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Blaise Diagne International Airport was officially opened on Thursday (December 7) by President Macky Sall. He called it a “source of satisfaction and legitimate pride” for the country. Whiles expected to increase air traffic to the country, the authorities are also hoping it will translate in increased tourism and by that an economic boost. Construction of the airport started in 2007. Therefore it took a decade to complete the project. The cost of the project is put at $600m. It was started by a Saudi firm but later completed by a Turkish firm after a dispute with the Saudis. The Blaise Diagne International Airport is named after the first African to be elected a lawmaker in France, as far back as 1914.

Former Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe has left the country to Singapore. The 93-year-old is taking his annual holidays. A section of the media also reports that he will have a routine medical checkup whiles away. It is the first time he has left the country since his resignation in November after being leader for 37 years. The entire Mugabe family including wife Grace and children Bona, Robert Junior and Chatunga are all part of the trip. The sons are said to have returned from South Africa to join the Singapore trip. The last public appearance of Mugabe was when the army allowed him to preside over a graduation ceremony in the capital Harare, days after the takeover. His wife has not made a public appearance since.

The abnormalities that trailed the PDP national convention have further exposed the PDP as a party not ready and willing to change. “Indeed, the PDP has once again displayed itself to the generality of Nigerians that it is a party with corruption deeply rooted in its DNA.” The APC also added that the zoning of the chairmanship position of the party is unnecessary. The comments by the APC follow comments by the newly elected National Chairman of the PDP, Mr Uche Secondus, who verbally served the APC a ‘quit notice’, while delivering his acceptance speech. He said, In the words of the 34th President of the United States of America Dwight Eisenhower, ‘If a political party does not have its foundation in the determination to advance a cause that is right and that is moral, then it is not a political party; it is merely a conspiracy to seize power’.

“To me and to all my associates, it is a return to our natural habitat. This (APC) is my home. My political voyage started from this association and I am proud to have learnt under our great leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Speaking on why he joined the APC, he said, “I am already fulfilled. I have traversed the length and breadth of this country and I believe that Lagos stands tall among other states in Nigeria. Today, we are the fifth largest economy in Africa and Governor (Akinwunmi) Ambode is working assiduously to make Lagos the third largest economy and transit from a megacity to a smart city. “I want to be part of this project. I’ve re-dedicated myself to the progress and prosperity of Lagos.” A former Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, has described the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, as Nigeria’s greatest politicians alive. Obanikoro said this on Saturday in Lagos while formally announcing his defection from the Peoples...

This is a part some people will not like to hear, but we will say it here for historical purposes. When the great Biafran leader, Col. Dim Emeka Odimegwu Ojukwu was granted a state pardon by President Shehu Shagari in 1982, the Ikemba soon contested for Senate under the then National Party of Nigeria (NPN), but did his people vote for him? Lest we also forget, he contested for the presidency, how many votes did he got even in Anambra? Let us bring in Chief Alex Ekweme. We recall, despite being founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP),he contested for the party nomination for president in 2002. We all remember how the South-East governors then did all they could to outdo themselves to be seen to be more loyal to President Olusegun Obasanjo than even his own ministers. There was nothing wrong in all these for these people as long as it all guarantees fat bank accounts and unmerited rewards. No one talks about Biafra when contract figures are inflated; Biafra makes no sense ...