost $250,000 enabled the creation of School of Drama at the University of Ibadan. The School of Drama eventually became a major reference point in training, instruction and performance arts. The billionaire American steel magnate never set foot in Ibadan but his resources most significantly provided the manure in which the creative juices and energies of a…

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There was a time in the 60s when Nigeria avoided international organizations that were dominated by Arab states such as Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC. When Sir Ahmadu Bello, leader of the Northern People’s Congress, NPC and Premier of the Northern Region, was appointed Vice Chairman of the World Muslim League, he demanded that Nigeria should join the organization but Prime Minister Balewa promptly…

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