Sunday, February 7, 2016 will be remembered by hundreds of young children, orphans, widows and the aged who are camping at the International Christian Centre For Missions (ICC) Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camp in Benin-City, Edo State.

When former President Goodluck Jonathan emerged on the scene, he came across as a power –shy, harmless politician on whose shoulders providence placed the leadership of this great nation at a critical period in our political evolution. His moving story of grass to grace, with the memorable line that he went to school like many Nigerians without shoes, caught the attention of the electorate who gave him the mandate in his first-ever quest to seek elective office in 2011.

THE Holy Bible tells us that the devil has three major assignments, namely to steal, to kill, and to destroy, while Jesus Christ came to destroy every work of the devil, and to give life to mankind , and life in abundance. Jesus uses His Church, to do this work, and the church works with the Doctors and those in the health sector.

AN Igbo proverb, says that when the birds start flying without perching , hunters learn how to shoot and hit, without aiming, and that is the origin of the name “ Ogbanufe” meaning, one who shoots and kills birds as they fly.

Growing up as a child, I was entertained to a popular tale about the self adulation of a reptile called lizard. Anytime this creature jumps down from a tree or a wall and nods it head afterwards, this action is interpreted in the Yoruba folklore as shaking its head in self praise – ‘if no one would praise me for the feat of jumping down, I will praise my self.’ Likely, the lizards may have grown up amidst unappreciative people.

The 8th Senate under the leadership of the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, stands on the precipice of attaining positive legislative change. As the whole country aligns itself with the agenda party at the center, the All Progressives Congress (APC), the National Assembly has gradually but surely worked towards setting new legislative precedents for Nigeria.

STRATEGY is the path, course or way we choose to attain our goals. There are many strategies. What succeeds in one clime may not in another. We have not been adopting the right strategies to the challenges facing this country and that is why we are still adrift. What are the goals and vision of Nigeria as a nation? It is a united, peaceful, strong and prosperous nation. How close are we to attaining these goals? Very far, the reason is that we keep applying the same remedy to the same problem without success and successive regimes have been guilty of this. The present government is threading the same path and will get the same result unless it re-directs its course.

AS widely acknowledged, the ‘old normal’ of high oil prices – oil prices at $100.00 per barrel and above – has given way to a ‘new normal’ of prices well below this range. The 2016 crude oil price outlook is very gloomy.

IT is dark. No one denies that it is dark, neither does anyone pretend that the Heavenly bodies decree the darkness. Yet, it must be dark and darkened so the labourers would be known and crowned deservedly. There would be no coronation without darkness; darkness reinforces hopes of coronation. Therefore it must be dark, very dark, for all buzzing showy creatures to get the crown and find their roost.

IT is dark. No one denies that it is dark, neither does anyone pretend that the Heavenly bodies decree the darkness. Yet, it must be dark and darkened so the labourers would be known and crowned deservedly. There would be no coronation without darkness; darkness reinforces hopes of coronation. Therefore it must be dark, very dark, for all buzzing showy creatures to get the crown and find their roost.

Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole, the present governor of Edo state is one person I have tremendous respect and admiration for;a great orator, cerebral analyst, brilliant administrator and very effective grass roots mobilizer. He is one who rides the opportunities as they come; as a local unionist at the Kaduna textile factory to becoming the head of the Nigerian Labour Congress as President.

The tail end of 2015 already gave discerning Nigerians a sign that the coming year would be challenging and many citizens expected the introduction of policy that would help ameliorate the difficulties of these austere times and the President Muhammadu Buhari led administration did not disappoint them. Commendably, the government reduced the price of premium motor spirits by 50 kobo.

ONE way to deal with economic crisis is to isolate the main elements and deal with them or go after those who caused the crisis in the first place. The worldwide economic crisis of 2007-8 (Black Wednesday) which still remains unresolved fully, caused by several factors but mainly by banks who sold products and derivatives to people who clearly would be unable to pay or took advantage of regulations to make maximum profits in unorthodox ways such as leveraging the LIBOR rate etc.

And as a woman, Hajia Aisha Alhasan is capable of uniting the state and putting to rest the age long problem which had hampered development. During her campaign, she was able to penetrate all parts of the state and that is an indication of the level of acceptance and support she enjoys

It is never an easy task traveling with children; I remember the days I used to travel with my three children all under the age of five; what an ordeal it was. I quickly had to master my motherly travelling skills to keep them calm.