John Iduh Blog

In the bustling city of Onitsha, Anambra State, where markets roar louder than sermons, a professor, a custodian of knowledge and supposed guardian of integrity, became the chief priest of vote buying. With the calmness of a lecturer marking scripts, he distributed wads of naira like examination handouts, teaching the people that democracy is a market where conscience is sold at wholesale price. In a country praying for progress, this academic sage reduced elections to a classroom experiment in corruption, proving that degrees cannot disinfect greed. Perhaps next semester, his course will be outlined with title: Democracy 101: Buying and Selling Votes Made Easy. Are we building community or destroying it?

 Binge drinking—defined as consuming large amounts of alcohol in short intervals—has long been viewed as a personal vice or youthful excess. However, an innovative perspective sees it as a societal signal—a reflection of cultural norms, mental health pressures, and unaddressed collective anxieties. Historically, periods of economic uncertainty and social unrest have often coincided with spikes in substance abuse, from 19th-century gin epidemics in Britain to modern campus parties in the United States and Nigeria. What if solutions went beyond bans and punishments? Reimagining social environments—through alcohol-free communal spaces, digital wellness apps, peer-led “sober clubs,” and redesigning nightlife around creativity rather than consumption—can transform how people relate to leisure and stress. Universities and city planners could embed behavioral nudges, gamified education, and mentorship into youth culture. By shifting the lens from control to innovation, binge drinking beco...

 Binge drinking is the excessive consumption of alcohol in a short period, typically defined as five or more drinks for men and four or more for women within two hours. It is a widespread phenomenon, particularly among young adults in college environments and urban centers across countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and increasingly, Nigeria. Historically, alcohol has played a social role, but modern patterns of overconsumption reflect deeper issues of stress, peer pressure, and cultural normalization of intoxication. For instance, university campuses often witness alcohol-fueled parties where binge drinking is seen as a rite of passage. This behavior contributes to accidents, violence, academic failure, and long-term health risks, including liver disease and addiction. Addressing binge drinking requires multi-level strategies—public health campaigns, campus education programs, stricter alcohol regulations, and community-based interventions. Framing it not merely a...

 The Chicano Movement was a civil rights campaign that emerged in the 1960s and 1970s, primarily among Mexican-Americans seeking social, political, and educational equality in the United States. Rooted in centuries of marginalization, this movement challenged systemic discrimination, land dispossession, and cultural erasure. It gained momentum in places like California, Texas, and New Mexico, where large Latino populations faced institutional neglect. One emblematic case was the East Los Angeles Walkouts of 1968, where thousands of Chicano students protested against inferior schools and demanded bilingual education and Chicano studies. Activists like César Chávez and Dolores Huerta also fought for farmworkers’ rights, linking labor justice to ethnic empowerment. While the movement fostered pride in Chicano identity and history, it also revealed deep tensions around race, class, and national belonging. Today, its legacy continues in contemporary struggles for immigrant rights and ed...

Ability grouping is an educational practice where students are divided into groups based on perceived intellectual or academic capabilities. This method, common in primary and secondary schools across countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Nigeria, is intended to tailor instruction to learners' proficiency levels. For instance, high-performing students may be placed in "advanced" groups, while others are assigned to "remedial" classes. While it aims to enhance learning efficiency, critics argue that it reinforces social inequalities, particularly where group placement reflects socio-economic or racial biases. In Nigeria, some elite schools group students into "A", "B", or "C" arms, often stigmatizing those in lower-ranked classes. To address this, educators and policymakers must adopt inclusive teaching models that emphasize differentiated instruction within mixed-ability classrooms. Research-backed alternative...

Clientelist democracy is a political system in which electoral support and political loyalty are exchanged for material benefits, state patronage, or personal favors. Unlike programmatic or issue-based democracies, where political competition is centered on ideology or policy platforms, clientelist systems thrive on informal networks of obligation between patrons (politicians or elites) and clients (voters or supporters). These reciprocal arrangements are sustained not by institutions of accountability or governance, but by personal loyalty and the promise of selective rewards. In the Nigerian context, clientelist democracy has deep historical roots, tracing back to the late colonial period and consolidating during the First Republic (1960–1966). The colonial policy of indirect rule, which empowered local traditional rulers as intermediaries, laid the groundwork for personalized political relations. Following independence, these patronage networks evolved into more complex systems of ...