₦airaland Forum

chidibond:
I know many young people won't be interested in this Summit. It may never make FP. If it was a political or celebrity-focused news, then it would attract traffic.

MarvellousGod:
Cool. But the list wasn't worth the whole delay, emphasis etc... I was not expecting to see any familiar name on the list! Thought he would bring totally new persons/saints....
But at last, still same old people! !
Anyway, may God give them the wisdom to discharge their duties diligently. . I hope to see some visible changes in Nigeria soon, Amen. ..

President Buhari Full Ministerial List According to Geopolitical Zones and States
I.North West
1. Jigawa - Engr Sulaiman Adamu
2. Kaduna - Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed
3. Kano - Rtd Lt General Abdurahman Dambazau
4. Katsina - Senator Hadi Sirika
5. Kebbi - Abubakar Malami SAN
6. Sokoto - Aisha Abubakar
7. Zamfara - Rtd Brigadier-General Muhammad Mansur Dan-Ali

II.North Central
8. Benue - Audu Ogbeh
9. Kogi - James Ocholi
10. Kwara - Alhaji Lai Muhammed
11. Nassarawa - Ibrahim Usman Jibril
12. Niger - Abubakar Bawa Bwari
13. Plateau - Solomon Dalong
FCT - N/A

III.North East
14. Adamawa - Muhammad Bello
15. Bauchi - Mallam Adamu Adamu
16. Borno - Mustapha Baba Shehuri
17. Gombe - Aminah Mohammed
18. Taraba - Senator Aisha AlHassan
19. Yobe - Hon Khadija Bukar Abba Ibrahim

IV.South West
20. Ekiti - Dr Kayode Fayemi
21. Lagos - Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN
22. Ogun - Kemi Adeosun
23. Ondo - Professor Claudius Omoleye Daramola
24. Osun - Professor Isaac Adewole
25. Oyo - Barr. Adebayo Shittu

V.South South
26. Akwa Ibom - Senator Udo Udo Udoma
27. Bayelsa - Senator Heineken Lokpobiri
28. Cross River - Pastor Usani Usani
29. Delta - Dr Ibe Kachikwu
30. Edo - Dr Osagie Ehanire
31. Rivers - Rotimi Amaechi

VI.South East
32. Abia - Dr Okechukwu Enyinna Enelama
33. Anambra - Dr Chris Ngige
34. Ebonyi - Dr Ogbonaya Onu
35. Enugu - Geoffrey Onyeama
36. Imo - Professor Anthony Anwuka

Who is who in Buhari’s final ministerial list?

By By Hamza Idris, Zulei Mohammed and Sakina Abubakar (Abuja) & Kabir Anwar, Yola | Publish Date: Oct 13 2015 10:33PM | Updated Date: Oct 13 2015 11:28PM

The Senate yesterday unveiled President Muhammadu Buhari’s second and final batch of nominees for confirmation as ministers. The president had said that the batch will be the last one, meaning that those with expectations of being part of Buhari’s cabinet would have to wait for another opportunity. Like some of the first nominees, there are some in the second list that heard their names over the media.

Dr. Okechukwu Enyinna Enelamah (Abia State)
A medical doctor, he is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of African Capital Alliance, a leading private equity firm on the African continent. He has a wealth of experience in investment banking, having worked for Goldman Sachs in London and New York and Arthur Anderson in Nigeria. He holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School and a CFA charter.
Enelamah has served on a number of boards of blue chip companies, including Dorman Long Engineering Ltd., Corner Stone Insurance Plc and UAC Nigeria Plc.

Professor Claudis Omoleye Daramola (Ondo State)
Findings show that he was among those speculated to be minister. He is a professor of education in the University of Ilorin and holds B.Sc. (Ed.), Sokoto, 1980; M.Ed. Sociology of Education, Jos, 1982 and Ph.D. Sociology of Education, Ilorin, 1990. He has authored hundreds of seminal papers and chapters in books.

Hon Khadija Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe State)
“Hajiya Khadija was never consulted before she was nominated as minister,” a source close to her said.
A former first lady of Yobe State and one-time commissioner for transport in the state, Khadija is currently serving her third term as member of the House of Representatives, representing Damaturu/Gujba/Gulani/Tarmuwa). The daughter of the Second Republic politician, Alhaji Waziri Ibrahim, she was educated at Headington School, Oxford, Padworth College, and the University of Surrey.

