Ben Edokpayi
Ben Edokpayi is a strategic communications consultant with more than 25 years experience in the USA and Nigeria. His most recent corporate assignment was as Media Relations Officer with the California State Compensation Insurance Fund.
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14 Views
in ForumWhat Happened to the Centenary Games?
When Nigeria celebrated its centenary last year in grand style part of the icing on the cake was to be a convergence of athletes for the National Sports Festival, NSF, in Calabar towards the end of 2014. More than 12,000 athletes from each of Nigeria’s 36 states were expected at the 19th edition of the […] More
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in Forum
The Challenge of Jega’s Successor
While appraising the herculean task ahead of Attahiru Jega, the immediate past chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, I recently wrote in this space that I am nominating the amiable academician as Nigeria’s “Man of the Year” because “my gut instinct tells me Jega will deliver free, fair and credible elections despite all […] More
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A Sad Affair at the States
For most workers in Nigeria there is no calendar period more important than the end of the month. That is when they get rewarded for work done. But for workers in many states of the country the end of the month is now associated with more desolation than elation, because they are not getting paid […] More
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195 Views
in Straight From the HeartThe Message in Omar al-Bashir’s Cross
The political controversy that trailed the presence of Omar al-Bashir, Sudanese president, at the recent African Union, AU, conference in South Africa is not going away any time soon. Half way through the four-day AU conference held in Johannesburg in June, al-Bashir surreptitiously flew out of South Africa to avoid being ensnared by the arrest […] More
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What’s The Hold up on Keshi?
The drama surrounding the long-running negotiations between the Nigeria Football Federation and Stephen Keshi, the coaching candidate for the Super Eagles, is unprecedented in the history of football-contract negotiations anywhere in the world. Since both parties indicated interest in working together again we have been regaled in the media with varying statements and positions by […] More
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12 Views1 Comment
in Straight From the HeartMore Mentors Needed for Black Community
I can’t quite come to terms with a New York Times story this week by Binyamin Applebaum that establishes that the lot of African Americans has not improved under America’s first black president. The story in the NY Times’ Upshot Section about how black jobless rates remain high despite an economy on the rebound, informs […] More
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34 Views1 Comment
in Straight From the HeartWhen Language Becomes A Barrier
I am sure many journalists have been faced with scenarios where communication and/or dialogue were hindered by a language barrier. As a widely traveled journalist, I have faced several lingua franca hurdles that really stood out in countries where English was not the language of choice. As a very young and impressionable young journalist, I […] More
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in Straight From the HeartWhen Rumour Mongers Flourish
“It’s not mere extremism that makes folks at the fringes so troubling; its extremism wedded to false beliefs. Humans have long been dupes, easily gulled by rumors and flat-out lies!” – Jeffrey Kluger This is the season when rumor mongers are at their very best. They feed on half-truths and lies and make them […] More
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60 Views
in Straight From the HeartDubai, Then and Now
The last time I vacationed in Dubai, the world renowned Emirates Golf Club was just an open space in the desert and the burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, was not even a blueprint. This was in the 80’s (when I was with Newswatch) when the UK and the USA were the top vacation spots […] More
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in Straight From the HeartThe Young and the Restless
If there is one demographic group that really needs urgent attention from Nigeria’s leaders and educators then it has to be those born between 1980 and 1999, otherwise known as the millennial generation in other climes. I have never found a group of young people so disillusioned, discouraged and easily brainwashed as I have found […] More
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27 Views10 Comments
in Straight From the HeartAfrican Journalists In the Diaspora To Monitor Nigerian Elections
A delegation of journalists from the US-based National Association of African Journalists (NAAJ), who are concerned about a successful democratic transition and the entrenchment of democratic principles, is set to visit Nigeria for the national elections scheduled for February 14 and 28. Members of the organization, which has already contacted INEC for accreditation status, will […] More
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46 Views
in Straight From the HeartThe Nigerian Civil War through the Lens of a Medic
Now that General Muhammadu Buhari has eased fears of a Muslim-Muslim APC ticket inflaming next years’ presidential election by picking Professor Yemi Osinbajo, as his running mate on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform, Nigerians have one less issue to worry about the nation sliding into anarchy on the basis of ethnic and religious divisions, […] More