Buhari’s rigid leadership style is making Nigeria's economic problems harder to solve- Bloomberg

In an article titled "Nigeria's Economy needs Visionary Leadership", International business website, Bloomberg, said President Buhari’s rigid leadership style is making Nigeria's economic problems harder to solve. Read the article which was published today below.

Africa and the world cannot afford a failing economy in the continent’s most populous nation. Yet that is exactly what Nigeria might be getting: Its economy is on track to shrink by1.7 percent this year, the official unemployment rate has more than doubled over the last two years, and inflation is at an 11-year high.

One concrete step President Muhammadu Buhari could take to address the crisis would be to eliminate the country’s disastrous foreign exchange controls. Instead, Buhari has made no secret of his desire to defend Nigeria's currency.

And the central bank has mostly gone along. Despite allowingthe devaluation of the naira in June, it is continuing to manipulate the exchange rate -- discouraging foreign investors, creating a crippling shortage of dollars for businesses that need to import, and feeding a currency black market. To keep down the street price of vanishing dollars, Buhari’s government hasarrested informal money-changers. More capital controls are in the works.

Dismantling Nigeria’s foreign exchange controls will doubtless cause at least a short-term rise in inflation. Yet doing so will not only draw foreign investment and make the economy more productive and competitive, but also cut off a conduit for corruption. Buhari can cushion the blow for Nigeria’s poor through targeted cash payments -- an approach Nigeria has used in electronically delivering subsidies to poor farmers. That same mechanism could also shield the poor from the regressive impact of an increase in Nigeria’s value-added tax -- which is relatively low but a potentially valuable source of additional government revenue.

There are other ways to stimulate the economy, of course. But Nigeria’s Senate rejected Buhari’s three-year spending blueprint and an ambitious campaign to borrow $30 billion abroad because they lacked details. Meanwhile, his reluctance to sell off state-owned assets has undermined other efforts to raise revenue.

To be sure, Buhari faced ugly circumstances when he took office in May 2015. The plunge in oil prices had left the economy reeling and government coffers bare, and attacks by Boko Haram were ravaging the country. Yet while some progress has been made fighting both terrorism and corruption, Buhari’s rigid leadership style has made the country's economic problems harder to solve.

Buhari’s election and pledges of good governance rightfully raised expectations across Africa. To fulfill those hopes, however, he will have to demonstrate more flexibility.

VIDEO Premiere: Dj Maphorisa x Wizkid – Good Love (prod. Nana Rouges)

VIDEO Premiere: Dj Maphorisa x Wizkid – Good Love (prod. Nana Rouges)

The bromance between Nigeria’s hottest artist, Wizkid and one of South Africa’s finest producers, DJ Maphorisa, continues in this potential cross-over hip-hop tune titled “Good Love“.

Listen and watch the Nana Rouges-produced jam below.

VIDEO: Mafikizolo – Kucheza

Pop Sensational Duo Mafikizolo has launched another hit track titled Kucheza produced by half of Uhuru DJ Maphorisa from South Africa, co written by Vannesa Mdee, Kly and The duo.

Chimamanda Adichie writes on how BBC Newsnight deliberately pitted her against a Trump supporter

Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has opened up about her recent interview with BBC Newsnight, in which she got into heated discussion with Emmeett Tyrrell, editor-in-chief of The American Spectator and staunch supporter of American President-Elect Donald Trump.


In the viral interview that has since been shared across the internet, Ms Adichie and Emmett discussed the role of racism in the U.S presidential election, particularly in relation to Trump's campaign.When Tyrrell claimed Trump has not been racist, she replied: I 'm sorry but ...if you are a white man, you don't get to define what racism is, you really don't"


