Except for her feminine physique, everything about Hon.Elizabeth Ativie is mannish. From her husky tone of voice to self-carriage, her military upbringing speaks volume. These characteristics however belly her disposition towards public service and motherly love for the people of Uhunmwode whom she has represented at the Edo State House of Assembly for two terms running. Elizabeth has also remarkably been the only woman in the state House of Assembly since then. In this interview, she shares the secrets of her success in politics, survival strategies in the House of Assembly and contribution to the development of her constituency

The week which ended yesterday no doubt put Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime, prominently in the news and once again, it was for the wrong reason. His wife, Clara, made several damaging allegations against him which were publicised by the media. According to the story, the lady’s fundamental human right on basic issues such as freedom of association and of movement had been breached by her husband for longer than she could bear. She also claimed to have been a victim of forced imprisonment. In his response, Governor Chime insists that whatever actions he has taken have been in the interest of his wife. From the lady’s version of her state of depression and the governor’s diction at a press briefing on the subject, it is apparent that the lady has a peculiar medical challenge.

Politics or gossip is not my cup of tea and I have enough sense to stay away from religion but lately I do feel that rising above dirt doesn’t make one clean and for a change would like to state the obvious to the leaders who don’t seem to have a clue what leadership means! An emerging democracy takes time and it is true that Nigeria is a young one but youth and craziness are not mutually exclusive.

Not too long ago, we acted as a collective, where we acted as one and believed in the mutuality of the collective. After all, African coined the adage that;” it takes a village to raise a child”. So, where is this village, the collective when some of our vulnerable are suffering in silence and we turn our face and ignore their sufferings? How can we pretend to be religious and pious and yet perpetuate this heinous crime?

There is a deafening silence about the civil war in public discourse and we want to draw attention to it so that Nigerians can ascertain where the rain started beating them and take corrective measures to avoid being drenched by another downpour in future. Thus, in our analysis, you can replace ‘Igbo’ with the name of another ethnic nationality and ‘Northerners’ with ‘Southerners’ and my argument will still hold. The major point readers who might accuse me of unnecessary bias ought to bear in mind is that wickedness and injustice are morally reprehensible universally, and no genuine humanist should condone any of them no matter who the perpetrators and the victims were.

That we deserve Dr Ebele Jonathan and his Ministers is not in doubt. First, we voted for him in 2011, overwhelmingly, based on promises – mostly now unfulfilled. The “breath of fresh air” was one of those promises. If what we are watching, at the hearings in the National Assembly, turns our stomachs and is malodorous to our noses, blame not Jonathan; blame us. A man cannot act beyond his abilities. For any leader, the most important decisions concern human resource choices. The President’s fate, like those of Chief Executive Officers, CEOs, anywhere are determined by the people he invites to top office to assist in executing his programmes.

The All Progressives Congress seems to be having an owambe party all over Nigeria; from the North to the South and is getting all the media attention required. The party also appears to be mocking the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and celebrating the implosion of the ruling party.

I missed the many ‘interesting photographs and comments’ on our President’s trip to Israel. The reason is simple. I am a dinosaur when it comes to the latest developments in IT and the social media.

We had come into town late that night and smack in the middle of one of Britain’s worst storms. The plan was to spend the first night in a hotel, calibrate and then move over to my girlfriend’s house the following day. The kids and I had picked a fine time to visit London.

Recently, after a battle through morning rush hour traffic and meandering in search of a seemingly elusive address, I finally arrived at the destination for my appointment.