GUN VIOLENCE IN AMERICA: FOR WHO THE BELL TOLLS NEXT.

Just five people shy of Sandy Hook elementary school mass shooting incident that claimed 26 lives, the Uvalde Texas Robb elementary school mass shooting at 21 victims, now ranks among the highest grossing gun carnage in America. It is sad that such frequent blood spilling has tragically become part of our culture as a society. May the souls of the killed now rest.

25th AMENDMENT: ITS NOW ALL CRICKET.

Madam Speaker Nancy Pelosi once questioned former President Donald John Trump's fitness to remain in office due to what she claimed was his declining mental capacity. Does anyone know what Madam Speaker presently thinks about the incontrovertible case which America is now saddled with? Just curious!

WHO WILL REBUILD UKRAINE?

The West should convert frozen Russian assets, both state's and oligarchs' owned, into a full seizure and set them aside for the future rebuilding of Ukraine. Like the Marshal Plan, call it the Putin Plan.

A HERO IS BORN.

I am staying put. I will not run away and abandon my people. The fight is here in Ukraine. What I need are weapons and ammunitions, not a ride out of town like former Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani - President Volodymyr Zelensky.

IT IS WHAT IT IS.

"There is too much hate in America because there is too much anger in America." - Trevor Noah.

WORD!

A life without challenges is not a life lived at all. A life lived is a life that has problems, confronts problems, solves problems and then learns from problems. - Tunde Fashola.

NOW, YOU KNOW.

When fishing for love, bait with your heart and not your brain, because you cannot rationalize love. - Mark Twain.

JUST THE FACT.

In our country, you can shoot and kill a nigger, but you better not hurt a gay person’s feelings - Dave Chappelle

DO YOU?.

“What you believe in can only be defined by what you’re willing to risk for it." - Stuart Scheller.

HEDGE YOUR CRISIS.

Never get in bed with a woman whose problems are worse than yours. - Chicago PD.

PROBLEM SOLVED.

'The best way to keep peace is to be ready to destroy evil. If you Pearl Harbor me, I Nagasaki you.' - Ted Nugent.

OUR SHARED HUMANITY.

Empathy is at the heart of who we are as human beings. - Cardinal Matthew Kukah.

WORDS ON MARBLE.

"Birth is agony. Life is hard. Death is cruel." - Japanese pithy.

REPENT OR PERISH - POPE.

Homosexuality is a sin. It is not ordained by God, therefore same sex marriage cannot be blessed by the church - Pope Francis.

CANCEL CULTURE IS CORROSIVE.


FOR SAKE OF COUNTRY.


MAGA LIVES ON: NO RETREAT, NO SURRENDER!

TWITTER IS BORING WITHOUT HIS TWEETS. #RestorePresidentTrump'sTwitterHandle.


WORD.

"If you cannot speak the truth when it matters, then nothing else you says matters.” - Tucker Carlson.

#MeToo MOVEMENT: A BAD NEWS GONE CRAZY.

"To all the women who testified, we may have different truth, but I have a great remorse for all of you. I have great remorse for all of the men and women going through this crisis right now in our country. You know, the movement started basically with me, and I think what happened, you know, I was the first example, and now there are thousands of men who are being accused and a regeneration of things that I think none of us understood. I’m not going to say these aren’t great people. I had wonderful times with these people. I’m just genuinely confused. Men are confused about this issue. We are going through this #MeToo movement crisis right now in this country." - Harvey Weinstein.


RON DELLUMS: UNAPOLOGETICALLY RADICAL.

"If it’s radical to oppose the insanity and cruelty of the Vietnam War, if it’s radical to oppose racism and sexism and all other forms of oppression, if it’s radical to want to alleviate poverty, hunger, disease, homelessness, and other forms of human misery, then I’m proud to be called a radical.” - Ron Vernie Dellums.


