“Listen to Nigerian leaders and you will frequently hear the phrase, “this great country of ours.” Nigeria is not a great country. It is one of the most disorderly nations in the world. It is one of the most corrupt, insensitive, inefficient places under the sun. It is one of the most expensive countries and one of those that give least value for money. It is dirty, callous, noisy, ostentatious, dishonest, and vulgar. In short, it is among the most unpleasant places on earth”
Greetings. I apologize for the cumbersome heading of this letter. I may be dangerously approaching one and a half decades in the West, I am still very mindful of the importance of titles in Nigeria. I try to respect our sensibilities. I have also taken the liberty to address you as “Chairperson” as opposed to your normal designation as “Chairman” of Transcorp. You see, I live in North America and I don’t want wahala with the feminists. But I digress. I am writing to congratulat...
The “terrorists” in the Niger Delta are beginning to have a serious impact on the wallets of the English whenever they approach the gas station and Mr. Brown would have none of it. If President Yar’Adua has forgotten the Dan Fodian art of pacification, the English still have one or two tricks left to teach him in that department.
Harry and I were worried. We tried to place ourselves in the shoes of White South Africans discussing the now filthy streets of Hillbrow and downtown Johannesburg. What would be going on in their minds? Probably something like: “Ah, the good old days of Apartheid!”
Some American Africans, especially Nigerian-Americans, were particularly obstreperous, weeping louder than the bereaved in their support of Hillary Clinton and their disavowal of Obama. They offered unsolicited explanations and rationalizations of their political choices even as Billary’s too clever by half interjection of race and racism into the entire process increasingly made their positions slippery.
Finally, my very good friend, Ken Wiwa Jnr, who now serves as an inner-circle advisor to President Yar’Adua and who, apparently, is being pressurized to endorse Gambari, should never let his copy of Fanon stray too far. Those who murdered his father and poured acid on his corpse know why they need him now in Aso Rock. His name and pedigree are useable
