Whenever Nigerians talk about zoning in particular or politics in general, they talk as if they are totally wedded to the idea that a Southern President must have a Northern Vice-President; and vice versa. There is also a tendency to regard each geopolitical zone as a united interest group…AND a widespread assumption that it’s OK for every Head of State to have two four-year terms.

THE new Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru Jega, got me worried when he gave the “salvaging” of the Maurice Iwu voters register as an option. In his maiden press conference on Thursday, July 22, 2010, he had hinted that his Commission would have no choice but to attempt a salvage of the old register if the N72 billion required to acquire the machines and logistics for the creation of a credible and computerised electoral register and database was not granted.

When Senate President, David Mark declared that the “successful” amendment of the 1999 Constitution showed that the Senate has the “courage” to do what is right, he was stating an obvious untruth. As a retired general he knows that courage or bravery is the ability to do what is dangerous or painful without showing fear.

THE ships involved were constructed to secure the chained passengers in the long journey from Africa to the Americas. On the auction blocks in the New World African captives were sold to their ultimate buyers still in chains.

So the Federal Government has placed orders for the purchase of about 100 units of Peugeot cars for the use of the Police in combating kidnapping across the country?

When a colleague from Brila FM first called to sound me out on the purported friendly against South Korea, I was very angry and said so. I asked him, “ what friendly, why?”

No matter from what angle you look, what you see of Nigeria is a bleak future unless something drastic is done and pronto. Because of greed and corruption, we are, as former Governor of Cross River State, Mr Donald Duke, put it in a talk he gave at a Save Nigeria Group forum in Abuja recently, “designing a system that would destroy us in the end”.

The just concluded football extravaganza in South Africa, in my view, is one of the most interesting World Cup finals in recent history. Indeed, it is a pivotal achievement for FIFA, because it was the first time the soccer fiesta was held in Africa.

Nigeria can now, properly speaking, be described as a mafia state. Its
national ethic in other words is structured by a distinct disregard for the rule of law.

Let’s not deceive ourselves. The kidnappers of four journalists are known.
They are not ghosts, not spirits as the radio jingle tells us.

“Of course you cannot know a man completely, his character, his principles, sense of judgment, not till he shows his colors, ruling the people, making laws. Experience, there’s the test”.

I am yielding this space today to my son, Boye, who has some observations concerning this country. You see, Boye has been out of this country for about 13 years.

A light bulb moment is an experience that can be life challenging. It simply means you get a new perspective or an understanding that puts some fundamental pieces of the puzzle that is life together.

My difficulty centered on why we may dodge, but cannot entirely avoid the tag of a failed nation, judging by our woeful record which lacks an appreciable measure of progress as a nation in the past fifty years. Please pardon me for having to quote at length from these statements. Stay with me; I’m going somewhere (as the preachers fondly entreat their congregations these days.)

This week, what we will discuss is not my position and really not my view per se, but when we are done, you would agree with me that it does make sense. Before I go further, I would like to state categorically that I am a great advocate for, marriage, I am very well married, and I do believe in marriage. I want that to be clear. I do not want to be labeled a woman’s libber or a feminist.