Author: Jarlath Opara

We are too normal! Too gentle. We talk too much, analyse pretty well, rationalise issues and situations, manage and endure extreme pains and discomfort, suffering and smiling. Sadly, we are not mad enough to change and reset the balcanized corrupt minds of our leaders and those at the corridor of powers, doing the doings that have perpetually kept us in a very impoverished situation. They walk right inside our bathroom, take away our towels, off they sprint away with it. For shame on how to pursue them in our nakedness, we allow them to go unpursued. They looked at our…

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The internet awashed with clips and episodes of tributes. So touching tears rolled down my cheeks, flowing like a flood. Severally I went back to those clips, watched, rewatched and watched again, nothing but the emptiness of life jumped at me each time. I cried, yes for the way and manner the trio exited gruesomely in one day, but more importantly I cried at the emptiness of life, we struggle, slave round, step on toes, kill , destroy, defame, loot etc to amass only to leave all and go empty and bare. Though I knew that life without an assurance…

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Strange and bizarre? Flaunting and playing to the gallery? Grandstanding and overly sanctimonious act? What exactly was he looking for, in a Job that many see as one for the low -life, those who struggle and pull through life with financial strains and difficulties. These and more are the first instinctive reaction of many as the news of Hon. Mcdonald Kelechi Ebere PhD becoming Government House Chapel Catechist makes the round. It takes a deeper and contemplative soul to understand the very unusual but privileged position it is being a Catechist at whatever cadre. It is very challenging both physically…

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Nigeria isn’t doomed after all. The future not completely bleaked and the hope of the younger generation to be in the saddle not entirely eclipsed. With the stuff and status of people like Hardy Onyinye Biaduo one could still heave a sigh of relief.  It is no coincidence that he celebrates his birthday on this day 21st of Feb 2024. It is a unique day , even in the religious circles 7th, 9th and 21st are notable, holding deeper religious activities. He isn’t given to things that would stain and scorch integrity. Fair and firm in approach, blunt and audacious…

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There are a lot of secrets around me. I guess same is applicable to you. Not all that ones eyes see, one ears hear and ones nose perceives are meant to play guest to ones mouth.  Certain things are meant to find a place of eternal rest in the mind,far removed from the scratching ears 9and slippery mouths of many. We are a repository of secrets not a dispenser of them. We are the cistern, where people come to unburden their pains, worries, challenges and disappointments, with the assurance of them being safe, sealed never to experience leakages. We are…

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Almost seven days since the unfortunate death of Dr. Herbert Wigwe, his wife and child the Internet has been awashed with revelations behind the “stupendiosity” of his wealth. I remember writing my little tribute to him a day after his death. It was one death that touched my emotions deeply.  It brought closer to me the vanity of life and the need to focus more on things that defie transiency, more on things that would determine ones place in the infinite world. I also expressed my displeasure on the way and manner his position was filled immediately he died. Though…

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He will always not disappoint. His “Controversies” are usually strong and deep, no matter how one tries to skew them, they will always be what they are , the true spirit of the gospel. All his “Controversies” have been speaking truth to reality, reasoning above doctrines and dogmas. When he said that heaven and hell are a state, the whole Catholic Church went agog. When he talked about the blessings of gay, It was riotous. Now you can eat and drink anything one desires during lent. Hmmmm! One wonders the kind of uproar it will generate.  Kudos to Pope! You…

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I didn’t hear the normal noise. Everywhere was quiet. I could practically hear the footprints of ants and chirping sounds of crickets. The last time I noticed this kind of magna silencia was on 1st of March 2023 by 4.18 am when Yakubu declared Tinubu the President. 11th of Feb was a night of sorrow, tension and nightmare. The bottles of champagne set aside to be popped remained untouched. The dance shoes already arranged for the victory, nobody remembered them again. One by one,with a drooping spirit many walked out of the viewing centres believing it was a dream. For…

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A time like this will surely come. Time to go. Nothing remains permanent, transience and finite the very quality of humanity. Nothing changes it, it is beyond the creativity and artistry of anybody.   Time to go! one reality we will all experience one day and when it comes nothing changes it, nothing stops it. Looking back, beholding all the beauty of the world, the achievements of our industry, the fame, the eulogies, the laurels and every other things done that etched our name on gold , saying time to go could be challenging; but we must when the time comes.…

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This isn’t the first time. Severally it has happened. It isn’t a coincidence, rather a divine orchestration to unmask and demobilise the ploy to make love a channel for immorality.  I4th February isn’t what it had already been painted to look like. It is much more, worths more and gives a pure dimension of what true love is and should be. For years, 14th February has suffered corruption. Marred and made to look like one dirty thing that daints and smears. It is much more than it has been presented to the world. It is Purity. It is charity, godliness…