Professor Anthony Anwuka (Imo State)
A former Secretary to the Imo State Government, Professor Anwuka did his doctorate degree programme in General Curriculum, System Analysis and Social Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle, USA in 1977. Prior to this, he did his Masters in Educational Administration and Planning at the University of Portland, Oregon USA in 1975. At Fourah Bay University of Serra Leone (1974), he studied English Language. In August 2001, he participated at the Commonwealth Vice-Chancellors Leadership Conference, Dundee Scotland, UK. Anwuka had worked as a Teaching Assistant, University of Washington, Seattle 1976-1977; Curriculum Resource Person/Instructor, Specialist Seattle Opportunities Industrialization Centre (SOIC), 1977 1978; Senior Lecturer, University of Maiduguri, 1983-1985; Reader, University of Maiduguri, 1986 1998; and Curriculum Resource Person/Consultant, Nigerian National Teachers Institute, (NTI), Kaduna, 1983 1986.

Mr. James Ocholi (Kogi State)
A former National Deputy Legal Adviser of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), he has contested for the governorship ticket of the party in his state but lost to Abubakar Audu. He was also a governorship aspirant on the platform of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in the state.

Senator Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa State)
The Speaker of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly at one time, Lokpobiri had also represented Bayelsa West Senatorial District in the National Assembly until 2015. He received an LL.B (Hons) in 1994 from Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt

Retired Brigadier-General Muhammad Mansur Dan-Ali (Zamfara State)
During his military career, Dan-Ali had attended several courses including Artillery Young Officer Course (YOC) at the Nigerian Army Junior Staff Course; Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC), Teshie -Ghana; Company Command’s Course (CCC) at Nigerian Army School of Infantry (NASI) and Senior Staff Course at Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC), Jaji in 2000/2001.
Dan-Ali recently conducted the APC primary election in Bayelsa State after the first one, headed by Governor Adam Oshiomhole of Edo State.

Mallam Adamu Adamu (Bauchi State)
Is a veteran journalist from Bauchi State and a long ally of President Muhammadu Buhari, Mallam Adamu is a renowned public analyst and columnist with the Daily Trust newspapers. He is a public commentator with a distinct style. He is said to be fearless, educated and bold enough to express his views and opinions both locally and internationally. He was the secretary of Buhari’s Transition Committee and had worked closely with the president during the days of the defunct PTF.

Professor Isaac Adewole (Osun)
A Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, he obtained his Bachelor of Medicine from the University of Ibadan in 1978 and became a Senior Registrar in 1984. Professor Adewole is the Principal Investigator of the AIDS Prevention Initiative in Nigeria, Co-Principal Investigator of the Medical Education Partnership, a former chairman of the National Task Team on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV, and Principal Investigator for ‘Operation Stop Cervical Cancer’ in Nigeria. As a vice-chancellor, he reportedly transformed the University of Ibadan into one of Africa’s top 10 universities.

Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed (Kaduna)
Is the Executive Secretary of Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI). She is a member of Association of National Accountants of Nigeria and Fellow, Institute of Certified Company Commercial Accountants of Nigeria among other professional organisations

Abubakar Bawa Bwari
A second nominee from Niger State, sources at the National Assembly said he will represent the FCT at the Federal Executive Council.
Popularly known as ABB, he was elected as a member of the Federal House of Representatives representing Suleja/Gurara/Tafa Federal Constituency in 1998 and subsequently became Chief Whip of the House, a position he held spanning 1999 to 2007. He was also elected as Vice President African, Caribbean, Pacific and European Union (ACP-EU) Joint Parliamentary Assembly and Chairman of the planning committee of the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly in 2000.

Pastor Usani Usani (C/River)
Until his nomination as minister by President Buhari, Pastor Usani Uguru Usani is the Cross River State Chairman of the APC.

Muhammad Bello (Adamawa)
He is the former Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria. The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa State rejected his nomination. Speaking to Daily Trust in Yola, the State Organizing Secretary of the party, Ahmad Lawan said the nomination of Bello could affect the chances of the party in future elections. "He is not a card carrying member of the party. It is unfair to nominate him as minister. We thought President Buhari would appoint a politician who knows those who made sacrifices to bring him and the party to power", he said.

