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.

Thursday, July 12, 2012

AFRICAN-AMERICANS ECONOMY IS WORSE OFF - ROMNEY

Icheoku says except that President Barack Obama did not cause it. It has been the same and have always remained the same ever Mitt Romney's forebears brought unwilling Africans in chains to this shores. Regrettably too, all attempts at equalizing and/or leveling the playing field to create enabling environment for a serious headway has been rebuffed by Mitt Romney's people. Effort at reparation has also been resisted by the good ole white boys who would not hear none of that. Even the present government  of President Barack Obama honest attempt to cushion their hardship has been branded by Mitt Romney's people as redistribution and socialist? Any and every attempt at redressing this age-long, purposely maintained, economic-vice hold on African-Americans by Mitt Romney's people have been rejected in order to help keep them in their place. 

Yes, you read Icheoku right and we make bold to restate that economic disequilibrium in America was engineered and maintained by Mitt Romney's skin-color type and no one, not in minority Americans communities or the the NAACP convention, should listen to this holier than thou fellow from Massachusetts trying to patronize them with his bamboozling speech. Icheoku asks would Mitt Romney release his Bain Capital records on how many African-Americans his company employed or helped get a loan of any sort while running it? Would Mitt Romney tell Americans why the United States Senate is an all white club with no minority or an African American therein serving as a senator? Would Mitt Romney tell Americans how many African-American CEO there is in Wall Street? Would Mitt Romney tell Americans how many African-Americans there is anywhere that creates jobs or hire workers and would Mitt Romney tell Americans why African-Americans are last to be hired and first to be fired in American work-places? Would Mitt Romney tell Americans why the dissipate application of justice against African-American males which sees them being recycled through the prison system thus making them unable to play any major or supportive role in the economic system especially of their families. 

We need to know what the Mitt's plan is towards redressing these stacked up roadblocks and not to rehash the obvious. All these economic dislocations of the African-American community did not start under or with Barack Obama's presidency; no, it is an unspoken and subsisting economic-slavery, engineered to keep them down and under control. Therefore Icheoku says to Mitt Romney, to please keep his patronizing observation to himself and that NAACP does not need him to tell them what they have been forced to live with all these centuries since slavery. If Mitt must open his mouth in that direction, to please say if he will among many other palliative measures to be articulated and put in place to help African-Americans economic well-being, support the payment of reparation to the people who have been shortchanged ever since they were forcibly brought to America by Mitt Romney's people in shackles. That is what NAACP wants to hear from the Mormon Bishop and that is what Icheoku would like to also hear as any and every other thing is a cheap-talk patronage which African-Americans can use less of.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

ROMNEY TO DENY INSURANCE TO PEOPLE WITH PREEXISTING CONDITION.


"I am going to eliminate every non-essential, expensive program that I can find — and that includes Obama-care." Mitt Romney said while speaking at NAACP 2012 conference in Houston Texas July 11, 2011. Icheoku says this Mormon Bishop from liberal Massachusetts needs to think through his blanket position on the Affordable Healthcare Reform Law aka Obama-care; especially his uncaring promise to eliminate same en-bloc.

Now America, this is the litany of what Mitt Romney just termed non-essential and has promised to eliminate if elected president in November:- Mitt Romney just said that Americans with preexisting condition having the opportunity to get an insurance coverage is non-essential and therefore they must be denied this opportunity afforded them by the Obama-care? Mitt Romney has just said that youngsters under 26years being able to tack on their parents' insurance policy is non-essential and therefore they must be barred from enjoying this opportunity afforded them by the Obama-care? Mitt Romney just said that seniors and Medicare beneficiaries being able to get cheaper medications instead of being forced to choose by their very limited financial resources between groceries and medications is non-essential and therefore they must be forced to continue with their either or situation? Mitt Romney just promised to end women's reproductive rights enshrined in the Obama-care? Mitt Romney just said that more than 40 million uninsured Americans now being able to be insured under the Obama-care is non-essential and must be stopped when he is elected? These and many more benefits under the AHL are what the cultic-Mormon Bishop from Massachusetts has promised to take the ax to if elected? America please tell Icheoku this man stands a chance with such his inhuman and out of touch position on what benefits millions of Americans?

