The Foreign Minister of Ghana, Samuel Ablakwa, on a recent visit to Kiev, Ukraine, asked his Ukrainian counterpart to help secure the release of two Ghanaians held as prisoners of war. According to a report by the BBC, of the 272 Ghanaians said to be fighting in the war, more than 55 young men have been killed. Another investigation by…
President Trump is dragging the U.S. into an unnecessary war without any national conversation or the approval of Congress. This military operation is both ill-advised and wrong-headed. President Trump is going into it alone without the consent of any of America’s allies in the Middle East, the G20, NATO, or elsewhere, except Israel. Iran was already negotiating in good faith,…
After last week’s Ash Wednesday Mass, someone asked me whether I believe in the existence of hell—and whether hell is really the abode of the devil. I replied, “yes,” but I could not explain it further because many others were still lining up to greet me or receive ashes. The liturgy had been moving, almost searching. The sign of the…
The Holy See confirmed this week, through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, that it will not participate in U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposed “Board of Peace” on Palestine, according to a Reuters report. The Vatican’s reason was simple and consistent with its diplomatic tradition: a crisis of this magnitude must be addressed through legitimate multilateral institutions, above all the United Nations. The…
The ongoing cultural debate that erupted at the Ghana–Zambia economic forum in Lusaka between Zambians and Ghanaians over the dress code for African politicians and public officials is both interesting and revealing. It is revealing not because of what people said, but because the debate exposed Africa’s unresolved relationship with identity, dress codes, modernity, and power. The debate was triggered…
The recent Lifetime Achievement Award given to the Father of Afrobeat, Nigeria’s Fela Anikulapo Kuti, calls for celebration and reflection on his enduring legacy. Fela is the first African to win this award, albeit posthumously. While many of his numerous admirers will wonder why he never received it while he was alive, or why it has taken nearly three decades…
Many lovers of the beautiful game were shocked when the Senegal national football team, the Teranga Lions, walked off the field of play during stoppage time of the AFCON final after the Atlas Lions of Morocco were awarded a penalty. This came only moments after what appeared to be a trophy-winning Senegalese goal was ruled out. The sequence of events—an…
The recent attack and capture of President Maduro of Venezuela by American law enforcement and military, and the first consistory of the world’s cardinals convoked by Pope Leo, show two contrasting approaches to leadership that I wish to analyze in this essay. In the last eight months or so, people have begun to draw a sharp contrast between the two…
The sudden and preventable death of Nkanu, the 21-month-old son of acclaimed Nigerian author Chimamanda Adichie, in a Nigerian hospital once again exposes the shameful and unacceptable consequences of Nigeria’s poor healthcare delivery. According to an internal family memo, the family alleges that Nkanu’s tragic death resulted from severe medical negligence at Euracare Hospital in Lagos on January 6. While…
❝ By following in St. Augustine’s footsteps to Africa, Pope Leo hopes to deepen the dialogue between Christianity and Islam, which lies at the very heart of his papal mission: to build bridges among peoples, cultures, civilizations, religions, races, and nations.” — Stan Chu Ilo On his return flight to Rome after a deeply symbolic and pastorally courageous journey to…