Mustapha Baba Shehuri (Borno)
A close ally of President Buhari, Shehuri, popularly known as ‘Quality’, was the Director General of the Buhari Campaign organization in Borno State. He was a member of the House of Representatives, a former chairman of the Maiduguri Metropolitan Council (MMC) and the gubernatorial candidate of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) in 2011.

Geoffrey Onyeama (Enugu)
He is the Chair of the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and holds Bachelor of Arts (BA), Political Science, Columbia University (Columbia College), New York, USA, (1977); Bachelor of Arts (BA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College), Cambridge, United Kingdom (1980); Master of Laws (LL.M), Law, University of London (London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), London, United Kingdom (1982); Master of Arts (MA), Law, Cambridge University (St. John’s College), Cambridge, United Kingdom (1984).
He was a Research Officer, Nigerian Law Reform Commission, Lagos, Nigeria, (1983-1984) and speaks English, French, German and Ibo.

A’isha Abubakar
Is the nominee representing Sokoto State. Little is known about her.
http://www.dailytrust.com.ng/news/politics/who-is-who-in-buhari-s-final-ministerial-list/114885.html

LESS than 24 hours after he got the second list containing the names of 16 ministerial nominee from the Presidency, Senate President Bukola Saraki yesterday read the names of the nominees sent to the Senate for screening and confirmation.

Three aides to President Muhammadu Buhari – Alhaji Abba Kari (Chief of Staff), Senator Ita Enang and Abdulrahman Kawu Sumaila (both Senior Special Assistants on National Assembly Matters), conveyed the nomination memo to National Assembly at about 4.20pm on Monday.

It was exactly 12 days after the Red Chamber got the first list of 21 nominees with a promise from the President to send the supplementary list in earnest. Ten of the 21 nominees appeared before the Senate Committee of the Whole for screening yesterday. The remaining 11 are due for screening today.

In the latest list are: Khadija Buka Abba Ibrahim, (Yobe); Claudius Omoleye Daramola (Ondo); Prof. Anthony Anwuka (Imo); Geoffrey Onyeama; Brig-Gen. M.M. Dan-Ali (rtd), (Zamfara); James E. Ocholi (Kogi); Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed; Okechukwu Enelamah (Abia); Muhammad Bello (Adamawa); Mustapha Baba Shehuri; Ms. Aisha Abubakar; Senator Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa); Adamu Adamu (Bauchi); Prof. Isaac Adewole (Osun); Pastor Usani Usani Uguru and Abubakar Bwari Bawa (Niger).

Some of the ministers

Ocholi

James Eneojo Ocholi, (SAN), is a Christian leader and prominent politician in Kogi State. He is the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council, Salem University, Lokoja. He was the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Disciplinary Committee, Abuja branch. A respected All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, he was in the race for governor. But, he lost to former Governor Abubakar Audu. He was the leader of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC). Until recently, he as the APC National Deputy Legal Adviser.

Lokpobiri

Born on March 3, 1967, Heineken Lokpobiri earned an LLB (Hons) from Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RUST), Port-Harcourt, Rivers State in 1994. He was called to the bar in 1995 and was the Speaker of the House of Assembly in Bayelsa State between 1999 and 2001. He was in the Senate between 2011 and 2015. As a senator, he was a member of the Sports, Public Accounts, Police Affairs, Niger Delta and Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) committees. He defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC, shortly after the general elections.

Adewole

Prof. IsaacAdewole is a celebrated university don. His areas of medical specilaisation are obstetrics and Gynecology. The climax of his academic career was his appointment as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan. A physician of note, he has taught medicine at the institution’s College of Medicine. He has served as the Head of Department, Dean of Faculty, and Provost of the College of Medicine. He was part of the investigative team involved in the international study of fertility intentions of HIV-infested persons. The project was sponsored by NIH. Adewole is also the President of the African Organisation for Research and Training in Cancer (AORTIC).

