It is now obvious that South Africa over- reached itself when it decided on the first day of March 2012, to deport 125 Nigerians on account of what is generally regarded as a rather flimsy reason that they possessed fake yellow fever inoculation certificates.

It must be remembered that official corruption has been a leitmotif in governance at all levels since independence in 1960. Major Chukwuemeka Nzeogwu, leader of the first military coup in Nigeria, cited corruption as one of the main reasons why the army decided to wrest power from the government of Alhaji Tafawa Balewa. Since then, coup plotters had been using it as their number one excuse for taking power by force.

There is a school of thought that says a human being is a sum total of all his life’s experiences. We are shaped by the things we go through and whether we express our feelings or not we are changed by the emotions that are there. The world we live in does not afford anyone the liberty of being transparent.

“Fresh evidence shows that Nigeria’s ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) used Halliburton bribe money for the 2003 campaign that gave former President Olusegun Obasanjo a second term in office. Our investigations show that a significant portion of the $180 million bribe was given to the party through the presidency [emphasis mine], which doled out the money using cheques”. NEXT ON SUNDAY, July 5, 2009.

Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them – William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night