If former Secretary to the State Government, Obarisi (Barr.) Ovie Omo-Agege decides to seek the governorship of Delta State in 2015, there will be little political oxygen left for anyone else. I have taken so many factors into consideration to arrive at the conclusion that Omo-Agege, who came second to the two-term incumbent Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan in the PDP primaries in 2007, will become the Delta PDP best-selling candidate, the ultimate game changer as soon as he joins the race.

IT is 53 years since independence and Nigeria as a country is still travelling on reverse gear because the country has refused to look back. Philosophers are right when they say that looking back also means looking forward.

IN the last few weeks, the issue of the abduction of nearly 200 students of a secondary school in Chibok, Borno State has been largely politicised. Rarely are the real mothers of the girls seen these days on television as some really concerned women and opportunists have taken the centre stage and relishing the attendant publicity, while the parents have been pushed to the background.

When the abduction of over 200 girls took place in Chibok a day after the first Nyanya Bomb blast my heart bled. My heart bled for the girls. My heart bled for the parents and relations, and my heart bled for Nigeria my country. I remembered my good friend, brother and classmate Dauda N. Iliya. We grew up together in Mubi. Had our primary Education in Mubi before going to Federal Government College Warri for our Secondary Education. He is today at the National Secretariat of USOSA, the umbrella body of all old students of Unity Schools in Nigeria. He is as much a son of Mubi as myself, perhaps even more since he has direct telephone contact with the Emir of Mubi. But his roots are in Chibok.

NIGERIA is an extremely corrupt country. With the exception of an eccentric few, the generality of Nigerians are corrupt. Corruption has permeated and pervaded every Nigerian institution and every spectrum of her social life.

FROM the beginning of President Jonathan’s administration, the argument has raged on whether he will recontest or not when his first term expires in 2015.

NO public commentator has as yet delivered as robust an analysis of the forthcoming 2015 presidential election as a regular columnist in the Vanguard, the intrepid Femi Aribisala. In a recent article, titled: “The 2015 presidential election will not be televised”, Aribisala presented a reading of the watershed election and postulated: “If, as many believe, Goodluck Jonathan is going to run for re-election in 2015, then the next president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria will be Goodluck Jonathan.”

FOR starters, there is no question about who wields political power in Nigeria: now securely in the hands of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, the President. This question is about one area of authority that President Jonathan and the federal government should be happy to let go now.

A POLITICIAN’S qualities are his attributes that are natural, while some of the qualities are as a result of external influences. Promising politicians’ qualities are often backed by skills, experiences, intelligence, integrity, with instincts -all combined- to achieve certain goals. First and foremost, the best quality of a politician is honesty, and he should be God fearing and loving. A faithful and effective politician is trustworthy and reliable. He must capture the essence of truth, display sincerity, candour and practice what he preaches. He makes decisions and accepts responsibility for his actions and his words. The same is true in his dealing with his people. He makes promises and keeps those promises. He’s a person to be relied upon and should be seen to love people with all his heart, might, mind, soul, while striving to help them.

ONCE upon a time, there lived a man named Okoloigwe in the land of Umuigwe. Okoloigwe was one of those men who left the village early in life to the city in search of greener pastures. As he got exposed,he acquired experience particularly in the construction industry where he worked for many years and rose to the position of foreman.