The Learners' Den

  I want to start by congratulating Hon. Bashir Sheriff Machina on winning his legal tussle in court on September 28, 2022. I sincerely believe this is a crucial win for him and us (his supporters and well-wishers). We are, indeed, very grateful to God for this triumph. Admittedly, we have fervently prayed for this day, and now we can bask in the sheer happiness that it brings. This is a victory for democracy as well as any person yearning for change in Yobe North and beyond. For Nigeria's justice system, this is a positive outlook as we saunter into the general election of 2023. This gives the feeling that the rule of law will be protected. Certainly, this would boost Nigerians' trust in the legal system.    Moving on, as you can recall, Nigeria had primary elections a few months ago in preparation for the main election in 2023. Before the primaries, it was permitted for each prospective candidate to purchase his nomination and expression of interest forms. We've seen ho...

A controversial issue in the argument of resource-curse countries advanced by Zainab Usman in her book, "Economic Diversification in Nigeria," and Leif Wenar in his book, "Blood Oil: Tyrants, Violence, and the Rules that Run the World," is that both authors, in my opinion, made a compelling argument. According to Zainab, Nigeria's political structure is unbalanced, which prevents it from implementing strong policies that would increase the likelihood that it would be compared favorably with nations like Dubai. While Leif maintained that any nation that relies heavily on profits from the extraction of raw commodities, such as minerals and fossil fuels, is doomed because instability will plague that nation. For example, Zainab claimed that, despite Nigeria having gone through some of the worst crises since independence, most notably the Nigerian civil war and insurgency posed by Niger-Delta militants, a region from which Nigeria extracts its main source of revenue...

Tun bayan dawowa tsarin demokraɗiyya a shekarar alif dubu ɗaya da ɗari tara da casa'in da tara (1999) babu wani shugaba daya kai matakin da Chief Olusegun Obasanjo yakai ƙasar nan a shekaru takwas da yayi yana mulkin farar hula. Duk da cewa Najeriya tafi samun kuɗaɗen shiga masu yawa a wannan lokaci. Bayan wasu karance-karance dana yi cikin ƴan kwanakin nan akan Najeriya, na fahimci cewa Najeriya har yau ta kasa samun shugaba kamar Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. Ingantattun bayanai da fashin baƙi da manazarta tarihi da kuma tattalin arzikin ƙasa sukayi yanuna cewa Obasanjo yayi ƙoƙarin inganta rayuwar al'ummar Najeriya. Ya kawo tsarukan aiki masu nagarta wajen haɓaka tattalin arzikin ƙasa da kuma cigaban al'umma. Ni baƙin cikina yau shine, mai yasa majalisar dokokin Najeriya da masu faɗa aji na cikin ƙasar suka dakatar da ƙudirin Obasanjo na yiwa dokar ƙasa garambawul da zata bashi damar komawa kujerar mulki a karo na uku. Wataƙila da yanzu mun wuce wannan babin daya addabe mu du...

  In reading Zainab Usman's book, "The Economic Diversification in Nigeria," I learned that the vast majority of the current ruling class and a larger coalition of non-ruling classes were fully sponsored by Nigeria's government to study for a post-secondary school diploma and university in the 1970s. This sponsorship pays for tuition, housing, personal expenses, and books. This suggests that their parents did not invest any money in their education. It is the government that has made them who they are today, especially the class that owns everything. Furthermore, following graduation, these post-independence intellectuals have ready-made jobs in government agencies or private firms with a fantastic monthly paycheck. Every bit of the 1970s was enjoyed by most of the citizens who are making everything hard for us. In retrospect, the 1970s have given us hope and encouraged many of us to dream big, knowing that we have a country that will help nurture our talents and beco...

If I am not mistaken, at President Muhammadu Buhari's inauguration on May 29, 2015, he vowed to usher in a new era in Nigeria devoid of corruption, intermittent electricity distribution, insecurity, and an alarming rate of unemployment wrecking every nook and cranny of the country. Astonishingly, what the vast majority of Nigerians reaped today is a country that has no direction let alone to provide a secure and safe environment for prosperity to thrive. Funnily, anytime the President is summoned to explain why the country is going in the manner it is now, he will just gloat about how prosperous his government has been, even though in reality, the reverse is the case. The majority who own nothing know that he — Buhari — has failed to uplift more than half of the population out of abject poverty. Similarly, despite being a former General in the Nigerian Army, he has failed to provide a blueprint capable of addressing the insecurity that has made Nigeria unsafe. Although our educatio...

  What Our Basic Clinical Psychology Taught Us I'm currently reading "Great Conversations Most People Never Heard." This book is a compilation of incredible speeches delivered by great thought leaders such as Steve Jobs and Peter Kaufman. It was written by the well-known James Clear, who regularly sent his email subscribers weekly newsletters, dubbed 3-2-1, on self-improvement. He is also the author of Atomic Habit, a book that has been translated into several languages and sold over five million copies. Although I haven't finished reading the book yet, one particular talk, "Multidisciplinary Approach to Thinking," given by Peter Kaufman, has piqued my interest thus far. Admittedly, I learned invaluable lessons that I regret not having known earlier in life. In this speech that lasted almost an hour, the speaker presented paths we can take to understand ourselves, the dots that connect us, and how we can think and behave in a variety of ways.  Here is the bo...

If you follow Nigerian political news, you may have heard or read the amusing stories of Nigeria's Senate President, Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan, and Hon. Bashir Sheriff Machina. Everyone is aware that Ahmed Lawan ran in and lost the presidential primary election to his political godfather, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tunubu. While Hon. Machina ran in and won the Yobe North senatorial district primary election by a wide margin. Undoubtedly, the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) and security personnel observed and documented these two events. Ahmed Lawan suddenly gawked shamefully and disgracefully at the seat he had never contested during the primary election. Everyone, especially Machina's camp, assumed it was a rumor from the start. However, the rumors were true, as it turned out. Despite not being on the ballot during the primaries, Lawan wants to be re-elected as the APC's flag bearer in Yobe North. I was taken aback by the fact that a Senate President should have known the law be...