The speed with which 2016 disappeared is amazing yet there are those who can’t wait for the year to recede into history even quicker.
The reasons are not difficult to surmise; no year in recent time has traumatised, tested and stretched Nigerians almost to the end of their tether the way the outgoing year had.
From unending tales of kidnappings to dare-devil armed robberies, from rampaging herdsmen killings to road accidents, from building collapse, to high profile deaths, the tragedies were almost of biblical proportions.
It was a year when the grim reaper roamed the field, sickle flaming red plucking both the high and mighty and the lowly.
If the herdsmen carnages in Nimbo in Enugu State and Agatu in Benue State were shocking, the case of 82 missing soldiers sent even more shock waves through the nation as did the killing of a DSP in Port Harcourt.
There were the deaths of prominent Nigerians like Fred Agbaje, Bukky Ajayi, Michael and Felix Ibru, Bola Kuforiji- Olubi, Nomoreloss, OJB, Amodu Shaibu, Stephen Keshi, NYSC Corp members. Also, Minister of State for Labour, James Ocholi, his wife and son lost their lives in a road accident.
There was also the church building collapse in Uyo which claimed many lives as well as the Lagos Police College building disaster. Kidnapping which had assumed an alarming dimension got worse.
The most high-profile were the abductions of former Minister of Finance Olu Falae and Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele’s wife.
The kidnappings in Epe, Ikorodu, Iba and of Lagos landlords, who were out on a jogging exercise, further served to traumatise an already battered people.
There was no respite as the pounding got worse. Ethno-religious crises threatened to spiral out of control in parts of the country.
The Shi’ite and army clash in Kaduna highlights this periodic convulsion. Separatist group, Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, continued their agitation for autonomy with wide-ranging ramifications.
Niger Delta militants also intesified their destruction of oil and gas installations which led to a crippling of Nigeria’s main source of revenue.
The recession which followed left Nigerians, already reeling from fuel price increase, further battered. In the health sector, there was a setback as the Polio virus reappeared in parts of the country.
The Zika virus and doctors’ strike or threat of it were also major issues. There were equally rumbles in the royal houses.
The ones involving the Olugbo of Ugbo and the Ooni of Ife, the Awujale/Alake of Egba and the dethronement of Onojie of Uromi by the Adams Oshiomhole government, readily springs to mind.
The controversies in the political terrain, if not for their severity, would have been dismissed as providing just mere comic relief.
The outburst of Aisha Buhari against her husband, President Muhammadu Buhari, which gave birth to a new lingo ‘the other room,’ Bola Tinubu versus John Odigie Oyegun, Oluremi Tinubu versus Dino Melaye, Shehu Sani versus Nasir El-Rufai, Yakubu Dogara versus Abdul Jibrin, Yemi Osinbajo nomination fallout, President Muhammadu Buhari’s autobiography, the controversies involving SGF, Babachir Lawal, EFCC boss, Ibrahim Magu, Chief of Staff to the president, Abba Kyari, Minister for Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, who seems to perpetually have his foot in his mouth, are just some of the more riveting ones.
One other issue that dominated the headlines was the MMM Ponzi scheme which had many Nigerians initially exultant before the bubble burst.
Others were the raid on Judges’ homes and the arraignment of Senate President, Olusola Saraki. But it was not all gloom and doom as there were certain events in the year that helped dispel the storm.
The accomplishments of Bayo Ogunlesi, Anthony Joshua, Amina Mohammed, Demola Seriki’s daughter, the Imafidons, among others, gave cause for cheer. The entertainers also continued to strut their stuff to the glory of the country.
Tekno, Wizkid, Olamide, Kiss Daniel, Adekunle Gold, Falz the Bad Guy, PSquare, Yemi Alade, hoisted the country’s flag admirably.
The coronation of the new Oba of Benin was another major event in 2016. It once again put on show that revered throne which continues to be a beacon on a continent with a predilection for turning up its nose against received traditions.
Of course, sports also brought some honours through tennis stars, Funke Oshonaike, Aruna Quadri and the Super Falcons, although the twist at the end left a sour taste in the mouth.
On the international scene, legendary boxer, Muhammad Ali, finally gave up the fight against Parkinson’s which had ravaged him for some 32 years.
Players of Chapecoense, a Brazilian football team, lost their lives in a plane crash that claimed 71 lives altogether.
Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, also died in the year under review. There were upsets in elections in the United States, Ghana and the Gambia, underlining the changing political landscape across the globe.
This list is by no means exhaustive. This edition of Saturday Telegraph, the very last in the year, recalls the good, the bad and the ugly of a most difficult year.
SOURCE.. NEW TELEGRAPH
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