The dawn of a new year is often celebrated with hope and renewal, a time when individuals reflect on the past and set intentions for the future. However, for some, the transition from one year to the next is marked by a stark contrast between celebration and confinement. This year, the somber reality of spending New Year’s Day in jail was vividly illustrated by the recent ruling of a federal high court in Abuja, which ordered the detention of former Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, along with his wife, Hajiya Asabe Bashir, and their son, Abubakar Abdulaziz Malami. This decision,…
Author: TheStories
The recent press statement by the Budget Office of the Federation seeks to clarify the legal basis for the repeal and re-enactment of the 2024 and 2025 Appropriation Acts. While the effort to engage public concerns is welcome, the explanation provided raises significant constitutional, fiscal governance, and transparency issues that require further clarification in the public interest. First, the argument that the Constitution does not expressly prohibit the repeal and re-enactment of an Appropriation Act relies heavily on constitutional silence rather than constitutional purpose. Nigeria’s Constitution embeds the principle of annual budgeting as a core mechanism for legislative control over…
A curious slogan has emerged in public discourse, one now casually deployed to brand certain nonconforming individuals as morally suspect: “pro-establishment activist.” It is often hurled at those who refuse to bow to popular narratives, groupthink, or the emotional comfort of prevailing sentiment. Once branded, their motives are questioned, their integrity doubted, and their arguments dismissed, not because those arguments lack substance, but because they are presumed compromised. Any attempt to acknowledge merit in government policies, to introduce alternative explanations, or to shield authorities from simplistic accusations is quickly framed as ignoble. The strategy is familiar: ignore the message, discredit…
In a recent article I wrote, titled “Life’s Refusal to Obey,” I reflected on how life persistently frustrates our expectations, especially when we try to force events to align with our rigid perceptions of merit, reputation, and control. We are often obsessed with fixed ideals, what we think we deserve, what we believe is the best possible outcome, and what we assume will earn the most public approval or moral validation. Over time, these ideals harden into unwritten rules, cherished formulas that govern almost everything: relationships, class attraction, political loyalty, and even moral judgment. We elevate these assumptions to the…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Sokoto State on Thursday formally inaugurated its electronic membership registration exercise, with former Governor and serving Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, leading party faithful to enroll under the new digital system. The inauguration, held in Sokoto, is in compliance with the national call by the party, to modernise its membership database, improve internal organisation, and strengthen grassroots participation ahead of future political engagements. Senator Wamakko, who was the first to be registered, said the exercise would have begun with the State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu but because he is away on Lesser Hajj to Saudi Arabia.…
For about forty-six days now, one full month and two restless weeks, non-physician health workers in federal hospitals have been on strike, and the most painful truth is that patients can hardly tell one disruption from another. To the average Nigerian standing helplessly at a hospital gate or wandering through silent corridors, there is no taxonomy of strikes, no professional distinctions to decode. What they see, feel, and suffer is simply that the hospitals are not working. Technically, it may be correct to argue that doctors are not on strike, but in lived reality that distinction collapses. A strike is…
Life has an uncanny way of humbling even the most confident among us. No matter who we are or how carefully we arrange our expectations, life refuses to obey neat arithmetic, public applause, or the comforting illusion that effort always guarantees outcomes. It disrupts logic, embarrasses certainty, and often leaves us searching for explanations when events defy science, convention, or popular belief. The more I reflect on recent headlines in Nigeria, the more convinced I become that disappointment is not an accident of life; it is one of its most reliable teachers. Take, for instance, the reaction to Aisha Buhari’s…
The North Central Development Commission (NCDC) has issued a public disclaimer warning Nigerians against the unauthorized use of its corporate name, logo, address, email, and institutional identity by individuals and groups posing as the Commission. In a statement signed by the Executive Director of Corporate Services, James Abel Uloko, the Commission said it had discovered misleading claims by impostors operating under names and digital platforms closely resembling that of the NCDC. The Commission clarified that it was lawfully established by an Act of 2024, with its Board duly constituted in 2025, and stressed that it has no affiliation or operational…
The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Hassan Kukah, has called on Nigerians to embrace hope, faith and collective responsibility despite the country’s deepening security and humanitarian challenges, saying Christmas remains a powerful reminder that light can overcome even the darkest circumstances. In his 2025 Christmas message titled “Joy and Hope in a Time of Tribulation,” Bishop Kukah acknowledged that Nigeria is celebrating the season amid widespread violence, sorrow and insecurity, but stressed that the birth of Christ affirms God’s abiding presence with humanity. He urged political leaders to show greater resolve in easing the suffering of citizens, insisting that…
The Office of former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, has accused the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) of openly defying a valid court order, unlawfully detaining him beyond the period permitted by law, and subjecting him to what it described as a “media trial.” In a press release dated December 23, 2025, and signed by Malami’s Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Bello Doka, the office said a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, had on the same day admitted Malami to bail after confirming that all bail conditions had been…