iPostThisWeek

President Bola Tinubu has submitted a list of 32 ambassadorial nominees to the Senate for confirmation. — Bayo Onanuga, Presidential Spokesman, via X The announcement of Nigeria’s new ambassadorial list did not first echo through the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), nor did it resound from the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA)’s evening news. Instead, it appeared on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. In that moment, governance once again bypassed the village square and chose the digital balcony. In Abraham Lincoln’s immortal words, in his 1863 Gettysburg Address, democracy was meant to be “government of the people, by the people, for the people.” Yet in Nigeria today, one might cheekily rephrase it: government of X, by X, and for X. The paradox is glaring. Our leaders increasingly address the citizenry through social media platforms like X, while most Nigerians, especially the poor, remain excluded from this digital agora. The Digital Balcony ...

Jean-Paul Sartre’s existential distinction between en-soi (being-in-itself) and pour-soi (being-for-itself) offers a striking lens through which to view Nigeria’s present condition. En-soi is static, unconscious, and complete, the mode of being of objects that simply exist. Pour-soi , by contrast, is dynamic, self-aware, and incomplete, the mode of being of conscious beings who must continually define themselves. Nigeria today is caught in a tension between these two modes: the state itself remains inert, silent, and object-like, while its constituent nations: Oduduwa, Arewa, and Biafra awaken as restless, self-defining communities. This existential clash is Nigeria’s imminent dilemma. The Awakening of Living Nations Oduduwa, Arewa, and Biafra embody pour-soi . They are not content to merely exist within the boundaries of a federation; they are conscious of their histories, their marginalisation, and their aspirations. They demand recognition, justice, and self-determination. Th...