Culture as Institution

Where is Nigeria’s Thriving Middle-Class in 2021? The Youth Want to Know
Courtesy Adedire Abiodun

Where is Nigeria’s Great Middle-Class in 2021?

Where is Nigeria’s Thriving Middle-Class in 2021? The Youth Want to Know.

A truism of economies is they thrive when they have a large stable middle-class. In the mid-2010s, one of the most aggressive facts promoted about the Nigerian economy was that it had created a large and thriving middle-class. Many observers were skeptical but were called naysayers.

Today, we are all concerned about the future of our economies, which has become incalculable because of the uncertain impacts of COVID-19; rising inequality, growing poverty, upward concentration of wealth, and climate change. Nigeria is facing such concerns and has a serious youth immiseration and deprivation problem. The culture of youth neglect has never been so insensitive. And yes, the middle class and the less well-off are the hardest hit. Upward mobility for the youth has become a phantom. (more…)

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From A Myth to A Cure: Where Does Africa Go After
It was once incisions not injections.

From A Myth to A Cure: Vaccinations

From Myth to A Cure: Vaccinations

Can a universal cure come out of olden African culture, especially one that originates from mythology? “Nothing good comes out of Africa” is a settled statement of the many. Testing the truth of that statement can be difficult or easy, depending on a person’s education and exposure. (more…)

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Dino Melaye Adopts the Pyrates Confraternity: A PR Coup?
Courtesy onobello.com

Dino Melaye Adopts the Pyrates Confraternity

Dino Melaye Adopts the Pyrates Confraternity: A PR Coup?

[Former] Senator Dino Melaye – SDM – (Twitter handle: @dino_melaye) on the 4th of August 2020 tweeted a cynically edited video clip of members of the Pyrates Confraternity singing his name in elated spirits. The comment that accompanied the clip SDM presented was, “SDM loved everywhere… even Pirates [Pyrates].” Call it narcissism, the tweet appeared to be a subtly devised public relation’s [PR] coup by SDM. Perhaps, it has worked well in a nation with an ever ready atmosphere for the unusual. (more…)

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Fraternities Are Viruses In Nigeria 13 – The Disintegration

Fraternities Are Viruses In Nigeria 13

Fraternities Are Viruses In Nigeria 13 – The Disintegration

The leading University Campus Grown Fraternities (UCGF) have had a long run of durability in their existence. Like many glorified dictatorships, autocracies and predatory cults, their enduring survival is a function of the culture permitted by the founder or historical leader’s longevity. There is no retirement- some are late and some are present. (more…)

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NsiNsibidi: Pre-Colonial Education in Nigeriabidi: Education in Nigeria Before Colonisation
Courtesy Arinze, skyscrapercity.com

Nsibidi: Pre-Colonial Education in Nigeria

Nsibidi: Pre-Colonial Education in Nigeria

It is the simplest thing in the world to assume Sub-Saharan Africans were illiterate and uncivilised before the coming of the White man. Such is well-embraced by the African, more so, those with good education. Empire Day celebrated throughout the Commonwealth colonies reminded Nigerians that the King or Queen of England liberated them from bondage. The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, one of the best-loved works of Western literature, describes the African as a savage and languageless, communicating with grunts like apes. (more…)

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The Igbe Religion - Whiter than Black

The Igbe Religion – A Faith

The Igbe Religion – A Faith

Igbe is neither my personal nor family religion. Stiil, I lived in Urhoboland, where it originated and people still practise it, long enough to observe the faith with considerable detachment. I have also seen its practice in the United Kingdom. It is an Urhobo religion but may not be only so. In this brief article, I intend to look at the more gnostic and historical perspective of Igbe than its practices. Igbe in the Urhobo language means “Dance” or “Joy.” Igbe worship is also an act of gratitude to God for life itself and comprises celebratory devotion. (more…)

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