What makes any out-going year worthy of sectoral review is not the volume of speculation piled in the activities that were held that year. It is not the interplay of the expectations, whether met or unmet, bandied around that year. It is not even the earth-shaking events that occurred that year. No, for News in Africa Online, what makes a particular year stand out is the allure of tidings and fore-bodings that impacted positively on the generality of the people in the country, area or community.
In this edition, we have looked with different types of lenses at Nigeria, Liberia, Zimbabwe and Kenya. What stands out in our weekly analysis of the pertinent issues – Politics, Business, Economy and World Report – is the essence of time. For instance, if the celebrated Liberian footballer, George Weah, had decided to become militant or disgruntled after losing elections to Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, he probably would not be available for the 2017 presidential contest. Now, time will make him President in a forth night!
In Kenya, opposition politician Raila Odinga probably considers his age as a minus and has no patience for time. In the same vein, some politicians in Nigeria threatened fire and brimstone in 2015 when General Buhari was declared the winner of the presidential contest. Already, the Nigerian electoral umpire has rolled the dice for another presidential contest in 2019. How time flies! But even in flight, time provides another chance. Read our entries in this edition.
Under our ICT column, see the worrisome menace created by the push of technology – Youths who are wired by social media – but they know not where they are headed. It is like a man who hits the road well-dressed but has no particular destination.
Most people complain about so many things but would not lift a finger to correct any clear anomaly. Click on Women Issues and you will see that the authorities in Tanzania are doing something effectively to halt teenage marriage in their country.
Let there be no doubt about it – retributive justice can be handed out anywhere, even in a capitalist society like the USA. Might is not always right. That is what the Judiciary has told the erring Nsobundu couple in Texas. The couple will pay heavily for their crimes against a hapless woman they enslaved for two years.
Nigeria is in a unique kind of trouble. On the international market, crude oil prices have appreciated. But at home, there is acute shortage of the processed commodity. Motorists and other consumers are suffering as the authorities push the blame from one agency to another. The people seem to be constantly living under the threat and reality of terrorist attacks. To make matters worse, violence from herdsmen erupts across the land every now and then without any warning. It is like a stage of siege. The renowned writer and Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, calls it Impunity.
Africa continues to show veritable signs in many areas that it is eager to catch up with international standards in diplomacy. Visa concessions, multiple entries and dual citizenship are in vogue across embassies and airports in various regions. There are drawbacks but that will not be the excuse for officials to fold their hands. Forward ever, is a positive strategy.
In our Sports Column, as promised, we captured the CAF Awards show in Accra, Ghana. Although it is a Win-some Lose-some situation, we join the lucky stars in celebrating their good fortune. The edition is loaded. Enjoy it.
Pat I. Chukwuelue
Editor-in-Chief
