Our beloved Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, is my preferred candidate for next year's presidency. She is currently managing what I consider the most vital arm of government, the ministry of finance (the ministry of money, the economy's lifeblood).

Her concrete plan for the reform of the Nigerian economy consists of five areas: Privatisation, Governance, Macro Economy, Anti Corruption, and Public Service Reform. The most amazing thing is that the details of this programme are available on the Internet for all to see!

She was at the head of the team that negotiated the debt relief package for Nigeria, unlike other politicians who prefer to rack up debts for cheap popularity when they are in power and leave the consequences to the next administration. thanks to debt relief programme, this administration is handing over a clean balance sheet to the next regime in 2007!

I want this woman to be the next president of Nigeria. She has impeccable qualifications, a critical role in the economic reform programme, a politically corect gender, and has not been a part of the old chop-chop political system. If she contests in the 2007 election versus people like IBB, Atiku, and Okotie, would you vote for her?

Her Latest interview: news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/article484595.ece

She may have the qualities of the kind of president we need now but, she will not win a presidential election. she does not have the rigging force to win.
I will vote for her if she comes out.

Has a woman ever ruled Nigeria before ?

Would she survive ?

Those are the questions we should ask ourselves

Espcially at the current situation of Nigeria

I am all for her being made the president.What will then happen -hopefully- will be that she will surround herslf with credible people who know what to do.In case this does not work out, I am sincerely hoping that she or one any other person the economic team is in the leadership of thic country.Have you all noticed that no one cared that she is Igbo or a female.She gets the job done!

I read something interesting in the front page story of Thisday today, that as other politicians are realigning to take the place of Baba- since our senate in a rare show of courage threw out the 3rd thgerm agenda-the membeers of the economic team have also met to fashio out how they can bring up their own candidate!
This is getting very interesting.With a deep sigh after the death oif 3rd term, let us all watch what will happen.
Back to the topic: Ngozi Okonjo Iweala is a candidate for higher things in Nigeria and the presidency will not be bad place to take her dillegence!

Most-not all- other politiacins are after that foreign reserve!

GOVERNOR Donald Duke of Cross River State is my most prefred candidate. I would choose him over Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

Presidency is not her specialty. She will fail. I think its better she continues to handle the nigerian financial affairs, where she has spent all her life mastering and being a perfecto in the area. Finance is a major core area in the nigerian government. I thumb for her anyways,

Ngozi Okonjo –Iweala, Donald Duke, Pat Utomi or Nasr El-Rufai are okay with me. I would vote any of them as President.

On the other hand rather than voting for political misfits like IBB, Atiku or Orji Kalu, I would rather stay at home and drink tea on Election Day.

As far as I am concerned my level of thinking has reached a stage where religion, ethnic affiliation or gender are absolutely irrelevant to my choice of President. The problem now is convincing as many other people as possible to think this way.

I do agree that she will make a very good President, but the thing is when they get to that seat a lot of things change. By that time she will be influenced by a lot and will be forced to dance to the tunes of those who will be playing the music.

Honestly, Presidency is a difficult task. For the saftey of okonjo iweala, I do not encourage anything that will make her vote. She will face very difficult situations. A situation where "yes or no" will hurt her integrity. I know this from experince.

I think she should continue to manage our financial account etc and Donald Duke should be da prisedo, I think she would do better as Finanace Minister dan being da President

Ngozi Okonjo Iweala
Charles Soludo
Pat Utomi
etc

These are professionals; professionals in what they do. They would make a very good cabinet, but would end up as 'bad' heads of state.

El Rufai
he sounds more like a politician, but still has a lot to learn as regards being diplomatic and skillful in conflict management. Given time, he will make a good leader.

Clinton was a very good leader, not because he knows how to prepare balance sheet or predict the economic or because he was an outstanding lawyer, but because he is a charismatic character, who can get gather together numerous egg heads and bring out the best in them. He manages people well.

I will not be suprised if the next president of Nigeria is either an ex-president or a nobody in terms of popularity, as we speak. I only hope that he will be ready to employ the services of the Iwealas, Soludos and Utomis, known and unknown to continue the task of salvaging this country.

Remember Tofa?? He nearly made it to Asorock.

my 2cents shaa.

I will vote for her quit alright, she seems cool enough to know what is good for this country. But would they ever allow her to contest at all not to talk of being there?

i ll choose pat utomi instead. and who's talking El Rufai?! Hell no, Okonjo wont be bad bt naija is way to corrupt for okonjo to rule ooo, them go injure the woman.