However Icheoku notes that the same Mitt Romney chaperoned a similar health-care reform law while governor of Massachusetts and the last time Icheoku checked, Mitt Romney did not call it non-essential nor made any promise or effort to eliminate his own Romney-care from which Obama-care was midwifed. It is increasingly evident that the Mormon cult is not a Christian church otherwise this vulture capitalist would have adverted and advised himself accordingly to our Lord and Master Jesus Christ's teaching about first removing the log in your own eyes before addressing the speck on someone else's eyes? If Obama-care is such an outlandish law, why is Romney-care good since the former was cloned from the later; yet Mitt Romney wants Americans to believe his tall-tale that Obama-care is not good for them but Romney-care is good for Massachusetts? What is the difference between six and a half dozen one may ask if not nomenclature, except in Mitt Romney's world where six and a half dozen means one is numbers and the other numerals?

Icheoku calls on Americans to beware of this man as he has a hidden agenda to mortgage America and turn it over to his fellow corporate vulture capitalists and therefore must be stopped cold at the door. Mitt Romney never tells anyone what he is actually thinking and now whats Americans to believe that a health-care reform law that benefits many average American is non-essential? Maybe Mitt Romney wants the commoners to all die off and leave America for his type only; otherwise how could he call an honest effort to provide all Americans affordable health coverage non-essential? Icheoku says, simply put, Mitt More-Money Romney is out of touch not to understand that these provisions mean a lot for the average Joes and Janes of America many of who are already enjoying the benefits. Mitt is not aware of what the average American needs are and therefore must not be allowed to preside over their affairs. Finally, echoing James Pinkett, Icheoku agrees that Mitt Romney does not know how much support there is in the African-American community as well as other not so affluent communities and peoples in America, who think the Supreme court validated health-care reform law is good and should be given a chance to work. Please America, do not allow the Mitt to con you; he is simply not aware of your needs and would not get your backs.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

JONATHAN LACKS CLASS - BARARABE MUSA

Asked to assess the man presiding over comatose Nigeria, President Goodlluck Jonathan, the first ever impeached governor in Nigeria of then Kaduna State, Bararabe Musa surmised it as follows:- "There is no style. This man is confused and he’s not capable. He lacks panache, he lacks class. He lacks popularity and he lacks legitimacy."

To this Icheoku adds, he is unprepared for the job and very timid going about it. He is also not giving sufficient cover to the PhD he has as well as the institution that awarded it; which automatically now defeats future clamor for educated people serving as presidents instead of those semi-illiterate retired generals? Icheoku is not a fan, never been and nothing so far in terms of his style, policy or implementation thereof has forced a rethink. His presidency is indeed an apology and the Otta Deity, Baba Iyabo, owns Nigerians an explanation as to that particular choice of an academic for president. May be in his caustic diabolical way, he purposely choose him to give the academia-presidency a bad name. Whatever be the case, this Jonathan does not get it and does not exude the confidence of a purpose-driven leader. Icheoku hears he plans to run in 2015 and based on what, if we may ask?

Friday, July 6, 2012

BRAD PITT'S MOM, A HATE-FILLED BIGOT.

Icheoku says thankfully this woman did not pass on her racist evil genes to her children including Brad Pitt. Hopefully, her sins of hateful intolerance would be washed away, forgiven, by the good works her superstar son Brad Pitt is doing throughout the world including being a loving father to a mosaic family.
Jane Pitt hates women's right to choose; Jane Pitts hates adults right to choose who to fall and be in love with; Jane Pitt hates secular America and would rather America become a Christian religious state in the mold of Iran with open air ceremonies conducted each time to force the faith down the throat of other millions of Americans non-Christians despite the provisions of the constitution; and Jane Pitt hates other Christians who are not white, otherwise since the last time Icheoku checked, Pastor Jeremiah Wright is a Christian but Jane Pitt has issues with the President for attending a church in which a black pastor Jeremiah Wright presided?

