LAURETTA ONOCHIE

I find it in bad taste that those who arm our young men to snatch ballot boxes during elections would turn around to declare that God gives power. God is many things but he is not a criminal. God is merciful and gracious,  the reason He has not struck them blind, dumb or with leprosy as a deterrent to those who steal and lie in the name of the Lord. The other reason is that God allows a people to choose what sort of government they prefer, the sort that works for them. The truth is that if God were to have a hand in the choice of government of any nation, democracy would not make His top List. God is not a democrat, He is an authoritarian or if you like, a dictator.  He does what pleases Him, not what His children want. If you are wise to ask for something He has already mapped out for you, then you will receive it, but only in His own time, not yours. You see, many of us think its a duty to spend hours each day, telling God what he should do for Nigeria.  Nigeria

Nigeria is 'blessed' or should I say saddled with poor leadership. Leaders of other nations strive in their own ways to please their citizens. Before elections, promises are made to woo the voters. After elections, the winner makes a conscious effort to fulfill those promises. The case with Nigeria, at least, since President Jonathan assumed office, is different. No effort has been made to fulfill promises made by this, em, em president! The much touted fresh air has not been seen nor breathed by anyone I know. It has been insecurity, corruption, unemployment, kidnapping, extra-judicial killing, lynching etc. While the leaders of other democratic nations who are battling harsh economic realities are making conscious effort to act in the interests of their people, all Nigerians get are vows. Empty vows that are not backed by power. Empty vows our president has no intention of keeping. Here are some. Jonathan Vows to Contain Jos Crisis [AllAfrica, Jan 19, 2010 ] 

I am a bit perturbed that the topic I am about to discuss, is ironically centered around the inclusion of Nigerian youths in politics, and this might be deflected to a meaningless direction if not given a proper consideration which is of utmost necessity. The idea to pose my keen awareness and observation of political history regarding the marginalization of youths from politics and the overall resentful mood the youths have deeply sunk into cannot be concealed any longer. The silent cries/flaming worries for many years of youth dehumanization are the alarming issues we must address with expedient. We have for years craved for youth inclusion in governance, this has been worryingly ignored. Instead we see evidence of youth displacement and misdirection on the increase. Paradoxically, the current participation of youths in the political life of the country is meager, as relatively compared on the weighing scale of the early 70s and 80s when youths were in government as ministers,

In the last two weeks, it has been a harvest of killings in some Nigerian higher institutions; first in the University of Maiduguri on September 29, followed by Federal Polytechnic, Mubi and lastly University of Port Harcourt. All the scenarios surrounding the killings are gruesomely disturbing. While those of Mubi and Port Harcourt have been receiving media and security attention, that of the University of Maiduguri seems to have passed unnoticed and almost unreported. Three bona fide Nigerian citizens were involved in that of Maiduguri namely; Abdulmalik Ahmed, a 400 level student of Mechanical Engineering, Halima Damchida, a 500 level student of Law, and one other young man simply identified as Yakubu also of the University. Halima, according to close family sources, is the only child of her mother, while Abdulmalik Ahmed Hassan is the elder of two sons of Master Warrant Officer Hassan Ahmed Isah of the Nigeria Army Archives, Ikeja Lagos. 

So, who do we blame, and really is it a blame game or the scary realisation that we are just a nation run on auto-pilot, one for which after 52 years, we are still plagued largely by the same problems? We are 52, part of the country is in water. We are deep in flood, and equally flooded on all fronts by corruption, mismanagement, maladministration and poor governance structure coupled with a citizenry with a vague picture of what patriotism is or should be. Two months ago when parts of the Shendam/Mikang axis and the Southern part of Plateau were cut off from the North, it was just one of those rare occurrences. The city centre was next with scores of death; parts of Bauchi were not spared. But like all floods, all issues that have plagued us, with a wave of hand, are confined to the bin of history. While we mark our 52nd 'dependence', we do so with the news that over a million Nigerians are likely to die with the imminent collapse of Lake Nyos Dam in Cameroon. Many