Why are you all painting this woman to be a saint Is she not a member of the obasenjo cabinet that wanted the 3rd term? As far as I am concerned she is part and parcel and party to the third term plot. I wonder if she has made entries in her book keeping for the money used to bribe those pro 3rd termers in her position as finance minister! Abeg commot jare

The mistake we make is puting a square peg in a round hole, That Dr Iweala does well in finance does not mean she will make a good president, i believe if she remains there for as long as possible, nigeria is going to be better financially

Well

with all these good things I hear of her

i say YES

Ngozi Okonjo Iweala
Charles Soludo
Pat Utomi
etc

These are professionals; professionals in what they do. They would make a very good cabinet, but would end up as 'bad' heads of state.

How do you know that? Are we saying that the only way to be a good president is to be bad at what you do professionally? Nobody starts out in life professionally as a politician. Obasanjo became the President first out of the Army, and then out of farming. How did any of these professions qualify or prepare him to be a good President?

Let's stop encouraging the riff raffs in this country who have turned politics into a meal ticket and besides politics cannot succeed in life (that is why they never want to leave) and let's vote for people who have proved themselves capable in what has already been committed to them.

Consultant:

How do you know that? .

@Consultant
I don't know that. I believe that. It's my opinion.
Dumb
Smart
Maybe crazy
It's still mine.

And I respect urs, except the questioning aspect of it though.

Courtesy!
Tolerance!
Almost extinct like the Australian dodo

in my own opinion, lets give her a chance, if dem go gree ooo!( chop i chop group), i know one thing right from when i was growing up, a woman is a great person who can tell how things are done and get them done its their nature. if she comes out to contest, i will vote for her, look at wat she said during the interview "
"And you had had death threats" her answer=.

"Yes, direct threats to me and one to my husband at our home. He got very upset. So the President doubled my security. But I was never afraid"
To me thats a woman of courage, she certainly knows where she is coming and where she is going,i dream of seeing a formidable team of intellectuals like of Pat Utomi, Nasril Rufai, Donald Duke take over the mantle of leadership from baba! i believe Nigeria will be a force to reckon with in few years from now.i will vote any of them in! i swear.!!!!!!!!11

quote from medube:i do agree that she will make a very good president, but the thing is when they get to that seat a lot of things change. by that time she will be influenced by a lot and will be forced to dance to the tunes of those who will be playing the music.

aunty ngozi is a credible personality no doubt,but i think she's more of a technocrat than a politician.governance in 9ja is full of intrigues and sommersaults.compromises here n there.she may not manage dis well when d "storms start gathering". again,given d kind of national assembly(mantu etc) and party leaders(anenih,ahmadu ali,bode george,chris uba) we have(and will continue 2 have),tell mi hw aunty ngozi will 'survive' diz ruinous forces whose interest in 9ja does not go beyond d pecuniary !

someone like donald duke will manage d situation much better. a tested hand in politics and governace,and the best governor in 9ja by all standards !

I wont vote for her, Pat Utomi, or any of the likes. I may vote for Donald duke (not really sure)


The seat of the head of state in a multi-tribal country like Nigeria demand more than academic brilliance to manage. Like someone said earlier, these people will make up a good cabinet.

For the presidency, a charismatic, diplomatic, people-oriented person is needed. On that note, some of the previous older candidates without their corrupt nature will be more suitable. But i guess the corruption is entrenched in their system, almost genetic.

This leaves us with a dilemma. BUT I REAPEAT, SHE DOESN'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO RULE NIGERIA. She will be planning for an early grave if she ventures into the intrigue-filled, dog-eat-dog, dangerous territory.

The THisday Newspaper that came out the very next day the third term bill was thrown out said something about the many aides of Obasanjo that we may miss.One of the many pro third term adverts placed in AIT, with Mrs Oby Ezekwelizi being featured as one of the many things that Obasanjo accomplished, was said to have drawn the attetion of the woman who asked the Tv station to stop airing it.

According to that report,the decision to do that emboldened many of the presidential aides who were not for the third term agenda.This is very significant for the political desitiny of Nigeria because as we have seen the end of the need to extend Obasanjo's tenure,we will now witness the instalment of a president in order to defeat the many people who opposed Third term from IBB to Atiku and Buhari.I beleive that this is te next stage.

