Ogiri John Ogiri

By Ogiri John Ogiri Before the advent of Christianity, monogamy was alien to Africa while polygamy was a highly domesticated and cherished practice among many African men who were largely traditionalists in belief and practice. Then came the European incursion into Africa which also brought with it European Christianity. This new culture required Africans to submit themselves to the abandonment of their age-long established and cherished culture of polygamy in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the special status of a true believer in Christianity.  In other words, polygamy was relegated to the dustbin of detested African practices in favour of the newly introduced culture of monogamy, which was subsequently elevated to the hallowed chamber of accepted practices in the new African Christian practices. Today, monogamy is sanctified while polygamy is demonized in African Christian communities. But an African man will always be an African man. In order...

By Ogiri John Ogiri. As I pen this piece down, I think about many millions of lives that have been so far lost to hypocritical morality and religious fundamentalism across the world. I think about people currently being led to die by sword, firing squad and hanging all in the name of God. The chilling thought that man can be this brutally inhuman to another man in order to appease his religion gave a strong impetus for this piece. Religious extremism will always pose powerful threats to sustainable world peace and humanity. The way we go about, these days, debating, hating, lambasting, fighting and even killing fellow humans and getting killed all in order to justify, prove and establish the supremacy or otherwise of one religion over another is troubling. A gesture of solidarity during any period of festivity from an adherent of one faith to another adherent of another faith is enough to draw unsolicited angers of willing fanatics of the religion of the one who shows such ...

By Ogiri John Ogiri So far, facts of recent security infractions in some rural areas in Nigeria have invalidated the government-sponsored lie from Abuja that Nigerians are very secure in their various communities. Painful testimonies from many rural farmers and students in some selected states in the North, West, East and South have so far revealed that the government has deliberately failed in protecting the people for whom government was, in the first place, established. Things have now degenerated so badly that citizens have now taken to self-defence as a last security resort.  Only recently, we witnessed the launch of various regional security networks in the North, South, West and now in the East of our country. We can choose to either accept or reject the obvious reality that the launch of these security networks have vindicated those who have always held that this government has failed in the area of security. At least, we can now see clearly. As long as we conti...

As humans, I believe that, our fundamental, inalienable rights also include the right to believe and to disbelieve in a deity, to accept and to reject a religion; to elect and to remove tyrannical governments; to believe and to disbelieve absurdities; to prove and to disprove theories; to agree and to disagree with others; to praise the progressives and to criticize the faltering retrogressives; to hail the good and to wail at the bad; to associate and to dissociate with others; to accommodate contradictory views and to expel those views; to entrench and to retrench; to enthrone and detrone and, above all, to be who we truly are.  Therefore, we become guilty of selective guarantee of rights whenever an individual is denied the freedom to exercise any of these rights under the circumstances allowed by the constitution for the exercise of such rights to obtain. ©Ogiri John Ogiri.

By Ogiri John Ogiri That I walk around daily wearing an honest smile, like a priest in his reverred cassock, doesn't imply that I've no pain or sweat underneath my stylish furs. I do. I've only learnt to take responsibility for my personal happiness. I live daily on the conviction that no one can truly and selflessly make me happy better than I can make myself happy in an enduring manner. No, you can't make me happy; I'm responsible for my happiness. I can't make you happy either; you're soley responsible for making yourself happy. Truth is, when we create happiness from within us, we can share in the opportunity to benefit from one another's happiness. In other words, I can only share in the happiness you'll be able to create inside you but I can't give you happiness. In the same vein, you can only share in the happiness I'll be able to create inside me but you can't give me happiness.  Experience has shown that expecting oth...

By Ogiri John Ogiri We live in a world where many people have come to associate success and happiness with doing what others do that makes them successful and happy. They simply look around, find who's succeeding and start struggling to do exactly or something similar to what those successful people do without considering the importance of hobbies and passion in the whole thing. Imitation has virtually replaced raw ingenuity and learned innovativeness. The question is "can you ever find fulfilment in doing those things not in tandem with your hobbies? Can you ever be happy pursuing and living someone else's dream not in sync with yours? The answer may be left to time and experience. Over time, many of my friends have expressed interests in doing what I do that makes me happy. As a gospel singer, teacher and entrepreneur, I understand what it means to stick to ones dreams. So I've always advised them to draw a list of their hobbies and turn them into profita...

By Ogiri John Ogiri It is no longer news that the North, particularly the Northwest and Northeast and recently the North-central, has faced insecurity problem for over a decade now. So far, it has been reported by several news media that thousands of lives have been lost, millions have been rendered homeless and properties worth billions of naira have been destroyed with more still counting. Amidst these disturbing figures and scenarios, the North looks forward to an end to insurgency and banditry in the region. But how did the North find herself here? I think the North created her own problem of insecurity. The North created her problem of insecurity from the day her almajiri system lost direction with many of the children left to roam the northern streets without shelter, adequate food, clothing and good education. These children became easy recruits for insurgency by various religious fundamentalist groups such as Boko Haram among many others. The north created her own p...

