Many people have described Sarkozy as a hyper-active (think of his near-attack on paparazzi in the USA last week) and power drunk politician, but not many have described him as racist. Well, we now add that to many of the adjectives that describe him. On July 26, 2007, on a university campus in Dakar, President… Read More »
It is well known that Nigeria has the largest population in Africa, and the largest economy in West Africa; it is fairly well known that Nigeria’s military has been intervening in hot spots in the region; it is perhaps even less known that Nigerian movies are now, all over Africa, what bollywood movies were in… Read More »
I don’t know if you guys know, but my research is on informal economy in West Africa…. This morning, I got a confirmation that I am on the right track. I saw George Ayittey’s Ted Talk presentation and it reinforced what I always thought: the real economy in most African countries is the informal economy.… Read More »
One of my colleagues told me today that she had a CD for me. About an hour ago she walked into my office with a copy of Nneka’s Victim of Truth. I have since been listening to the CD, and I am finding the music really charming. I have googled her,found her website and her… Read More »
I am off to Berlin today. I am going in the company of one of my colleagues and his son. So, in effect, I am going as a ‘proper’ tourist. By the way, have you guys seen Letters from Iwo Jima? I saw it yesterday and I really liked it. It is a very nice… Read More »
I watched Dreamgirls last night, and it was so funny to hear Curtis Taylor, Jr.(Jamie Foxx) tell Deena Jones (Beyoncé) ‘Your voice has no personality, no depth.’ The funny thing is that I never thought much more than that of Beyoncé.
Jeff Koinange, CNN’s Africa correspondent was fired by CNN on May 29. Many people have said that it was because it was found that he fabricated a large part of the story on MEND in Nigeria. I am still wondering what he fabricated. Was the display of the hostages also ‘fabircated’? I think that CNN… Read More »
Zwartboek is the original title of the Paul Verhoeven movie I went to see at the cinema yesterday evening. I went with a Dutch colleague, his German girlfriend – and colleague – and another German colleague. It is a movie about a Jewish Dutch lady who was part of a resistance in Holland during the… Read More »
Didn’t know that anybody has proved/shown that Abacha died in the arms of prostitutes. Well, this is the opening sentence in this Economist article on the Nigerian elections “Ever since Sani Abacha expired in the arms of two Indian prostitutes, possibly from an overdose of Viagra, in 1998…” For the rest of the article click… Read More »
My mother called me yesterday evening to tell me that they had been forced to stay at home all day because of riots in the town and the whole state. I was told that people were rioting over the results of the gubernatorial elections. It was alleged that it was rigged in favour of the… Read More »