In a lengthy post published on her official Facebook page on November 24th, Ms Adichie said she was not aware she would be on a panel with a Trump supporter.
She described BBC's move as a "deliberately strategy that news organizations use in the pursuit of what is often called 'good television'. Read what she said below:
"Two weeks ago, BBC Newsnight contacted my manager to ask for an interview with me. I would be interviewed by the presenter, they said, and would broadly be asked about the election. I said yes.
When I arrived at their studio in Washington DC, the show’s producer casually said, “You’ll be on a panel with a Trump Supporter. A magazine editor who has supported Donald Trump from the beginning.”
“What?” I said. At no time had I been told that there would be anyone else in the interview, never mind being pitted against a Trump Supporter.
I felt upset and ambushed.
I wanted to walk away, but decided not to. I was already there. And I did want to talk about the election, which I had experienced in a deeply personal way. I was still stunned and angry and sad. I still woke up feeling heavy. Not only because I am an enthusiastic supporter of Hillary Clinton, but also because, with Donald Trump’s win, America just didn’t feel like America anymore. The country that grew from an idea of freedom was now to be governed by an authoritarian demagogue.
“I’m sorry you didn’t know it was a panel,” The producer said. “There must have been some mistake somewhere when your manager spoke to the people in London.”
Some mistake somewhere. My manager had simply not been told.
“We want to have balance,” he said.
But sneakily pitting me against a Trump Supporter was not about balance – we could have easily been interviewed separately.
It is a deliberately adversarial strategy that news organizations use in the pursuit of what is often called ‘good television.’
It is about entertainment.
I told the producer that my condition was that I not be asked to respond directly to anything the Trump Supporter had to say.
We could both air our opinions without being egged on to ‘fight it out.’
The Trump Supporter arrived. A well dressed, well groomed elderly man. The producer greeted him, gushed a little. He introduced me to the Trump Supporter. “She will be on the panel with you,” he said.
The Trump Supporter barely glanced at me.
The producer wanted us to shake hands, and he gestured to complete the introduction. We shook hands.
“How are you?” I said. Something about the tilt of the Trump Supporter’s head made me think that perhaps he had hearing problems – and suddenly his standoffishness was forgivable.
I felt a kind of compassion, while also thinking: why would this man, editor of a conservative magazine, be willing to put America in the hands of a stubbornly uninformed demagogue who does not even believe in classic conservative principles?
We got on air. We were seated uncomfortably close. The studio itself was strange, a flimsy tent on top of a building that overlooks the White House. A strong wind rattled the awning.
The interview began. I was determined to speak honestly, and not be distracted by the Trump Supporter, and be done with it and go home and never again allow myself to be ambushed in a television interview.
Until the Trump Supporter said that word ‘emotionally.’
“I do not respond emotionally like this lady,” he said.
I thought: o ginidi na-eme nwoke a?
He didn’t say my name. Perhaps he didn’t know it because he had not paid attention when we were introduced. Mine is not an easy name for languid American tongues anyway. But that word ‘emotional.’ No. Just no.
Normally I would not think of ‘emotional’ as belittling. Emotion is a luminous, human quality. I am often emotional – gratefully so. But in this context it was coded language with a long history.
To say that I responded ‘emotionally’ to the election was to say that I had not engaged my intellect. ‘Emotional’ is a word that has been used to dismiss many necessary conversations especially about gender or race. ‘Emotional’ is a way of discounting what you have said without engaging with it.
No way was I going to ignore that. Which, predictably, led to an interview in which I found myself, rather than talking about misogyny and populism, responding to a man who claimed that an anti-NAFTA, China-bashing, America-First Donald Trump would be an ‘internationalist’ rather than an ‘isolationist.’
Who presumed that he, a white man, could decide what was racist and what was not. And who insisted that Donald Trump is not a racist, even though the evidence is glaring, even though the House Majority Leader of Donald Trump’s own Republican party condemned Donald Trump’s racism.
So much for responding ‘emotionally’ to the election.I left that interview still feeling upset. But it made me better see why America no longer feels like America.

Tiwa Savage, Lilian Esoro, Iyabo Ojo, Osas Ajibade and a host of others at the 2016 ELOY Awards

Tiwa Savage, Omoni Oboli who won movie producer of the year, Somkele who emerged big screen actress of the year award, Ufuoma McDermott, actress Toyin Aimakhu, TV Presenter Layole Oyatogun,Adunni Ade, Osas Ajibade ,Iyabo Ojo, Lilian Esoro, Toni Tones, Lolo and a host of other people all attended the 2016 ELOY Awards which took place in Lagos yesterday. More photos after the cut..

Shi'ites pose a Threat to Nigeria’s Sovereignty – Nasir El-Rufai says

Kaduna state governor Nasir El-Rufai says members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria aka Shi'ites pose a threat to the sovereignty of Nigeria if they are allowed to continue to practice their form of religion. El-Rufai who in October banned the group from holding meetings in the state, said this when he spoke with newsmen in Kaduna yesterday November 27th.

He accused the group and its leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky, of attempting to run a parallel government in the state. He said for many years, Shi'ite members have repeatedly harassed residents of the state who refuse to follow their religion. He accused the group of having an agenda to cause a religious conflict in

Mother and son photos cause outrage on social media

These photos of Ms Lopez and her son JayChris have been making the rounds on the Internet and it's causing a lot of outrage. According to Lopez's Facebook page, she is single and has another child, a daughter, Tia. In all her Facebook and Instagram pages, there is no photo of her kissing her daughter but there are several intimate photos of her kissing her son, as far back as when he was a lot younger. People have asked for Child protection services to be invited to her home to check her activities. More photos and comments after the cut...