Anwuka

Prof. Anthony Anwuka was born on April 22, 1951 in Egbuoma, Imo State. Until his nomination, the professor of Education was the Secretary to the State Government (SSG). He was the Vice Chancellor of Imo State University for five years. He earned a degree in English Language from Fourah Bay University, Sierra-Leone and a Master Degree in Educational Administration from the University of Portland, Oregon, United States (U.S.). He obtained a post-graduate degree in General Curriculum, System Analysis and Social Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle, U.S. in 1977.

Abba-Ibrahim

A celebrated politician, Mrs. Khadija Buka Abba-Ibrahim is the wife of the former governor of Yobe State, Senator Bukar Abba-Ibrahim. She is a former Commissioner for Transport in the Northeast state. He was elected into the House of Representatives thrice. But, she could not realise her bid for the Deputy Speaker of the Green Chamber.

Daramola

A native of Ode-Ayein Okutiputa Local Government Area of Ondo State, the professor of Sociology of Education at the University of Ilorin, Prof Claudius Omoleye Daramola, attended the University of Sokoto (now Usman Dan Fodiyo University, Sokoto), where he received a B.Sc (Ed) degree in Sociology. He later attended the University of Jos, Plateau State for a Master degree in the Sociology of Education.

He is reputed as good manager of men and recourses as well as a selfless team player.

Enelamah

Okechukwu Enelamah is a medical doctor and chartered accountant. He is the Chief Executive Officer of African Capital Alliance, a leading private equity firm in Africa. He holds a MBA from Harvard Business School.

Zainab Ahmed

Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed is the Executive Secretary, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).Until her appointment, Mrs. Ahmed was a member of the National Stakeholders Working Group (NSWG) of NEITI and the former Managing Director, Kaduna Industrial and Finance Company. She holds a degree in Accounting from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria and Master in Business Administration. Mrs. Zainab Ahmed is a member of the Association of National Accountants of Nigeria and Fellow, Institute of Certified Company Commercial Accountants of Nigeria among other professional organisations.

Geoffrey Onyeama

Born on February 2, 1956, Geoffrey Onyeama studied Political Science at the (Columbia University, Columbia College), New York, United States (U.S.). He also obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree at Cambridge University (St. John’s College), Cambridge, United Kingdom (UK) and Master of Laws (LL.M) from the Universities of London, London School of Economic and Political Science (LSE), U.K, before having pursuing a Master of Arts degree at St. John’s College.

He worked as Research Officer at the Nigerian Law Reform Commission, Lagos, between 1983 and 1984 and practiced law in Enugu between 1984 and 1985 before joining the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in 1985.

Onyeama, who speaks English, French, German and Ibo, is WIPO’s Deputy Director-General of Development Sector.

Usani

Usani Usani, a pastor, was the local chapter Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State. He was also the party’s standard bearer at the April 11 governorship election in the Southsouth state.

Usani has taken shots at the Cross River State Government House twice.

‘We Kidnapped Falae To Get Money To Celebrate Salah’ -Suspects

The Department of State Security Service (DSS) paraded the two suspected kidnappers of Olu Falae in front of the press today. The two kidnappers, Abdullahi Usman and Babawuro Kato, confessed to their crime saying they did it to have money to celebrate Salah.

The suspects made their statements while answering questions from journalists at a press conference in the DSS Headquarters.

According to Abdullahi Usman, he initiated the plan for money to celebrate Salah, but regretted that one of his other accomplices made away with the N5 million random paid by the family Falae’s release.

Babawuro Kato, who drove the victim on motorcycle from one location to another, also corroborated these statements but said that he did not know the identity of the captive and he was not part of the abduction.

Speaking on behalf of the DSS, Abdullahi Garba said that their investigation has revealed that the abductors were merely criminals, and that the kidnapping was not because of Falae’s political status or his prominence in the Yoruba community as speculated by some.

Mr. Garba maintained that the abductors collected a N5 million ransom and were arrested at Zebra Hotel along Ganaja Road, Lokoja in Kogi State.

He assured Nigerians that efforts are being intensified to ensure that all those associated with this criminal act will be brought to justice.

Buhari Receives Auditor-General’s Report On Drying Up Of Lake Chad
Channels Television.
Updated October 12, 2015
38531

President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated the commitment of his administration to offering effective leadership in the fight against insurgency and other environmental issues in the Sahel region.