Icheoku says the mind-boggling problem with some of these fanatical racists in America such as Jane Pitt is that they would not come out openly to admit their dislike or rather hatred for President Barack Obama is the fact that the color of his skin is somewhat not pale enough. Instead they would manufacture some ridiculous reasons and will hide under various banners such as the president did this and the president did that to castigate him. Jane Pitt never mentioned anything tangible which the president did wrong with his presiding over America that substantially negatively impacts the country on its forward march; but was content to rehash time-worn accusations and to condemn progressive decisions the president took to bring people together and ensure that human rights of every person is respected. Possibly Jane Pitt is not at peace with the fact of her son's having a United Nations family but was too wimpy to put it down in writing, afraid of being cut off from her mouth-watering maintenance allowance from Brad-Angelina stash.

Just wondering how embarrassed Brad and his siblings must feel now that the whole world knows that they have such an intolerant hate-filled Jezebel for a mother. Icheoku says this woman is shamelessly bigoted against women, homosexuals, blacks and other religions of this country that is not exclusively whites only? It is rather unfortunate that such a vile woman has any association with the lovable Brad and by association tenderly Angelina; but Icheoku says this must not be a time for cross-boarder guilty by relationship. Jane Pitt must be held out to dry as herself alone and her iniquitous venom never attributable to either Brad or Angelina or any other of her children for that matter. She is the only guilty party here and in as much as Icheoku does not beguile her of her right to support whomever she chooses to support politically; but she should do so without hating other God's people who do not look like her or share her extreme religious viewpoints or her supposed morals. Icheoku says America should not have a place for such degree of intolerance in 2012, the 50s taken into account; not from Brad Pitt's mother Jane Pitt and not from any other person.

EXTREMISM CHOKING OFF AMERICA'S POLITICS?

"True, as at other times in the life of our nation, we live in an Age of Extremes that prizes intensity over sanity; rhetoric over reality; and destruction over creation. But this too shall pass, thanks to the infinite, inspired wisdom of the sovereign people who, with God's continued blessings, will again affirm for the generations American Exceptional-ism.Truly, it is a challenging and fortunate time to live in our blessed sanctuary of liberty." - Thaddeus G. McCotter, resigning member of Congress from Michigan's 11th Congressional District. Icheoku says the Tea Party and Rush Limbaugh led extremism in American politics, which tolerates no viewpoint outside their very myopic extreme far-rights', nor hears anything else other than their "we and them" divisiveness, has once again claimed another causality. Republican Congressman Thaddeus McCotter of Michigan, tired of the gridlock in Congress and bickering that solves no problems, has resigned from Congress albeit very sad that lunatics have taken over the political discuss in America. What a day.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

TESTICLES LOCK-BOX, PANACEA FOR HAPPY MARRIAGE - OBAMA?

Icheoku queries, did President Barack Obama just said what we heard he said that men should pony up their manhood as a trade-off for a happy marriage? If Icheoku correctly heard that as being a true statement or rather a "good marriage" counsel from the president, then we certainly have some problems with the CNC. Icheoku disagrees with the president on this especially since the president did not set parameters and limits on what the man must agree to once voiced out by the wife.