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Why do bad news travel so fast, spreading like harmattan fire? Why are people’s fingers so proficient in typing and sharing bad news than they would with good news? Why do some people crave to be the first to break bad news than goodnews? I have taken time to ruminate over it, honestly it beats my imagination. Is it our nature? Just being human? The death of an APC Chieftain, Dr. CAIRO OJOUGOH on Wednesday 7th February 2024 was an unfortunate one, not even himself expected it. Hale and hearty, full of life, sitting in the comfort of his home,…

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He is a “young man” beginning another round of journey into a deeper level of what life is. Usually not everybody gets this privilege of accessing this deeper side of ones life. It feels good, very refreshing for those with less baggages to be obsessed with. My Dad before he passed was in this space for six years. My mum just arrived at this level last year December.  She is as fresh as Cardinal in this highly privileged space, basking in joy, happiness, piety and simplicity that come with it. A lot written already about Cardinal since his 80th birthday…

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I thought the meeting with the Rev. Sr and the three men from Plateau, Benue and Taraba ended three days ago. Little did I know it ended to be reconvened again in no time.   Arising from that meeting of Tuesday, I wrote a piece titled *Gowon: The Igbo Nation He Never Saw* . That piece went viral. My email box inundated with requests to send them the earlier piece *Gowon: Before you say Goodbye*, which I referenced in the latter post. It was an hornet nest touch, scraping healed wounds and causing fresh blood, gushing out from the already healed…

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I had a classmate years ago, very bright and elegantly built. One could easily envy him. Very much endowed specially. The only way we could describe him properly then was with the word infant terrible.  Gifted with power of speech, his hands very artistic, his voice quite angelic. That ones body isn’t filled with goose pimples was that he hasn’t sung. Those days, his voice before the microphone, rendering solo songs the delight of all ears; so sedating, those suffering from insomnia could snore at the sound of it. That was a bit description of who he was then. Unfortunately…

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This morning I received a call inviting me for a meeting in one of the hotels around town. I tried finding out who the person was and the purpose for the meeting, the voice I heard at the other end of the phone very edifying to my ears and would want to hear it over and over again.  Are you Jarlath Opara? Yes I am, I replied. I read your piece on Gowon: “Before you say goodbye” and would like us to have a conversation around it. For seconds I couldn’t alter a word and my breath in palpitation mode.…

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Four years of Sen. Hope Uzodimma on 15th of Jan 2024 ended, heralding yet another four years. Baring any pronouncement from the judiciary which seems the visible, functional and last standing institution in the process of electoral conduct and pronouncement, his four years is a done deal. Looking back, there were a lot of bickering, acrimony, bad politics, image staining and laundry, hyping, lies, over promises etc in the last four years. It wasn’t a case of one man culpability, it was more of a collective one, we all shared certain percentages from the whole drama of distractions, denying our…

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Few days ago, the reaction of Nigeria President, his Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu made waves on social media. In his reaction through his Special aid on Media and Publicity, he asked the Super Eagles to up their games from a lacklustre level to something befitting to the agility, swiftness and accuracy of an Eagle ( paraphrase is mine). He was not happy with their performance, even though they qualified for the round of 16. As much as Mr. President’s reaction was a true description of the reality of their performance, social media never spared him. Angry Nigerians changed it for…

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He isn’t the only one that walked and worked with Buhari for eight years, we all did. He isn’t the only person that acted as the Special Adviser to the President on Media and publicity, we the masses all did that job too. We even were better Media and publicity advisers to the president than he was.  Ours were pro bono, nobody paid us and we were under no authority to influence our unbiased reportage. We said it the way it was without fear or favor. His was more of a sycophancy, doing the biddings of the one who pays…

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Almost 55 years ago when the war that battered the future of a tribe ended, the hate, the discrimination and the suspicion are still palpable.  It was a war that ought have been avoided. It wasn’t hell bent, but the broken trust and deceit of one man made it a must. Today, the pains of that war remains so fresh, the dripping of blood , the tears and cry of the killings a nightmare. The scars are there, but one would even forget and forgive if love, remorse and honest hug of no victor, no vanquish are shown. No! In…

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Not every thing is meant to be patched in life. Certain things wouldn’t work until their old versions are replaced, deleted and wiped off.  I had a very terrible experience recently. Two incidences that gave me hard lessons of life. In one fell swoop both my battery and tyre got bad. The tyre was leaking every other day, while the battery would discharge itself. After starting the car with another battery, the alternator would charge the battery, two days after it would run down again. One day as early as 7.30am, I got dressed to catch up an early morning…