The President said this while receiving the Auditor-General of the Federation’s report on the drying up the Lake Chad in the Presidential Villa.

Nigeria, alongside Cameroun and Niger had set up the audit committee to find solution to the problem. Having decried the negative impact of the drying lake on Nigeria, he promised to ensure that the recommendations in the report are considered for implementation.

He traced the history of the formation of the Lake Chad Basin and the wisdom of the founding fathers, and urged the National Assembly to domesticate the Lake Chad Basin Water Charter if the problem must be solved.

He promised to ensure equitable water resources management by paying the marching grant of 850 million naira to compliment the 100 million naira from each of the states bordering the Lake Chad.

He, however, queried the Auditor-General for missing out the aspect of the report where the Federal Government spent five million dollars to tackle the environmental problems in the Lake Chad.

The President commended the efforts of the governors of Borno, Bauchi, Kano, Jigawa and Plateau states, promising to strengthen the platform to ensure sustainable and equitable water resources management of the Lake Chad Basin.
http://www.channelstv.com/2015/10/12/buhari-receives-auditor-generals-report-on-drying-up-of-lake-chad/?utm_source=&utm_medium=twitter

PassingShot:
This deserves a FP slot.

The focus of a piece like this is what should preoccupy the youths now. Instead, most wail away their time and have prepared the dagger waiting for the names to be revealed.

malton:
Nicely written analysis. So well constructed, nicely put and quite objective. With guys like you, Gbawe, Obiagelli, Passingshot, modath, Obailola, hungerbad, etc... it's safe to say that the apc attracts majorly brilliant minds!

Ngwaukwu1:
@OP

Your candor is admirable.

Your post is however based on the faulty premise that Nigeria is a nation and that some how something has gone wrong that is now some how 'killing it'.

Much as i would have wanted to be wrong, the indisputable reality is that Nigeria is not a nation, has never been a nation and until the proponents of 'one Nigeria' face up to this reality and make an effort to actually address the structural deficits that plague the conglomeration of different tribal and ethnic groups that occupy the space called Nigeria, that process of nation building can never begin.

The wounds that you see and interprete as Nigeria dying, have always been there. They've been plastered over but nobody made any attempt to heal the wounds. Read again the writings of the founding fathers you've mentioned, but this time very carefully. Some hoped we could become a nation but be reminded that it is also from these same founding fathers that we got things like 'Nigeria is only a geographical expression' or that this 'nation' belongs to some more than others. . .

My idealistic friend, in the real world wounds that are left untreated fester. And no matter how much we long to sit down together, hold hands and sing kumbaya, festering wounds that remain untreated become toxic and can lead to untimely death that could have been prevented . . .

badnature:
@razid you talk of unity of purpose? were is the unity of purpose when ahmedu bello said he will not give an igbo man a job?

The first hundred days in office for President Muhammadu Buhari has since passed. The next landmark in the horizon will be one year in office. By the end of this week, the potential ministers must have been named. The argument about who deserves to be there and who should not have been named will last for the next few weeks. Once the ministers are sworn in, the new government should settle down to deliver on election promises.

In an ideal world, that is where we should be now. But the buzz out there is totally different. Something happened to Nigeria on its way to transitioning from Jonathan to Buhari. It is something that has never happened before- at least not up to this degree. To be able to understand what happened, we need to look at a similar story in another country.

When the U. S. Supreme Court decided on the Florida contested election results in 2000 and awarded the Presidential election to George W. Bush, even though Al Gore won the popular vote, it created distrust in the minds of a large segment of Americans, especially those on the left. Many of the dissatisfied Americans considered the George W. Bush’s presidency illegitimate until September 11, 2001 terrorist attack brought all Americans together.

But the bad blood did not go away. When Bush decided to attack Iraq as part of his global war on terror, it widened the gap between him and those who felt his presidency was illegitimate. His opponents mounted greater campaign against his war, his policies and, to some extent, his whole presidency even when he won reelection in 2004. Towards the end of his term, when the whole world economy collapsed under his watch, his opponents were quick to gloat, “We told you so.”