By Implication,the person that will be 'installed' will not be any of these men.That is the reason why we should expect the unexpected.IBB may have the money but the incumbent will deploy all tools of the state against the opposition and for the chosen one. Up until now,they never chose anyone because there was no back up plan for the third term agenda.A very stoic Ken Nnamani and Masari have foiled a plan that was devised before they became leaders in the Niational Assembly.

Stretching this theory further;with the kinds of credit that the economic team has received,do not be suprised if one of them is made more powerful to continue 'the many reforms of the government, Remember, we have a huge foreign reserve that is very juicy.If you think baba iyabo is stubborn, wait and see vindictiveness.
In the words of IBB, we dont know who will succeed us but we know those who wont.
Read between the lines.

Ngozi, Elrufai, well they are good but i believe Dora Akunyele can also do better considering her achievemnts and records set so far

I am one of the first columnists in this Forum to fly a kite that Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala c being a young woman of distinction and one of our best Ministers of Finance in all of our History, is a good presidential material any day. I still hold that view to be self-evident today Obasanjo already has a great and worthy successor in Ngozi,
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has arrived the Nigeria leadership scene by miracle, and in similar circumstance, and she has proved her mettle as one of the best managers of our economy at this time in our History. I am all for Okonjo-Iweala for President. Those who argue she is too emotional and too inexperienced to be President just don't know what they are talking about.

I LOVE that woman. I would vote for her over IBB, Atiku, Okotie, Kalu, Yerima. However, she doesnt strike me as a politician. I think she'll be better as a Finance minister. I only hope the next president uses her, or someone as good, as his Finance Minister. Plus, I really don't see Nigerians voting in a female president, not yet.

Pat Utomi, Charles Soludo, Ezekwesili, Akunyili are all great people too, but I dont see them as politicians too. I believe it'll be better to leave them where they are. It's quite unlikely, though, that the next president would want to use the same officials that this administration has used. Donald Duke is ok.

How about Emeka Anyaoku? His job as the Commonwealth Secretary General should have given him the exposure and diplomacy required for such a job.

I would not vote for her. If Nigeria does not fall under another string of bad leadership (coup? maybe) it would be a lot harder to break up.

She is experinced in the economic sector, if she diverges, she will collapse irrespective of what u think. Presidency is something else, >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> She will be faced with very controvacial, tententious situations and she will either be forced to bend to "thy majesty" or her life will be in danger. If you lovve her that much, then my best advice for u is to not let her run for presidency like myself. that is the best love i can give.

Gani however is a lawyer and will know how to handle any situation that arises, I therefore want every nigerian to vote for either gani or orji kalu!

Please don't insult insult our finance minister by comparing her to Orji Kalu. That is too disrespectful!

KO JO

mrlawng:

I wont vote for her, Pat Utomi, or any of the likes. I may vote for Donald duke (not really sure)


The seat of the head of state in a multi-tribal country like Nigeria demand more than academic brilliance to manage. Like someone said earlier, these people will make up a good cabinet.

For the presidency, a charismatic, diplomatic, people-oriented person is needed. On that note, some of the previous older candidates without their corrupt nature will be more suitable. But i guess the corruption is entrenched in their system, almost genetic.

This leaves us with a dilemma. BUT I REAPEAT, SHE DOESN'T HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO RULE NIGERIA. She will be planning for an early grave if she ventures into the intrigue-filled, dog-eat-dog, dangerous territory.

@pssword
Okonjo-Iweala spoke out against the third term.


I would vote for Okonjo-Iweala (or El-rufai), if she shows interest and decide to run. She's what Nigeria desperately needs at this time. Someone also mentioned Dora Akunyili (sp.?) and I agree. These are people that could positively impact the country and move it forward, something naija really needs right now.

Nia:

@pssword
Okonjo-Iweala spoke out against the third term.


I would vote for Okonjo-Iweala (or El-rufai), if she shows interest and decide to run. She's what Nigeria desperately needs at this time. Someone also mentioned Dora Akunyili (sp.?) and I agree. These are people that could positively impact the country and move it forward, something naija really needs right now.

I am really impressed with the leadership qualities of some of our women leaders. They are outstanding. Every credits in the Obasanjo's government goes to them.
Good contribution from people like El-Rufai.

It will be nice if Nigeria could have a woman leader backed by a very strong VP like Buba Marwa etc

why Ngozi, what is she doing that is so special

we should try and see past their political magic, all those debt relief u are all talking about is not as they are sayin it. wait make baba comot 4 sit den we go know d truth.

una go talk say i talk am