Just say yes and do whatever your wife tells you is rather too broad a medicine to swallow and could lead to some undesirable terrible consequences. Icheoku knows a lot of women who do not like or see eye to eye with their mothers-inlaw and if we understand the president correctly, if such women tell their husband to do away with the woman who brought them to this world, its is okay? What about those women who do not like their husbands relatives and prefers theirs to his instead? Is the president also telling us that it is okay for a man to become completely isolated from his own biological family just because his wife says so? What about those women who pressurize their husbands into committing crimes? Is it still okay for men to do what they tell them Mr President? Which reminds Icheoku that Shakespearean Macbeth would not have betrayed his friend Duncan and killed him except that he was following what President Obama said is the key to a happy marriage. Needless to add that Duncan's death truly brought bliss to the union and all his ghost never appeared?

Icheoku wonders, could this be the reason why so many married men are somewhat zombie-like and exhibits certain fear-tendencies just to keep up the appearance of a happily married life? Icheoku says it is one tough bitter pill to swallow and that might definitely explain why so many alpha-males, who do not and cannot pretend that things are honky-dory when they are not or totally sacrifice their manhood just to be "happily married", are either not married or have been divorced severally. At least the president could have qualified his position with some reasonable limitations set, instead of the umbrage of free checks he has unwittingly written to women of America especially, who will now reference him while dishing it out to their cowering husbands. What the president said reminds Icheoku of a discussion he once had with a woman on the secrets of a happy working marriage. The woman said she has been married for forty odd years and from her experience, marriage works only in one directional way and condition. According to her, for any marriage to work, the relationship between the husband and the wife must be like that existing between a dog and a dog-owner with the woman being the dog-owner, period. Another woman posited that there is always an element of struggle for control in marriages and the women only understand conquest; and must always win the battle for superiority between master and servant for there to be peace in the marriage. Another woman in Southern California toasted her husband's fiftieth birthday thus - "happy wife, happy life!"

My father once told me that whenever the woman of the house is happy, everybody is happy but whenever she is mad or angry, no one laughs. That is the way and the only way that would ensure the pretension of normalcy in marriages or working marriages which people see in many homes. So for those people whose marriages never worked, the problem has now been solved for you in case you have any future plans. Like Rush Limbaugh said, women go into marriages clutching testicles lock-boxes with which they lock their husbands' manhood and turn them into glorified slave/servant - the trophy they won and to who they dictate to as they may deem fit. Like their dogs, men walk or eat or even bark at their wife's pleasure, no questions asked; as either no answers will be given or they ask you a follow-up question in answer to your question. What a glorified slavery and servitude and bondage that would translate to and who said that happy are men so yoked down in marriages? But who really wants that as a trade off to a seemingly working good marriage, not people known to Icheoku; may be not just yet. However the president failed or refused or did not tell us who does all the telling and who does all the doing in gay marriages of two women or two men? Just curious. What a counselor and advocate for men the president really is? Icheoku says if not that Mitt Romney is not a tolerable option, President Obama might lose my vote on this; but hey he is the president and he listened to his wife into the White House!

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

HEALTHCARE REFORM, GOOD FOR MASSACHUSETTS NOT GOOD FOR THE COUNTRY - ROMNEY.

Icheoku says the somersaulting Mitt Romney, the Mormon bishop from liberal Massachusetts, has once again done himself in on the health-care question settled recently by the Supreme court in favor of President Obama. According to the ever-evolving Mitt, the reform including a mandate of a penalty was good for Massachusetts but would not be good for the rest of the country; which makes Icheoku ask, since when has something that is good for the goose not similarly good for the gander? Americans need answers from Mitt Romney to this his Massachusetts and the rest of us posturing on the health-care reform law. .

Why was health-care reform and its associated mandate good for the people of liberal wide-eyed Massachusetts but would not be good for the rest of us in the country? Why is pre-existing condition being no longer a barrier to getting insurance not good for the country? Why is not being dropped because of contracting a disease not good for the country? Why is youngsters staying on their parent;s insurance until they turn twenty-six not good for the country? Why is the ability of the millions of the uninsured Americans now being able to be insured not good for the country? Could somebody please tell Mitt Romney that Icheoku as well as millions of Americans want a direct answer to these questions? Could Mitt Romney please explain this "we" and "them" appropriate benefit between Massachusetts and the other 49?

