WAR mongers and leading candidates for the International War Crimes Tribunal, Tony Blair and George W. Bush were in Nigeria on February 20. The twosome have made our contemporary world far more insecure and turbulent than they met it.

PRESIDENT Umaru Yar’Adua after a 93-day absence was brought commando style into the country last Wednesday under the cover of darkness. The Commander-in-Chief tactically evaded the six-man Federal Government delegation sent to his erstwhile Saudi Arabia base; as the delegation arrived, he took off for Nigeria. The hapless delegation was forced to return home in pursuit of their sick leader.

MAMADOU TANDJA who was removed in a military coup last Thursday, February 18, after being president of Niger Republic for 10 years, was a time bomb. His overthrow was not only unexpected, but was in some circles, eagerly awaited.

ACTING President Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday February 16, made his debut on the international stage. It was at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Heads of State Summit which had been on hold due to President Umaru Yar’Adua’s poor health. It was a befitting one for him as 10 of the 13 expected ECOWAS leaders showed up and the rest were represented.

I SPRINTED into a shop in Algiers. The weather was very cold. Although it was not raining, people were getting wet. Even in the streets, here and there, you found pools of water. I was fully kitted wearing layers of shirts, a sweater and two trousers. Surprisingly, there were youths with just T-shirts and jackets, some with their trousers not around their waists but their buttocks. This clearly was the American gangster influence.

MICHEAL Kaase Aondoakaa, Attorney General and Minister of Justice until shoved aside on February 9, reminds me of the infamous Clement Akpamgbo. He held the same portfolio in the insidious military regime of General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida.

Twenty years after these earth-shaking events, Mandela’s profile continues to grow. This year, the United Nations set aside his birthday to be commemorated eternally. In venerating Mandela, the world is also honouring the heroes of the anti-apartheid struggle particularly those who did not live to see freedom day such as Robert Sobukwe, Ruth First, Solomon Mahlangu, Bram Fischer and the children of Soweto whose blood watered the tree of freedom.

One of the main problems of Africa is leadership powered by visionless, self-glorifying, egoistic, power-conscious, unprincipled, mostly greedy, corrupt and vain political elites. But for people like Nelson Mandela who shun power and refused a second constitutional term which was his just for the asking, most people could have argued that this is a genetic African trait.

THE civil populace gave the military a black eye on January 27, 2010. On that day, Justice Opeyemi Oke ordered the Nigeria Navy and one of its star generals,a Rear Admiral to pay two victims: Miss Uzoma Okere and Mr Abdullahi Abdulazeez N100 million.

DEMOCRACY is supposed to be based on the will of the people. The Nigerian constitution like many others declare that sovereignty belongs to the people from whom all power flow. But in practice, the power of the people in most countries, including in Europe, begin and end with their vote.