RECAP OF PAST FEW MONTHS

On the political scene a lot happened in Nigeria in the last seven months or so. The Rivers state crisis that started with grounding of Governor Amaechi's plane in May 2013 snowballed into massive break down of law and order.The Nigeria's Governors' Forum finally split into two with Amaechi becoming chairman of a faction while Jonah Jang headed the other faction comprising remaining PDP governors.

In Rivers state,there was attempt to impeach the governor by the state house of assembly.Five legislators out of twenty two  took over the chamber and impeached  the Speaker who is pro Amaechi.The manner of the impeachment was so ridiculous that you will think you are watching a badly cast Nolly-wood movie.However the drama and mayhem that followed the 'impeachment' was unimaginable.In full glare of the public, a lawmaker was beaten to state of coma with a broken mace.There was blood everywhere in the house.The house was closed and National Assembly took over the duties of the state assembly.

Bamanga Tukur became PDP chairman and all hell broke lose between him and runaway PDP governors of Nassarawa,Kwara,Niger,Rivers and others.Tukur was accused of high handedness in running the affairs of the party.The runaway governors wanted resignation of Tukur and cancellation of 2nd term agenda of GEJ.Meanwhile APC began to court the governors.

The Centenary celebration of the nation as planned by the government became an issue in the public domain as many saw it as a wasteful project.Nigeria was born during Amalgamation of 1914 by Lord Lugard of North and Southern Protectorates.

Boko Haram continued to maim and kill innocent Nigerians with schools and markets as their targets.In a school in North,they attacked students while sleeping in their hostels and killed them in cold blood.Military formations were not spared in the attacks.Government deployed more troops and extended the state of emergency in Borno,Yobo and Adamawa states.

GEJ accepted towards the end of the year that Nigerians need to talk in National Confab.The modalities were to be prepared by inaugurated committee.Some Nigerians saw it as a diversion by government to deliberately shift the focus of Nigerians from inefficiency of government.

OBJ threw a hard punch at GEJ in December 2013 via a letter to the president.The letter became a public knowledge as most Newspapers published the content of what supposed to be for president's consumption only. It was a stab in the back for GEJ. OBJ wanted to clear himself from blame for imposing GEJ in 2011 elections.The letter mentioned the festering Boko Haram crises and the failing economy. OBJ mentioned the 'missing' money at NNPC to the tune of $48b.The content of the letter was so bad that OBJ called the president a fool.On the missing fund at NNPC, the garrulous CBN governor, Sanusi Lamido shamefacedly admitted that he goofed and that only $12b was unaccounted for after several reconciliation meetings with Ministry of  finance.The Ministry posited that only $10.8b unreconciled. Any way what is the difference?

GEJ replied OBJ this time having accused by OBJ that he did not reply his previous letters hence the need to publish the last one.GEJ debunked all the insinuations of OBJ especially the one where OBJ said GEJ has a killer squad.One thing was clear in the letter, GEJ  called OBJ Baba several times in the letter.He said many times in the reply that Baba did him great injustice in most of the issues he raised in his letter.The president was short of saying tha his government  was better than that of  OBJ especially in the area of allowing the rule of law to take it pride of place in the nation.

Finally the runaway governors defected to APC from PDP. PDP became Jittery and panicky measures were taken to bring back the governors but all failed. Members of National Assembly from PDP began moving to APC.To meet some of demand of the aggrieved governors. Bamanga Tukur was removed as PDP chairman.And former Bauchi state Governor, Adamu Muazu was elected as the new chairman.He has since made some reconciliation moves.

There was governorship and local government elections in Anambra states.The election was so badly conducted that INEC had to admit it. We expect to see legal battles in days ahead as aggrieved parties go to court.

On international scene, the world lost one its finest on December 5,2013.Dr Nelson Mandela passed on after a protracted illness at the age of 95.Dr. Nelson Mandela was the first post -Apartheid president of South Africa.He was released from prison in 1992 after spending 27 years in prison.Dr. Nelson Mandela was a freedom fighter who fought the Apartheid regime in South Africa to a stand still.His imprisonment and that of his colleagues in the struggles brought the attention of the whole world to evil of Apartheid in South Africa.Subsequently the nation became a pariah due to various sanctions imposed by many nations of the world for its practice of Apartheid government where blacks and other races were regarded as second class citizens.Mandela further endeared the world to himself when he decided to reconcile all South Africans rather that take vengeance on those that oppressed him and other races in South Africa.He was elected president of post- Apartheid South Africa in 1994 at the age of 76.He had the strength and courage to run for second term in the office constitutionally but he did not.This singular action set him miles apart from the pervasive African leadership style of staying in power for life.He was buried in Qunu,Southern Cape which is his hometown.The world mourned his departure and the footprints he left on sand of time and history can never be erased in this Millennium and many to come.Rest in peace Madiba for you  deserve it having laid a path to follow for Africa and the world. I cherish this your word written in gold, "Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to and passionate about what they do."

And for a very long time this word of yours will resonate in my memory, Tata, "What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that  will determine the significance of the life we lead."