Is Mr. Flip-flop telling us that the people of Massachusetts are better or deserves better than the rest of us since he is not implying that they are dumbos who did not know any better and therefore were taken for suckers when he passed a similar health care reform law with mandate as governor of Massachusetts? Icheoku says call the penalty tax or whatever sounds good for campaign purposes, at least taxation does not leave one an option but this health-care mandate leaves and it is called buying your own insurance before the insured loss happens; wherein absent your insurance you will then be required to pay a penalty for not protecting your rear behind. America this man must not be allowed to get away with his if it fits my template attitude and approach to problem solving when it suits his convenient? There is no chance in hell for Monday night quarterbacking with the presidency of America and this should drive our narrative this election season. Mr Mitt Romney has never consistently maintained a position on anything or issue throughout this electioneering circle or his political life and Icheoku wonders why America is even listening to his gobbledygook of emptiness on the trail.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

PENTAGON TO TEHRAN, DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT.

The message was clear and direct, disrupt our commercial activities in the Strait of Hormuz and your navy assets shall become bottom-dwellers of the Arabian sea. Icheoku says it cannot be more direct than that and hopefully the mullahs in Tehran gets it that America does not make vain threats and therefore backs down from their threatened blockage of shipment in the Gulf.

America believes that if you must tell a person to go to hell, you must also be prepared to drag him to the gates of hell if need be to ensure he gets to hell. If Iranian leaders are sane enough, they must, following the Pentagon warning, by now be developing a face-saving Plan-B. It would be simply foolhardy for them to give the Americans reason to remember for Iran all their sins of these past decades.

The rule number one for those peoples of this world still sane enough, including countries and governments, is to understand when the tipping point has been reached with the Americans and never to cross the line. With the Americans, they gonna get you since no one messes with Uncle Sam and gets away with it. Iran has been put on notice that they have pushed their luck this far and must be stopped willy-nilly and it does not matter whether their spiritual leader or other mullahs in Tehran likes it or not. The super power has spoken and what America wants, America gets; and this now includes the safe conduct of all maritime activities in the Persian or Arabian Gulf; unconditionally and absolutely non negotiable. The choice for Iran is to either back-down or be smacked into backing down and Tehran has zero to practically no input now short of total compliance.

The message, don't mess with the Americans has never been clearer regarding the provocations of Iran dating way back to their Americans hostage taking in the early eighties. May be payback time is around the corner and we shall remember all the pointed fingers and thumbing of nose Iran has shown to the West especially America. If and when it boils down, we gonna get them and even if it means pursuing those Iranians right into their kitchens and bedrooms; and any of them in doubt should ask Osama Bin Laden, who luckily for the Iranians is sleeping with the fishes very close to them in the same Arabian sea where their ships will soon be providing watery caves for Osama to continue his hiding from hell-fire.

The Pentagon was reacting to an impending legislation in Tehran seeking the Iranian military to block and disrupt oil shipments in the strait, in retaliation to Iranian embargoed oil sales. From the Pentagon to Tehran, 'don't even think about it - closing the strait of Hormuz. If you lay mines there, we will clear them. If you send your boats to harass our vessels or any commercial shipping of any kind or of any country, we will put them on the bottom of the Gulf."

Icheoku says a threat cannot be more direct and all encompassing as this and the Iranians better beware, otherwise their country will become completely ruined before they know it. Sometimes it is good to be a great super power, otherwise little pestilence such as the nuisance called Iran could occasionally ferment trouble if left unchecked. Icheoku says, let the final showdown begin and may regime change in Tehran be the only final resolution of the coming conflict. The Pentagon's threat is the real audacity of power and Icheoku double-dares Tehran to step up to the plate and receive some ass-whopping, an UFC-type smack-down. It is indeed about time Iran is cut to its actual midget size in international arena; enough of their provocations.

