Fact Checking The School Girls Kidnapped by Boko Haram by Viola Okorie

I think the press needs to sit down, get their acts together and ensure that media reportage on sensitive issues are professionally carried out. Is someone reporting the abduction from Abuja? If those girls could still be going to school then it is safe enough to assume that there should be at least one reporter on ground that can give us accurate information.

Kenya Makes Law to Legalize Polygamy, Female MPs Walk Out on Voting

I think I've asked before and I'll ask again, why do so many African women get all up in arms about polygamy? From anecdotes, it can be inferred that up to half of adult African men have more than one woman - whether traditionally married, baby mama married, concubined, mistressed, sugar daddied, what have you. Also, most of our cultures accept it, and so if majority of Kenyan MPs are for it, then I think it makes sense for them to harmonize their civil and traditional laws.

What a Shame - Nigeria's Interior Minister Blames Job Seekers For Stampede Deaths

Nigeria’s interior minister, Abba Moro, has denied responsibility for the deaths of test candidates at the Immigration service test centers and said the job seekers were to blame for the stampede that killed over 13 applicants. What a shame. This man needs to apologize to the families who lost their children, sack those in charge of this recruitment process and also resign.

Why You Should Not Call Your Daughter Bossy But a Boss Lady

By Nkem Akinsoto

Yesterday, there was the news that the Girl Scouts with support from Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, wants to ban the word bossy, used as a perjorative against little outspoken girls who begin to show leadership qualities early in life. A discussion with Atala took me down memory lane.

On the Nigerian Centenary Award Show - That Picture is Not Lord Lugard

I'm all for marking how far we've come as a united country, but certainly no fan of the Nigeria Centenary Award Show which I think is just a big waste of money, and of course some will "come and chop". Most of the names on the list (here) are vomit-inducing to be clear, [Babangida and Sani Abacha as promoters of unity, patriotism and national development?] but Lugard as the chief player of the amalgamation cannot be faulted.

Justice For Slain Titi Arowolo - Husband Sentenced To Death For Murder

It has been reported today that Justice Lateefat Okunnu of the Ikeja High Court has sentenced Akolade Arowolo to death for murdering his wife, Titilayo. This might not bring the dead woman back to life, but hopefully it serves as a deterrant to men who are in the habit of beating up their partners.

Hopefully too, women would be reminded that it never pays to remain with an abusive man. Here we have two wasted lives, a dead wife and a husband who will likely die in prison if the hangman's noose doesn't get him soon. If Titi had been staying for the sake of her daughter, does that even apply anymore?

I pray for healing for the little girl she left behind and their respective families, and may Titi's soul continue to rest in peace.

On Tobore Ovuorie and The Alleged Expose of a Human Trafficking Syndicate

I am one of those who was filled with doubt after I read the report on Premuim Times about their investigative reporter, Tobore Ovuorie. Her account of spending 4 months undercover after infiltrating a human trafficking syndicate operating between Abuja and Lagos tallied with a lot of what we've all heard, watched on TV or at the movie, and it bothered me that for such a high profile "expose", there was no shred of evidence.

8 out of 10 Nigerian Men Don't Use Condom, According to Society for Family Health

Bright Ekweremadu, the Managing Director of Society for Family Health, said over 1.8billion sexual activities occur in Nigeria yearly, and 80% of them are unprotected. Mr Ekweremadu said if Nigerian men were to use condoms, no supplier in the world would be able to afford the quantity of condoms Nigerian men would need. I am not surprised. Are you? Read on...

Rape is No Joke - Basketmouth Offers Weak Apology For Sexist Rape Tweet

I've written a lot about rape on this blog, it is one of the subjects that riles me up no end with male patriarchy, the rape culture that means that most men, and a lot of women too, see nothing wrong with rape, blaming rape victims, making jokes about rape, and actually advocating rape! Which is what Basketmouth basically did in the tweet below! What is wrong with some people?

Pope Francis Says There is no Hell and The Creation Story is a Moral Fable #Hoax

How many people saw this news report that supposedly copiously quoted Pope Francis in the wake of a Third Vatican Council? Did you believe it? Did it send you and your faith into a tailspin? Well, wail and curse and judge the pope no more, it was all a hoax from a spoof site, The Diversity Chronicle.

The Future Awards And Its Misrepresentation Of The Nigerian Youth By Gimba Kakanda

By Gimba Kakanda

"I have absolute confidence in the strength and ability of the Nigerian youth. All over the world, the Nigerian youth is a newsmaker, known for exhibiting talent, using his brain either to redeem or to reduce whichever system he is in. The Nigerian youth, despite having bad role models, has defied setbacks and limitations to climb up the ladder of excellence. This is why I am among the many upset by the misrepresentation of their achievements by the sham called "The Future Awards" – an award which was designed to highlight these achievements, but has been reduced to rewarding the ‘efforts’ of the organisers and their friends and friends of their friends!

