UNTIL 1994, for over a century South Africa was locked against the rest of Africa and indeed the country and her people were not easily accessible to the rest of the world as the white minority used their might to impose racial segregation, which denied the majority black of everything, including quality life and the rest of the world rose in support of the majority black in popular agitation for the liberation of a country held in the worst and unusual form of domination in all spheres of life.

TRADE is the very life of the economy. It is in trade that one accesses the value that the other party provides. It is trade that allows wealth creation to take place. It is trade that distributes wealth among the nations and continents of the world. In the records of trade, leaders can see where economic threats and business opportunities lie. It is the job of economic managers (and brand managers) to monitor trade and prescribe measures that will correct unfavourable situations. Sadly, Africa’s trade situation betrays an alarming neglect by those who ought to have watched over it.

THE mass protests, negative public reactions, inconclusive results processing, etc that have trailed the March 28th and April 11 national and governorship elections in Abia State constitute food for thought for followers of Abia politics, particularly those genuinely committed to the struggle for change.

ORDINARILY, APC is endowed with intelligent, courageous and fair-minded leaders who would not fall for the temptation of egotism. But these are not ordinary times and the vibes from within the palaces of the movers and shakers in APC portend imminent danger to a stable all-inclusive government based on the federal character principle enunciated in section 14(3) of the Nigerian Constitution.

NIGERIA has been known to have the largest economy in Africa (based on figures announced in April 2014) and the country is still striving to become one of the 20 largest economies in the world by 2020.