Doing good is a heavy burden on our conscience. Why is "doing good" being described as a burden? It is for the simple reason that, it is more difficult to act right and do good acts than it is to do evil acts or act wrongly. Apart from those who live false lives,denying the existence of any trace of conscience in them, we all feel guilty when we go against the dictates of our moral consciences. On the other hand, we all experience joy unspeakable and some kinds of uplifting of the spirit when we perform good deeds.  To free the conscience, to relieve it of this burden and empty our minds of guilt feelings, therefore, we must strive, with unabated continuity, to do good. We will have no need to worry about any witches and wizards attacking us from our various villages as some so-called men of the cloth have had us believe) because they will see the light of our good works and glorify our father in heaven. We will have no need to go for any "special" deliverance on an...

When beaten by the vicissitudes of life, some people sometimes console themselves by sitting with an unenthusiastic slouch brooding over their past but avoidable mistakes. They wish things were different. Yes it is okay to regret your past mistakes but it is not very all right to quit trying. One thing is sure and that is, the final whistle has not been blown yet.Therefore, you can still achieve your life's dreams. Just try again despite all odds facing you. By experiencing sad moments, I learnt the importance of happiness. By shedding tears, I came to appreciate the importance of a smile. By being hated, I learnt to love better. In my moments of anger, I learnt patience and forgiveness.  During moments of my folly, I learnt to appreciate wisdom and discernment. During those times when I was either taken for granted or overlooked by people, I learnt to think bigger and believe in myself more. Through rejection, I learnt acceptance.  By being close to failure, I learnt more abo...

By Professor Niyi Osundare Widows wail, orphans lament The people cry from their lowly roosts Another emperor swaggers in appropriate power From inside the rock, the same old rock Beneficiary of votes cast and votes un-cast Fortunate inheritor whose legator's name Now burns his lips like a dreadful spell (He said he busy tending his farm) When they offered him gold crown; But unlike good old Cincinnatus, what kind Of a republic will this one bequeathe? His own second term, too, and multiple terms In his first coming, he wielded an open sword This time the sword hides under a flowing robe Talking, never listening, hectoring, never heeding All knowing, all mighty, an oracle beyond restraint Like the tortoise in the late, he will climb the palm tree With the gourd of wisdom tied to his chest Widows wail, orphans lament The people cry from their lowly roosts His is the era of want and worry Of lean shadows and swindled dreams Garri is untouchable in the market A grain of ri...

"Be careful what you cast and bind during prayers. Some people have successfully bound and cast away their destinies because they mistook for enemies those challenges sent to them by nature to strengthen them in their journeys to success. Not every challenge is from the devil. Some are meant to bring out the best in you and spur you on to breakthroughs. Every challenge is a camouflaged opportunity to help you discover something exceptional about you." Culled from  "The Dangers of Idleness and the Cost of Doing Nothing" unpublished by Ogiri John Ogiri.

Photo credit: The Nations Newspaper, 2020. By Ogiri John Ogiri I am appalled at the way our peaceful struggle has so far been taken over by hoodlums masquerading as protesters who now go about killing freely and cheaply our brothers and sisters for whom this protest was originally intended to assist. It does not make sense that a well-intentioned protester will allow his or her emotion to degenerate into animalistic demeanour which we have seen operationalized in the killing of his or fellow country man or woman as well as in the current attacks on people's businesses and our national assets. I do not believe a genuine protester will do that. Only hoodlums can do such a thing. No genuine protester will gladly attack the people's businesses like banks, shopping malls and other properties belonging to the people. No genuine protester will allow anger to overrun his or her genuine compassion for the same police we are trying to see in good shape. We must understand tha...

Photo credit: Dr Ufot. By Garvey Ufot And so yet again, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has been compelled by the unimaginable cruelty of the Federal Government of Nigeria to embark on yet another round of indefinite industrial action. The current strike action which came on the heels of the expiration of ASUU's two week warning strike at the beginning of March, 2020, is the consequence, primarily, of the vicious and heartless decision of the Buhari Federal Government to stop the February salaries of lecturers in Federal universities over disagreements in the implementation of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information Systems (IPPIS) EVEN AS NEGOTIATIONS WERE STILL ONGOING TO RESOLVE THESE DISAGREEMENTS. Thus, for two months now -- February and March -- academics in Federal universities have gone without their salaries despite the current uncertainties and anxieties occasioned by the monumental health crisis of Covid-19. Where else but Nigeria wou...

A real minimum wage should be able to help the least worker in Nigeria own a car, not a bicycle. Owning a car is no longer a luxury but a necessity in our modern age. Where this is not the case, such a wage only merely represents a slave's wage. "How do our National Assembly members feel going home every month with a bogus salary and allowance in expensive SUVs funded by tax payers in a country where youth unemployment has sky-rocketed to a worrisome height and the minimum wages of many teachers, street sweepers, security operatives, drivers, nurses among others are grossly inadequate to meet their minimum weekly upkeep? We equally demand an unconditional downward review of the jumbo allowances of our National Assembly members to reflect the current harsh economic realities of our nation." "Faced with a choice between religion and humanity, I will chose humanity. I can only please God in the service of humanity but may not necessarily please humanity in the service o...