Virgin Bride to Be Has The Cake to Show It - "Officially" Breaking the Hymen

I may be wrong, but is that a bloody vagina on that cake? Well, what is that they say, the more things seem to change, the more they remain the same. Back in the days, when a woman got married, a white sheet was put on the bed before she has sex with the husband, and a blood-stained sheet needs to be seen by all the next day, or yawa will gas for her.

Cyber Bullying: This Toke Makinwa and Linda Ikeji Issue - Toni Payne

By Toni Payne

Let me start by saying, we sometimes avoid those touchy subjects because we wish to avoid “drama” but Cyber Bullying is one concept it seems we are yet to get a full grasp on its consequences. Currently, in America there is a full campaign launched against bullying in general, where different celebs have been actively campaigning to stop bullying. We have seen cases of young ones committing  suicide because they couldn’t handle the bullying. I pray and hope things don’t get this far in my motherland, although I suspect it may have and we just don’t document it as much.

On Nigerian Fathers Who Deny Their Children - Men, This is Not a Good Look at All!

The latest of these Nigerian men, who get women pregnant and then try to shirk their responsibility when a baby comes is Ice Prince whom RML featured in our last "Daddy Time" post. I won't say celebrities because I know this is a very common situation and there are celebs, like Tuface, who try to do the right thing. It is great that the rapper now showers love and care on his son, but according to news sources, Ice Prince recently accepted that he denied having a son when the news made headlines in March 2012.

Ann Coulter, Nigerian Princes and Obamacare

I knew Ann Coulter was rabid in her racism, and polarizing political commentaries, but this is especially rabid! What bee is buzzing around in this woman's bonnet, I wonder? This time she's got it in for Nigerians, and in a big way too. Ted Cruz apologized just some weeks ago for trying to make his point about the Obamacare websites with an analogy to Nigerian online scammers. But nothing will stop Ann Coulter, she's run with it.

A Lagos Housewife Gets 10 years in Prison For Flogging 14-year-old Houseboy to Death

One of the dreams of not a few Nigerian women is to get married, and more than that have their own homes, with the high possiblity of having househelps. The unfortunate reality is that most of those women, housewives or working women, have never managed people before, and before long, start to transfer the agression from their stressful relationships or careers unto their domestic staff. This is a lesson for women in the habit of mistreating their help to take it easy and learn new diplomatic skills of managing their underaged househelps rather than violent punishment for unnecessary reasons.

Tragic Joke! Friends Dress Up As Trayvon Martin and Zimmerman For Halloween Party?

I'm yet to buy into the American halloween custom, and  recently asked no one in particular what made a costume relevant for Halloween? Is it meant to be funny, is it meant to be scary, it it meant to honor something/someone you like, or maybe the TV show/movie you're a fan of?I asked that question when a costume ad on TV showed someone painted silver in a Gandhi costume, I found that disrespectful. This news takes the cake!

Omoni Oboli Speaks Out on The Recent Plane Crash and General Mediocrity in Nigeria

The Pain of Our Negligence By Omoni Oboli

I haven’t been this sad for a long time, owing to the passing away of a friend, Deji Falae. I can’t imagine that we still lose people in that manner. We have passed through this road of plane crashes and I thought it was a thing of the past, but here we are again. What’s wrong with us? Where did we begin to operate in this spirit of hatred for our own such that we end up killing ourselves. Our negligence is not just an irresponsible act that we need to change but something that could cause the death of another human being. I’m just so saddened by this incident, because it could have happened to anyone. No one in his right mind would get on a plane if there was the least shadow of doubt to its airworthiness. That is why the passengers got on board.

The Shocking Rape Story of Ethel Joan Nwadike by Moses Idahosa in Benin Was All Fake

FAKE!

The story spread like wild fire on several blogs about a week ago. While I read it on Ladunliadi's Blog as a true life story; without any names or pictures, I assumed it was a made-up morality tale to discourage aristos and run's girls. However, I have only now found out that several other blogs shared the same story with the picture above, and Ethel Joan Nwadike named as the victim, Moses Idahosa Idahosa as the rapist and her email as Haleyanderson48@yahoo.com. All are fake!

Patriarchy and Male Privilege - How Do These Impact Your Life?

Patriarchy (rule by fathers) is a social system in which the male is the primary authority figure central to social organization and the central roles of political leadership, moral authority, and control of property, and where fathers hold authority over women and children. It implies the institutions of male rule and privilege, and entails female subordination.