At a time in this country when numerous prophecies from several doomsday prophets predicted gloom and disintegration in the political horizon, General Abdulsalami Abubakar buried himself in a rather quiet, domestic diplomacy in the search for enduring peace.

The approach of the 2015 elections in Nigeria brought with it fear and trepidation. There was the fear that the country was likely to go up in flames, as had been predicted by those who said Nigeria was capable of disintegrating in 2015. So, the more the elections drew nearer, the more heightened was the fear that gripped the populace. But one man was quite optimistic that the country will remain intact after the elections. That man is General Abdulsalami Alhaji Abubakar, otherwise known as General AAA or Triple ‘A’ for short.

I remember one of my routine visits to him in his Minna, Niger State home some time last year. As had become customary with him, the issue of the state of the nation and the impending elections came under discussion. That was a day after the leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who were going round holding consultations with notable senior citizens and political figures across the country, visited him. They had visited the old but energetic former leader to put before him their resolve to effect a change in the leadership of the country which, according to them, they believed deserved something better, a more purposeful leadership with vision and vigour.

The APC entourage that visited him was so large that the General quickly looked for a way out by simply asking the delegation to nominate five people among them to deliberate with him in an inner room. There and then, General Muhammadu Buhari, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Alhaji Aminu Masari and two others were unanimously chosen to meet with him. After the five-man team had briefed him about their mission and their concern for the progress of the nation, General AAA wished them the best of luck in their chosen endeavour and urged them to go about the whole thing in a peaceful manner.

The above scenario emblemises the quiet and unassuming nature of General AAA. On the day of my visit, and as always, one thing that dominated our discussions was the state of the nation. Like I mentioned earlier, at a time in this country when numerous prophecies from several doomsday prophets predicted gloom and disintegration in the political horizon, General AAA buried himself in a rather quiet domestic diplomacy in the search for enduring peace. With unrelenting vigour, he made pragmatic efforts that helped to banish despair and replaced it with renewed hope in the citizenry. - See more at: http://www.exlinklodge.com/2015/06/general-abdulsalami-abubakar-at-73-by.html#sthash.tm8VhRCD.dpuf