Photo credit: Author on Facebook By Fr Kelvin Ugwu MSP Sorry to say, our version of Christianity today is very toxic. Our faith instead of liberating us, has put us in a cage. This is why again and again, we keep producing atheists and not true believers. Do you know that if a Christian of today on his/her way to church to pay tithe encounters a dying person on the road, he or she will most likely not help even if all that the dying person needs so as to be alive is that money? Why? Because the words "rob God" is only understood in one way: failure to pay tithe directly to the pastor. And so, God will strike you death if you take the money to save life.  This sort of bondage is one of the reasons for modern day atheism —the need to be liberated from the cage of Christianity. For atheist don't pay tithe and none of them have been struck dead or their businesses being unproductive. Christianity today is all about the fear of going to hell and the promise of goin...

Independence Message by Bishop Matthew Hassan KUKAH, Catholic Bishop, Diocese of Sokoto on October 1, 2020 1: I want to first thank God Almighty the Father of all creation and the maker of Heaven and earth. Strange as it may sound, I  would like to thank  the colonial masters who wove our diverse peoples together and for all  the efforts that they put into ensuring that we had everything a people had to launch itself into a modern state. It is a time to thank those brave and selfless missionaries who laid the foundation for our modern civilisation by providing us with high quality education.We must appreciate the context of colonialism and the fact that its driving philosophy was the exploitation of our resources and we must concede that they laid the solid foundation for extracting our resources for the development of their own country. Their interests were buried in the womb of the country they created. Today, we have destroyed the institutions they created ...

Death is ruthless! Its sting pierces deep With tears of blood Streaming along its trail Men sob Women wail Orphans lament As it announces its painful entry and exit  Oh death! Why art thou so heartless? A lone female daughter, An only house wife With a humble quiet heart You have snatched away too soon Her husband's quiet heart You've burdened with grief As heavy as the stone of Everest As sturdy as the rocks of Abeokuta Her fragile offsprings  You've denied of gentle milk These fragile hearts you've wearied With pains untold How more wicked could you be oh death? Ingle Ai-Aboko mourns Ai-Adungulu wail As Ingle is bereaved once again. Rest in peace Mrs Veronica Okwori. It's indeed painful to accept the fact that you're gone forever. Cecilia "Iho" "Gboko lalo" ©Ogiri John Ogiri

Photo credit: Psychology Today Today, I do not intend to subject your busy faculty to reading a long piece but this may take about thirty minutes of your time and I am deeply sorry. It is about understanding fear and the fact that the benefits derivable from fear in the long run far outweighs its cost to our conveniences in life. Fear is a common feeling or emotion every individual definitely experiences every now and then in life. We all have our fears. In other words, we are often afraid of the unexpected. For instance, we are concerned that we may be fired from work, lose our scholarships and relationships. We are afraid of crashing out of business, getting sick, losing our ability to meet our daily needs or even of dying. As humans, these are normal and justified fears. Unfortunately, however, our perceptions and conceptualized opinions about fears have often been tilted in favour of subjective or prejudiced pessimism to the detriment of objective optimism. Succinctly, ...

Photo Credit: churchofchrist.org By Ogiri John Ogiri In the last one week, the social media have been awash with video stories of attacks and counter-attacks between Daddy Freeze and some Nigerian pastors, notably Pastor David Ibiyomeh of the Salvation Ministries over the former's criticism of the leader of Living Faith Church, Dr Pastor David Oyedepo. In the heat of the verbal wars, careless statements were made by both sides, with one threatening the life of the other.  Many have condemned the unnecessary verbal wars between them advising that they sheath their swords. I am of the same opinion. However, one thing is sure, and that thing is that, at the end of the whole drama between Daddy Freeze and some of our pastors, we will be exposed to the truth about who has been working, not just in the name of God, but for God, through Christ. We must not forget to remember that true men of God are unveiled in moments of criticism or persecution, not in moments of comfo...

MARK MANSON WHY WE ALL NEED PHILOSOPHY   Mark Manson 1 day ago “To win true freedom, you must be a slave to philosophy.” —Epicurus T he great philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein was once sitting in a park having a philosophical discussion with a friend when his friend, quite animated, stood up and said loudly, “That  is  a tree! I  know  for a  fact  that that is a tree!” An awkward pause ensued as the two men realized that passersby had stopped and were now staring at them. Wittgenstein, thinking quickly, turned to the people and said, “Do not worry, this fellow is not insane… we are merely doing philosophy.” When most people think of philosophy, they likely imagine indecipherable books that stretch on for a thousand pages, saying and solving nothing. They envision stuffy old men in misbuttoned shirts, untied shoelaces with mismatched socks, shuffling about hallways of some archaic university, mumbling to themselves, completely unaware of the humanity aro...