If there is still any lingering unbelief that Nigeria has been very unlucky to be saddled with third-rate minds as leaders, the verbal scud missiles (some call it mutual pinging) which former military dictator, Ibrahim Babangida, and military dictator-turned civilian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, launched at each other must dispel such doubt.

I once wrote an article in defence of Attah during his first term when he came under attack for two decisions that were destined to have lasting impact on the economic and social lives of the people of Akwa Ibom State. The first was his decision to invest in ECONET Wireless shares and the second was the construction of Ibom Plaza.

Welcome to the last segment of this series. Last week, I showed you faith as the key to instant miracle healing. This week, I want to show you what will help you to understand the covenant of total health.

History compels us to bear this witness: that the NATO-led overthrow of the government of Colonel Moumar Gadhafi is an international coup d’état. It is the longest coup in human history, lasting all of six months and backed by the arsenal of a coalition of the most powerful nations on earth.

Freedom Foundation, the NGO to which the House of Refuge belongs, is a faith-based organisation founded about ten years ago by Pastor Tony Rapu, with a mandate for social reformation. House of Refuge is a drug rehabilitation and resource centre established by the Freedom Foundation in 2006. It is actually a residential facility to help people who are suffering from problems with drug dependency to overcome the problem and take special responsibility for their lives, and also get reintegrated back into the society.

It all began with a ‘dutiful’, uncharacteristically impatient Goodluck Ebele Jonathan; then only a harmless Vice-President of necessity; his terminally-ill principal, President Umaru Yar’Adua, bedded in far-away Saudi Arabia, a subject of needless ethno-regional controversy; and himself Ebele ‘luck-dependent’ as ever, and now virtually at the apogee of his most valuable political ‘manna’ yet from heaven, was –quite pardonably you might say- ‘covetously’ beside himself: enthusiasm-filled and waiting to grab the chisel to hew the very hedgy polity that he was, by the way, constitutionally heir to and about which Yar’Adua was raring to depart intestate!

The appointment of Joshua- my childhood friend and classmate-to the position of high court judge several years ago presented an interesting experience that has refused to elude me. On the day the appointment was made, we — all his friends— trooped to his residence in celebration to congratulate him. He was, in fact, the first to be so honoured among us. But, then, although everyone of us looked happy over the development, the environment was rather too serene for a supposedly joyous occasion.

From the responses we got from our readers, it was obvious that many Nigerians were not at all impressed that the present administration are considering tenure elongation, in whatever form or nature. They feel, and rightly so, that that’s the least of our priorities.

‘Madam Helen, I agree totally with you that even discussing tenure of government is an unholy distraction in our country at this point in time. What are our leaders thinking of? Also, like you, I had a lot of faith in many of those who’ve just come on board to rule us.

Have you ever stopped to really dig deep into the reason for General Ibrahim Babangida’s promotion of General Olusegun Obasanjo’s ever-present desire to rule Nigeria, immediately after OBJ’s incarceration at the hands of General Sani Abacha? It all seemed so clean and altruistic—on the outside, that is.

Many Nigerians and foreign friends of Nigeria have cherished common belief and conviction that with such enormous human, physical and mineral resources, Nigeria should by now be a prosperous nation. The present predicament of abject poverty for a great number of Nigerians is a national disgrace and total embarrassment to the developed world.

THE recent United Nations Environmental Programme, UNEP, report – which accused Shell and the government of failing to protect my Ogoni homeland from chronic pollution – has generated bitterness as well as satisfaction.

THE All Africa Games, the 10th edition of which begin in Maputo, Mozambique, tomorrow, mean a lot to Nigerians, particularly those who were old enough to experience the second edition that held in Lagos 38 years ago. The Games appear to have passed the early uncertainties over future hosts, after the exceptional delays that we saw in Nairobi with the Games billed fro 1982 holding in 1987 – five years late.

The ovation was still loud when Patrick Ekeji stood from his chair, turned to me and said “this is good for sports.”I waited to hear more from him but he looked sideways and repeated, “This is good for sports, this is good for sports.”

I thought I had tendered boxing my final submission an the state of amateur boxing in Nigeria way back October/ November last year when this column ran a give- part serial to highlight the leadership short-comings and the resultant fall of the sport for close to two decade running.

I ONCE asked General Ibrahim Babangida why he never moved against General Obasanjo, despite the unrelenting criticisms of his regime and person, while he clamped down on other critics of his regime. His answer gave me an insight into the psychology of power in Nigeria, and the subjective, even personal and vain preferences, which determine what otherwise, should be serious matters of national development.