Reports have it that these state helmsmen cultivated a close tie as a result of frequently sitting close together at governors’ forums (T. A. is always flanked on the left by his Adamawa peer and on the right by his Zamfara colleague due to the alphabetical order of sitting).

A sport consultant would have let the MTN know that accreditations are necessary, that a mixed zone or media centre had to be established and that players had to meet the media before, during and after the match.

“The truth is” said Onyefuru, “I was his only troop!” in response to my question about the failures of troop mobilization that night. “I returned with him to the Ikeja barracks that morning. We had walked across the front of Colonel Njoku’s home.

We shall concentrate on the current strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) because, apart from being a member of that very union; I think that over the years the other two unions, SSANU and NASU, look up to ASUU on strike as a viable strategy for compelling the government, both state and federal, to enhance the welfare of their members.

In spite of massive collusive efforts to deny the fact, through what we have done to the process of choosing our leaders, the people of Nigeria retain sovereignty. Section 14 (2)(a) of the Constitution is unambiguous in making it loud and clear. It says sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria. Whatever powers are exercised by organs of government – legislative, executive or judicial – must be locatable in the constitution.

IN the first part of this series, I have pointed out that the disagreement between Attah and Akpabio is mostly technical and quite a great deal of it can be verified. Let me start with the 2009 Democracy Day broadcast by Governor Akpabio, in which, among others, he made the claim above.

The beginning of life starts with all innocence and no conflict, a baby just accepts and adapts without struggle, an adult on the other hand struggles and refuses to adapt till he is left broken, and bruised.

It could not really be that President Yar’Adua genuinely hopes for a return to the former local government structure of the State, which bestows the Federal Government with no tangible profit at all, or is in anyway detrimental to the Nigerian project.

Whether it was the government or the Islamic insurgents who struck first is irrelevant; what should bother any right thinking Nigerian is that in spite of foreknowledge of the anti-social activities of the Taliban and the Boko Haram group, security forces in the country could not monitor and contain their activities before they became a deadly threat to the civilized existence we are all trying to live.

Can I tell you something that would inspire you today? It is never too late to start dreaming. Never too late to dream. You are not too young or too old to dream. If by now you do not have a dream, get one. It is as easy as that, and really, if you must dream, dream big. If you can see it, you can be it. If you can dream it, you can get there.

You are probably cursing being born into this nation_space called Nigeria; a land where truth is turned on its head and even ministers of justice are at the forefront of promoting wholesale injustice with impunity…a land of the institutionalization of the twin evils of corruption and violence, even in the supposedly hallowed courts where God is worshipped, as we are daily reminded in the north’s regular orgies of religious violence.

Israel feels uncomfortable about America’s moves in world politics, especially in the Middle East. This has prompted Obama’s declaration that the bond between America and Israel is unbreakable. Gates has also assured Israel of continued American financial and technical assistance, adding that US will ensure that Israel has the most advanced weapons to defend itself.

Gimba recorded Yar’Adua first failure in sports. Failure number two; up till date, nobody has uttered a word to the footballers who won silver and the five girls who won bronze – the 4x100m relay team lead by Damola Osayome and Blessing Okagbore who won our first medal from the Long Jump, interestingly the same event that gave us our first ever gold in Atlanta through Chioma Ajunwa.

I sometimes succumb to emotional cowardice; and I couldn’t quite bring myself to tell Dr. Lukman – a distinguished father figure and former OPEC boss with whom I’d had a warm relationship for several years – that my decision to absent myself from OGIC was also partly motivated by professional frustrations and political concerns.

NIGERIA’S birthday is the year 1914 after the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Provinces by the British imperial administrator, Lord Luggard. The intention was to facilitate easy rule of the country by Britain. In fact, the easy administration of the two countries was through native authorities led by the Emirs in the North, Obas in the West and in the absence of Emirs or Obas in the East, by “Warrant Chiefs”.