WHAT REALLY MATTERS IN LIFE - STEVE JOBS

“I reached the pinnacle of success in the business world. In others’ eyes, my life is an epitome of success. However, aside from work, I have little joy. Non-stop pursuing of wealth will only turn a person into a twisted being, just like me. God gave us the senses to let us feel the love in everyone’s heart, not the illusions brought about by wealth. Memories precipitated by love is the only true riches which will follow you, accompany you, giving you strength and light to go on. The most expensive bed in the world is the sick bed. You can employ someone to drive the car for you, make money for you but you cannot have someone to bear sickness for you. Material things lost can be found. But there is one thing that can never be found when it is lost – Life. Treasure Love for your family, love for your spouse, love for your friends. Treat yourself well. Cherish others.” - SJ

EVIL CANNOT BE TRULY DESTROYED.

"The threat of evil is ever present. We can contain it as long as we stay vigilant, but it can never truly be destroyed. - Lorraine Warren (Annabelle, the movie)


ONLY THE POOR WISH THEY HAD STUFF?

“I’m not that interested in material things. As long as I find a good bed that I can sleep in, that’s enough.” - Nicolas Berggruem, the homeless billionaire.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

PDP ON A COURSE, ONCE TRAVELLED BY NPN IN 1983!

It is omnious! It bodes of evil! It is the precursor to the ultimate destruction of democracy in Nigeria, as we know it! The desperate quest of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to turn Nigeria into a one party state and rule over Nigeria for uninterrupted 60 years, that is!
It is greed and selfishness that is propelling Nigeria's so called largest political party, the PDP, into a course once travelled by the NPN, which will eventually lead to another military intervention in Nigeria politics? Why is a party, which prides itself as the largest political party out of Africa trying so desperately hard to poach other party chieftains and permanently stiffle whatever remains of the opposition in Nigeria? Why is the PDP pushing other political parties or what remains of them to the wall, fully aware that once backed to the wall, their only recourse will be a violent frontal charge to escape such aggression? Who wants to see this, definitely not Icheoku but unfortunately, Nigerians are bereft of people with historical perspective as majority of them are constituted of very short memory.
NPN was doing ok as a political party in Nigeria until President Shehu Shagari bought into an idea sold by Adisa Akinyole and Umaru Dikko to muscle the other political parties out of their traditional domains. Obafemi Awolowo was muscled out of Oyo State, Bendel State and almost Ondo State but for the peoples resentment which boiled over and the resulting mayhem forced NPN's Omoboriowo to flee for his dear life? Nnamdi Azikwe was uprooted from his Anambra State base and Imo State was to follow but for Dee Sam Onunaka Mbakwe who refused to yield Imo State to the hard-charging NPN political machine fronting Colins Obi? What followed was loud rumblings, restiveness and unparalled agitations protesting the vagrant rape of democracy by the NPN, which continued until Mohammed Buhari led juntas seized the moment of discord and struck, and the rest became history. Even some school of thought had it that the losing polititcians conspired with the military to bring about the forced exit of the NPN. But the greatest problem of humanity, especially the Nigerian species is their averse to history; and so it is that the PDP is fast-tracking Nigeria's democracy once again to its eventual doom?
From 1983 to 1999 the miltary held fortress before they were cajoled into reliquishing power once again to the civilians. One would expect that the civilians have learnt their lessons, but no; as what led to the demise of democracy in 1983 is once again creeping back into Nigerian politics. As usual, the culprit is the party in power, the PDP. So as it was in 1983, the signs do not look good again in 2009 with the PDP arm-stronging AC, PPA APGA, ANPP and other parties just to swallow them up just because they can, being the big fish in the Nigerian political water? Should the PDP succeed, some defeated politicians who feel they were unfairly muscled out of their primary domains, will inevitably do what politicians do best when cornered, - conspire with some military boys who will shoot their way to power and in turn make these disgruntled politicians their ministers and envoys.
Is it to late in the day to reverse course, Icheoku says no; but the PDP must cooperate with Nigerians to ensure that democracy is sustained and not truncated in Nigeria. They must allow some existing room for other political parties to court the Nigerian electorates. The PDP must realise that other political parties are equally desirous of having some area of influence within the Nigeria political terrain and deserves to be allowed their own territorial sphere of influence. But should the PDP continue on its present trajectory, attempting to usurp every political position in Nigeria, it might be forced to contend with a situation in the nearest future where there will be no state or territory for them to mount their umbrella-themed flag on, as the Nigeria state would once again plunge into a military dictatorship. It has happened before, so nothing stops it from once again happening except the PDP veers off the course they are presently travelling on. The PDP needs a change of heart to remember that politics is all about give and take; you win some and you lose some! But for a political party to willy-nilly want to force itself on the entire Nigeria political realty, especially in some territories where such party cannot in truism, be an acceptable option, is a bad joke which resulting nightmare might be too surreal for anyone to contemplate.