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Nothing just happens. Our destination in life isn’t a random thing. Each comes with a destiny, bright, glowing and glittering. No destiny comes dimmed or dark. Our choices either make it to glow and glitter the more or dimmed or darkened. Born in the image and likeness of God, growing deeper into this image and likeness or getting off its tracks, is always a choice one makes, not necessarily on one fell swoop, rather in a very culminating processes of both ones conscious or unconscious lifestyle. Eighty years isn’t a walk in the park, it isn’t either a tea party,…

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It was a sad moment for traders at Karmo Market located along life camp- Gwagwa road , as some sections of the market were razed by fire. This ugly incident happened in the early hours of Wednesday 17th January, 2024. It was not the first time the market has gone in flames, destroying goods worth millions of naira and subjecting many into emotional pains and insolvency. Speaking with some of the affected traders who gathered around, looking helplessly at the ashes of their shops and goods, they were short of words, confused on what could be the cause of this…

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In thanksgiving we celebrate a woman, a womb that incubated five plus one, nurtured five, while one too early went to the very source that outsourced him to her. We celebrate a woman, who isn’t just a woman but one that stood behind a man that made her and the five visible and enviable. Though gone to that source that outsourced him to us and humanity, his aura, his impact and the fragrance of his diligence, discipline, love and affection makes our life glow and glitter. We celebrate a woman,who is not just a woman, but one that shields and…

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The Nigeria Institute of Metallurgical, Mining and Materials Engineering ( NIMMME) a subsidiary of Nigeria Society of Engineers inducted over 100 corporate members, investitures49 brand new maiden/ first of its kind fellows on Friday December 1st 2023. The above laid the foundation to understand and appreciate a man that has done so well in both the corporate and religious circles. He comes with a passion, whose momentum could stand any force or pressure against achieving set goals. Engr. Ikenna Okonkwo is that person breakingforth boundaries, touching life and building structures through a purposefully engagement, assisting and facilitating great ideas for…

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There are about ten signs that readily give one out as an adulterous person. Not many wouldn’t know this popular but cliche saying of having no sign on the face to read the construction of the mind. However true this may sound, the case of reading an act of adultery on the face is real, making it an exception to the rule. To those who have the seventh and eight senses, every act to read the signs of adultery on faces , on smiles and bodily display of affection may be overly simple. The challenge is finding such persons with…

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History will never forget him in a hurry. Alive he made great impact. Even in death his impact isn’t receding. Each administration no matter how small has a gift well wrapped from him. Many years gone since he was gone, his “savings” keep coming through for us the living. What manner of a President he was? Like the nostradamus of our time he saw the future and went ahead to save for the rainy days. Over two decades he expired, the manna from him seems unending. Like a plant planted by the river side, his savings keep yielding, multiplying in…

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Just by the corner, a stone throw, not too long a time, Imolites would go out to elect a new governor or re-elect the incumbent. For three years and some months Imo State has been a very interesting soap opera, with many episodes, speaking truth to the realities of their political journey. To Sen. Hope Uzodima, the circumstances that surrounded his emergence didn’t in anyway help matters. It was rather a case of seeing one from dirty glass, however good or bad one would always appear dirty. Is Hope really dirty? Is he evil? Is he really responsible for all…

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You think we have forgotten and moved on? You think the rape in the Broad daylight in a gangsterism manner is already wiped off our mind? Is it how feeble minded you think we are ? Not too long you subjected the entire Nation into a serial rape, taking away our pride, honor and glory. You laid us down, forcefully spread our legs and made us groan in pains while we watched helplessly as fresh blood dripping from our system caked on our body. We trusted you. We believed in you. We took all our hope and place under your…

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Where is Anyayo ? Silence and quietude have enveloped him. Overwhelmed and swallowed, not even the signature tune of my people! My people!! Could make his relevance evergreen. Life is transient, take it as permanent and act as if it is so, like a humpty dumpty that sits on the wall, one falls. Where is Anayo? Where has he been? No sound of him anywhere lately. Not even his “Iberibeism” slang could give him a monumental presence in the public space. Like a morning dew under the heat of a sun it disappeared. Where is Anayo? He trended years ago,…

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This isn’t anything close to what I would ordinarily desire to discuss. I would rather prefer to talk about Nigeria politics, the thuggery and roguery of Bola Ahmed Tinubu’ Presidency than to talk about the sad degeneration of majority of us. Doing this remains something I wouldn’t humanly speaking explain. For two days , I have fought the nudge to talk about it. The pain and the near tears it brings to my eyes look very disheartening. Not until recently the saying if you would want to know someone in depth go on a long trip with them didn’t make…

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