It is no longer a secret that Nigeria, the once acclaimed giant of Africa has lost its premier status in the eyes of the world. Today, Nigeria has withered away in the eyes of the world and is no longer seen as the representative of Africa, among the comity of nations. Such is the perfidy that every sensible Nigerian should seriously be questioning how things got so out of control that Nigeria is now deemed a "pariah" nation? Icheoku says, it is time Nigeria started digging herself out of the molasses it is in now, where successive rudderless and inept leaderships have sunk it into. Icheoku's verdict, Nigeria is bogged down and sinking fast; and barring any meaningful intervention, may soon be completely finished!
The other day, Nigerian foreign affairs team led by Ojo Maduekwe and the Siemens bribe-taker Jubril Aminu were in Washington DC, lobbying the State Department for President Umaru Yar'Adua to meet and greet President Barack Obama? But they were given a cold shoulder, completely rebuffed; and in diplomatic lingo told that the president's tight itinerary will not accommodate such a visit now. Few months later, the G20 London world economic summit once again told Nigeria, that it is about time it put her acts together by ignoring her and not inviting her to the summit? Any hand-writing on the walls, yet? May be, it was such an incomprehensible hieroglyphics of a writing for the authorities in Abuja to decode? Abuja seems to be playing the possum and 
pretending like the cricket roasting in the fire, that it is just cooling off? How strange? Icheoku says, it sure does not look good that the hitherto giant of Africa, previously the first is now the last!
pretending like the cricket roasting in the fire, that it is just cooling off? How strange? Icheoku says, it sure does not look good that the hitherto giant of Africa, previously the first is now the last! Once again the world waited to see if President Umaru Yar'Adua meant well when he promised that it is a new day in Nigeria, that rule of law and the will of the masses will henceforth guide elections in Nigeria? But lo and behold, Ekiti State's re-run election proved that the leopard, Nigeria, is not just yet ready to change its spots! That President Umaru Yar'Adua is either a conniving pretender or he is lost at the sea of Nigeria political labyrinth. The world verdict, it now seems is that Nigeria's problem is intractable and they should rather be ignored to see if such apathy will jolt them back to reality? That Halliburton's bribery recipients are still moving freely in Nigeria is without doubt? Also that a high government official implicated in the Siemens $12 million dollars bribery, Jubril Aminu is still heading the Nigerian senate foreign relation committee is instructive on the destructive nature of the powers in Nigeria; who do not care a hue about the damage their charade is causing Nigeria.
Now the mother of all snubs and the first African-American president of America, Barack Obama goes on his first mother-land visit to Africa and it is not going to be to Nigeria? What a heck? How has the mighty Nigeria fallen? How has Nigeria become so decimated in the eyes of the world, that it is probably still being tolerated just for its cheap oil? This Obama's visit to Ghana is particularly "painful" to Nigerians because Ghana does not necessarily factor in Africa in the scheme of things:- not in military prowess, not in international peace-keeping effort, not in population, not in natural resources, not in manpower, not in over-all wealth or just name your paradigm. Were it South Africa it could be understandable! Were it Egypt, Nigerians will accept it; but to Ghana, it can only be interpreted as a move to make a statement to Nigeria, that enough is enough and it is about time they sat up or be forgotten! Icheoku says, wait until the newly discovered oil in Ghana begins to make its way to the world market and the undertakers will come for a formal interment of what used to be the giant of Africa! Is it too late, probably not; but it is going to take a lot of introspective re-thinking by the authorities in Nigeria to understand that, what is going on in Nigeria is not merely an internal affairs of Nigeria as the whole world is watching. Nigeria needs to re-boot! Nigeria needs to press her re-set button for a new beginning! Nigeria needs to put her house in order! It is so shameful it hurts, the rot that is Nigeria today; that it does not factor in any longer in the analysis of Africa, nay the world! 
Icheoku says, it is regrettable that Nigeria has now also lost to Ghana in Washington's permutations of her African interests? That Ghana is being accorded the privilege of hosting the first African visit of the first African-American president of America, Barack Obama in July, 2009 is too much of a slap in the face for the formerly known giant of Africa, Nigeria. It shows a failure of the foreign policy team of Nigeria and hence their resignation is the proper thing to do now. Icheoku therefore calls on Ojo Maduekwe and his team at the foreign affairs ministry to resign their office immediately. Their failure to secure and/or garner President Barack Obama's first African visit for Nigeria smacks of an ineffective team which does not understand their job description properly and should hence be disbanded. Such a preferred visit to Ghana is an affront on Nigeria's standing in Africa and an insult on the prestige of Nigeria; it besmirches Nigeria and whoever allowed or permitted this to happen, either through commission or omission to effective international diplomacy should suffer a consequence as a result. Nothing short of their resignation from office should be acceptable to Nigerians, including President Umaru Yar'Adua; this is in addition to our call and continues call for President Umaru Yar'Adua to throw in the towel for not knowing what to do with the mandate which was handed to him by the cabals of Nigeria. Until such a day when Nigeria will get its acts right, Icheoku cries for thee, motherland Nigeria! Be that as it may, and in the spirit of African brotherhood, we felicitate with Ghana's President Atta Mills of Ghana on securing this historic visit; and wish him a successful first-hosting right of President Barack Obama of the United States of America in July 2009. 
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Christy 'Apena' Essien-Igbokwe , the wife of Jegede Shokoya of the New Masquerade and Nigeria's lady of songs is dead; she was 51years old. Although her family claimed that "brief Illness" killed her like so many Nigerians; Icheoku retorts that it was most likely AKwa Ibom voodoo and remote control that was used to arrest her. It is on record that she had fallen out with the governor of her native Akwa Ibiom State and have been having a relentless war for political turf with the governor? So who knows whether she was sacrificed to Ekpe cult or even Alusi-Okija as an offal; afterall African science is still very much alive and portent. May her soul rest in peace.
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