Ironically in 2009, everything is falling in place in Nigeria PDP controlled political theater as it did in 1983 NPN controlled Nigeria:- Shehu Shagari is from north western Nigeria and same goes for Umaru Yar'Adua? Both men appear seemingly decent but surrounded by very horrible human-beings as advisers and political honchos? Both men admittedly never wanted the presidency but were coincidentally imposed on Nigeria by the same Olusegun Obasanjo? In 1982, Shehu Shagari abandoned a national asset, NET building on fire and travelled to India on a state visit. In 2009 Umaru Yar'Adua have just completed his own version of abandonement when he left Nigeria on fire and embarked on a tour to Brazil while Islamist Boko Haram was wrecking havoc on northen Nigeria. Whether such visit rightly qualifies as an abandonment at time of crisis is for the greater Nigerians to decide; but Icheoku recalls that the Chinese Prime Minister had to break off from a G8 summit in Italy to fly back to Bejing during the last crisis in eastern Chinese province of Xingjua! Also Shagari and Yar'Adua vice presidents are both professional men, who look too gentile for politics and you wonder how they got along?
This piece has become imperative in view of recent development in the Nigeria political firmanent; and in support of former senate president Ken Nnamani's take on the latest poaching by the PDP of Imo State former PPA governor, Ikedi Ohakim. According to this highly respected Nigerian statesman, the recent poaching of Ikedi Ohakim by the PDP does not bode well for the growth of democracy in Nigeria! Icheoku concurs and says, Ken Nnamani is right as a stifled opposition is a conspiratory anti-democracy power-house! Such asyphyxation of opponents is a really bad omen for democracy which every democrat must speak up against. In his own very salient voice, Ken Nnamani continued, "when the defection in Zamfara State happened I warned the PDP Board of Trustees (BOT) on the danger, and I told them to put me on record as a lone voice that did not support it. Competition makes for efficiency in a democracy. What is happening is a bad omen. It is not an Ohakim issue. It is bad for our democracy." Icheoku adds, regretably in Nigeria, voices of reason are usually very few as majority of Nigerians follow the pie and would rather they did not upset the apple-cart by maintaining defeaning silence in the face of any given tyranny. But not our Ken Nnamani, whose penchant for speaking up and speaking out truthfully has become very remarkable and stands him out as a lone voice in the wilderness of Nigeria, who cannot be compromised!
However, the worst of criticism should go to those carpet-crossers who will sell their birth-rights for pots of porridge. It is unfortunate, it is a betrayal of trust and lack of principle for these people to abandon the party on which platform they came to office. According to one observer, the poaching "portends gloom for our democratic development because one would expect that partisan politics and politicking are based on ideology and integrity. What appears to me to be the most dangerous scenario is that the Constitution is flouted." Icheoku asks, but does Nigerian politics run on any known ideology except for sectional and tribal sentiments which bring like-minded greedy individuals together to pillage the country? Moreso none of these Nigerian politician have any integrity whatsoever, and could care less for their names being soiled!
But should Imo State's Ikedi Ohakim, Bauchi State's Isa Yuguda and Zamfara State's Mahmud Shinkafi now be forced to yield their offices based on the Supreme court decision in the case of Governor Rotimi Amechi of Rivers State, which affirmed that "mandate is that of the party and not just the person presented by the party." You tell me! But we surmise that a party which parades the president and vice president, with over 76% majority in the national assembly and controls at least 24 states out of 36 in the country and still craves and covets for the remnants is displaying obtrusive abuse of power; the height of crass greed and nothing short of "I shall have it all to myself" mentality which is repugnant to democracy. Therefore Icheoku calls on the Peoples Democratic Party to retrace its current steps and permit other parties to exist in the interest of building a lasting democracy in Nigeria. Nigerians should have options and this is what democracy seeks to have in place, unlike a military regime which is an autocracy, a sole authority in the land. PDP, Icheoku says, enough of your strangulating of the opposition!

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