The seed of transformation planted by Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan in Delta State did not appear at first dawn. Like a woman in pregnancy, Uduaghan’s manifestation started with some queasiness, the kind of early morning sickness associated with pregnant women before the shaping out of the tummy.

In spite of the persisting gloomy indices portraying Nigeria as a country still mired in backwardness, the year 2013 was full of silver linings on the dark clouds of the nation’s firmament. Our economy was given a healthy rating by many reputable international agencies, though it was generally agreed that little of it is being felt by the people on the streets.

Dr. Dan Mou retired as a Director in Ministries of Defence and Foreign Affairs. While in service, he served as Special Adviser to three National Security Advisers in the Presidency, In this interview with Vanguard,, the erudite scholar examines the legacies and challenges of the post Mandela era.

In a few hours, residents of Lagos will join the rest of the world to usher in year 2014. This is with hope that the New Year will be better than the outgoing year, 2013, which was full of mixed grills for the Governor Babatunde Fashola-led administration and the over 21 million residents of the state.

In the interest of peace, stability and national security, it would, perhaps, be interesting to have a throwback to the United States of America’s July 11, 1804, when a former Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, and a sitting Vice President, Aaron Burr, engaged in a gun duel to settle their political differences. Just as former President Matthew Okikiolakan Aremu Olusegun Obasanjo wrote an open letter to President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan accusing him of sundry charges, so did Hamilton launch assault on Burr through a letter, defaming the latter; manipulated the House of Representatives to vote Thomas Jefferson as president over Burr.