Author: Aruma Maryann Uchenna

Democracy is rarely destroyed in a single moment. More often, it weakens through political crises, institutional failures, public distrust and the growing belief that constitutional government is incapable of solving society’s problems. Nigeria’s first military coup, carried out on January 15, 1966, remains a powerful historical warning about what can happen when a young democracy…

Wars are often remembered through their most dramatic moments: the declaration of hostilities, the first gunshots, the advance of armies and the eventual surrender of one side. Yet the most important lessons of many conflicts lie in the days and months before the fighting begins, when peaceful alternatives still exist, the Nigerian Civil War offers…

Few dates occupy as important a place in Nigeria’s political history as January 1, 1914. On that day, the British colonial administration amalgamated the Northern and Southern Protectorates, bringing the territories under a single colonial administration known as Nigeria. More than a century later, the decision continues to shape discussions about national identity, federalism, political…

Human history contains achievements that deserve celebration and tragedies that demand permanent remembrance. The abolition of the transatlantic slave trade and the eventual legal abolition of slavery in many countries belong to both categories: they demonstrate the possibility of moral progress while reminding humanity of the extraordinary cruelty it once normalised, but a difficult question…

Democracy is built on a simple principle: political power belongs to the people, and the authority to govern must ultimately come from their consent. Yet history repeatedly demonstrates that the greatest threats to democracy sometimes come not from those who reject elections openly, but from those who refuse to accept the consequences of an election….

History has a painful way of returning to societies that refuse to learn from their past. For Nigeria, few historical experiences carry as much weight as the Nigerian Civil War of 1967–1970, a conflict that left countless families grieving, communities devastated and an entire generation scarred by loss. More than five decades after the war…

Graduation is often presented as the beginning of a brighter chapter. After years of lectures, examinations, assignments, financial sacrifices, and personal challenges, obtaining a university degree is expected to bring a sense of achievement and open the door to new opportunities. For many Nigerian graduates, however, the period after graduation can introduce a different kind…

Life, as we all know, is unpredictable. It has no manual. Everyone seems to be existing, but not really living. We are trying to survive, trying to make ends meet, and trying to figure things out. And somehow, we are all pretending to be fine, the rich, the poor, and everyone in between. Sometimes, I…

For many years, I did not know the difference between being kind and being liked. I thought they were the same thing. I thought that if I was kind enough, available enough, quiet enough, and apologetic enough, I would be accepted. I wanted to be in everybody’s good books, I did not know I was…