April/May 2023

The Anxious Dawn of Tinubu’s Turn Bola Ahmed Tinubu becomes Nigeria’s Seventh Democratically Elected President

Yusuf OmotayoMay 28, 2023

While his opponents have petitioned the results of the 2023 election, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, famed ‘godfather’ of Lagos politics, takes over as the seventh democratically elected president of Nigeria. He inherits a country mired in social fractures, economic crises and unrelenting insecurity.

April/May 2023Nigeria

‘Being an Editor Is a Magical Work’ Chimeka Garricks’ First Draft

Chimeka GarricksMay 26, 2023

Nigerian author and editor, Chimeka Garricks, didn’t intend for the Niger-Delta crisis to be the main theme of his debut novel, Tomorrow Died Yesterday. ‘I tried to write the truth as I know it. To show that the issues are complex, hued with plenty of grey, and that all major players are complicit in varying ways to the dysfunction,’ he told us in our latest, First Draft interview.

April/May 2023First DraftInterviewsNigeria

A Nation Divided Editor’s Foreword: The Republic V7, N2

Wale LawalMay 22, 2023

In a few days, Nigeria will begin a new presidential administration. Will a Tinubu presidency unite or further divide us? Our latest issue, A Nation Divided, looks at the forthcoming inauguration, the meaning of a Tinubu presidency and the roads that lie ahead.

April/May 2023Nigeriavol7-no2

After the Golden Era Restoring Nigeria’s Foreign Policy Towards West Africa

Daniel Olaoluwa WhyteMay 22, 2023

Nigerian politics matter at home and abroad, particularly for West Africa. Likewise, West Africa’s stability or otherwise matters and has real implications for Nigeria. Unlike the Muhammadu Buhari administration, Nigeria’s next president cannot afford to neglect foreign policy in favour of an overemphasis on domestic issues.

April/May 2023Best of 2023: EssaysNigeriavol7-no2

Politics, Priorities, and Policies Nigeria’s Post-Presidential Inauguration Era and the Burden of Nation Building

Folahanmi AinaMay 22, 2023

A deliberate decision from the incoming administration to show magnanimity across the political divide along with a rigorous pursuit of people-centred policies will go a long way in kick starting the process of national reconciliation, leading up to nation building. All that Nigerians are asking for is a chance to witnesses a nation that works for them in their lifetime.

April/May 2023Nigeriavol7-no2

To Be or Not to Be Surreal? Abba T. Makama’s Biggest Question Yet

Hillary EssienMay 22, 2023

‘We chose the term “surreal” not because we were surrealist filmmakers,’ Abba T. Makama says of his collective, Surreal16. ‘We felt surrealism was another word for dreaming. When you’re dreaming, the ego is asleep and you’re running on the unconscious. You’re free. It’s about freedom of creativity.’

April/May 2023InterviewsNigeriavol7-no2

Surviving the Long Shadow of Trauma Life after the Owo Church Massacre

Adesola IkulajoluMay 22, 2023

Nearly a year after a shooting took place at St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State, we visited the church, where despite the trauma of surviving a massacre, church members have returned, and service has resumed.

April/May 2023Nigeriavol7-no2

‘Ellu P’ Power A New Potential for Nigerian Opposition Politics

Muzz MuhammadMay 22, 2023

Though the Labour Party has spent much of its energies in the post-election period challenging the outcomes of the 2023 elections, the party has several unique opportunities to leverage its strengths while in the opposition.

April/May 2023Nigeriavol7-no2

Will the Winners Take It All? Tinubu’s Presidency and the Challenge of Peacebuilding in South East Nigeria

Charles EkpoMay 22, 2023

Nigeria has been one of the major hurdles to economic integration across West Africa, this author argues. It is one of the most inward-looking developing countries in the world, but will the next president be able to reverse this trend?

April/May 2023Nigeriavol7-no2