Then enters Barack Obama. The primary reason he won was because America wanted to move as far away from George W. Bush as they could. And nobody in the 2008 contest represented that distance from Bush the way Obama did. If Bush was a C- student, Obama was an A-student. If Bush was inarticulate, Obama was eloquent. The change took place but a new set of bad blood was unleashed as some adherents of the old order put up resistance. They also borrowed a book from the anti-Bush group by trying to delegitimize the Obama presidency. It was in vogue until Obama won reelection in 2012. That sucked up the energy of the opposition.

When the then Vice President Jonathan inherited the presidency following the death of former President Umaru Yar’Adua, bad blood developed within some sectors in Nigeria, especially in the north where some felt that Yar’Adua did not have the chance to complete his term and so would have preferred another of their own to complete Yar’Adua’s term. They constituted an opposing force to Jonathan’s presidency. Faced with such opposition, President Jonathan failed to rise up to the occasion. He allowed the opposition to define him. As if that was not bad enough, he molded himself according to the definition of his opponents.

Fast forward to today. The only reason why Buhari defeated Jonathan was because in the most important things that mattered to Nigerians on election eve, he was the candidate furthest away from Jonathan. Buhari’s defeat of Jonathan in the 2015 election has created an animosity with the astute supporters of Jonathan now in stern opposition to Buhari’s presidency. They have vowed to subject Buhari to the same kind of opposition and criticism they felt Jonathan received from the Buhari supporters. They have defined the Buhari presidency even before he appointed his ministers. The only thing left is to see if Buhari will fulfill the prophesies of those who have defined him, just like Jonathan did, or whether he will rise above it, just like Obama did and present his own narrative. The choice is Buhari’s.

All these may look messy, but in the final analysis, they are all good for the growth of our democracy. When the citizenry, no matter the motivation, holds their elected representatives accountable, the nation benefits. All cries by those in power that these facets of a vibrant democracy are distractions should be ignored. They are usually complaints of politicians who are not prepared for governance. The noise of the opposition should not stop a determined government with concrete ideas and plans on how to build a nation. For both the government and the opposition, propaganda stops when confronted with performance.

The silver lining in all of these is that, if sustained, they can crystal into a way that Nigeria can develop politics that goes beyond personalities to one that deals with philosophical and ideological issues and differences. It may have started with the deafening enquiry into where appointees hail from, what religion they subscribe to and how tall they are. But over time, it has the potential to focus on more substantial issues. But this will not happen if unprepared and over-pampered political actors stunt the present line of inquiry.

With Nigeria’s long history as a dysfunctional nation, it isn’t realistic to expect a Kenyan kind of transformation from Kenyatta to Moi to Kibaki and back to a Kenyatta. In the last 50 years, Nigeria has been all over the place, picking up worms and germs along the way. There is no doubt that Nigeria needed a return to some form of fundamentals to be able to take any kind of linear jump.

And the fundamentals in question are not brain surgery, nanotechnology or rocket science. They are simple things like: the commonwealth belongs to all Nigerians and not just the privileged few; that government service is not another word for self enrichment; that instituting merit ultimately lifts everybody up while mediocrity does the exact opposite; that there are consequences for bad behaviors irrespective of who is in the wrong; and that every life matters in that country of ours.

A transition from Obasanjo to Yar’Adua failed to advance the nation primarily because Yar’Adua was not healthy enough to show what he could do. The transition from Yar’Adua to Jonathan on the superficial level was a big leap. But when it came to what really matters in core indexes of good governance, Jonathan did not try, and he did not pretend to try, and worst of it all, he did not give a damn that he did not try. His term in office was a series of retrogressive steps. Once back, there was no possible way of jumping forward without efforts to fix what was wrong from the onset.

Buhari’s administration is not going to give Nigeria the 21st century government that some young ones wish- not that Jonathan’s government was on the verge of pushing Nigeria into that glorious era. The only hope there is for anyone who wants to be hopeful is that Buhari’s government may create the environment where that 21st century government can emerge. If it does come, it will not come easy- not by command, not by prayer, and not by blaming those who have left the scene. If it comes, it will come from the sweat of those who are deeply committed to making sacrifices so that Nigeria will finally find its way into the league of nations where the future for the young ones are assured.

That is a tall order but one that is now squarely on the feet of President Muhammadu Buhari to realize or to bungle. And he must be prepared to do it irrespective of what the opposition is saying, doing or thinking.