BOKO HARAM, DANGEROUSLY CLOSING IN ON ASO ROCK?

What President Jonathan sought by removing his trusted kinsman as National Security Adviser and leaving his security in the hands of his main opposition bloc, Jonathan has now got as Boko Haram bombers has finally penetrated Abuja and within a few striking distance to Aso Rock. What a fiery touchdown at Aso Rock it would be if these lunatics find their way since these two bombings must be test-runs and feeling the grounds respectively.

It was Krystal nightclub the other day and now Park N'Save near Barnex shopping mall. Icheoku says it appears that Jonathan days are now truly numbered as one day Nigeria might wake up to the sad news that a Boko Haram bomb attack claimed the life of the president? But God forbid as that would seal the fate of a Nigeria broken into pieces.

Icheoku have always questioned the wisdom of Jonathan's appointing a far Northern mallam as his new security adviser; all his most virulent opposition considered. What happened to the middle belt or even Yoruba Southwest; afterall Colonel Areh is still around and knows much about national security. All Jonathan would have done was effect a minor cabinet reshuffle, move the Internal Affairs minister out of the present Middle Belt region to some other region and then appoint a Christian Middle Belter as his new national security adviser. But hey, who knows what the gods are up to and thinking about the president anyway?

Monday, July 2, 2012

ANDERSON COOPER'S COMING OUT, WHAT TOOK HIM SO LONG?


When CNN Don Lemon came out of the closet in May 2011, the story according to Icheoku, was not his coming out but what was holding the other CNN anchorman Anderson Cooper from also stepping forward with his gayness? When would Anderson 360 develop enough courage to also follow suit and confirm to the world that he is gay. 


In an article titled "CNN Don Lemon's gayness is an open secret..." published on May 18, 2011 in Icheoku.com, Icheoku had said, quote "CNN's Don Lemon has stepped out of the closet where he has been hiding all these years; except that people that know knows that there is something girly and gay-ly about the presenter. Icheoku says now that CNN presenter Don Lemon has braved it and emerged out of the closet to confirm what every observer has since suspected, when would the other suspected CNN anchorman Anderson Cooper also step forward to either rest the case or deny what is highly probable." 

That was in May 2011 and twelve months later Anderson Cooper has hearken the clarion call and confirmed that he is so gay, has always been gay and shall remain gay for life! In his coming out tweet, the blushing CNN anchorman wrote, "The fact is, I'm gay. Always have been, always will be, and I couldn't be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud."  Icheoku says, finally Cooper has braved it but what took him forever to confirm his glaring homo-sexuality? Now when would other suspected crooked television personalities including American Idol host Ryan Seacrest and OWN's Oprah Winfrey rest their cases? Like gay-man anchorman Anderson Cooper rightly said, it ain't shame to be who you are or to proclaim to the world that you are somewhat different and that you are free to love whoever you choose. Former vice president Dick Cheney's lesbian daughter just got married few weeks ago to her heartthrob of twenty years for crying out loud? But who really cares which hole anybody prefers to plug; Anderson Cooper is just another previously closeted gay-man now coming out! LGBT says, WELCOME MISTER 360.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

MORMON A MYSTERY, SCIENTOLOGY EVIL - RUPERT MURDOCH

He has said it, the media mogul, who is never afraid to air his views on issues, has just called Mitt Romney's Mormon religion mysterious.
Rupert Murdoch, News Corp chief executive said the religion practiced by Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney,Mormonism, is a mystery incapable of being understood by him. Icheoku adds nor is it understood by many Americans, who should now be more wary of Mitt Romney and his quest for the presidency now that conservative backer in chief Rupert Murdoch has confirmed what many have always suspected and occasionally voiced out. Icheoku says Mitt Romney is as mysterious as his Mormon religion and his mission in the White House shrouded in top secrecy; but it cannot be good and is definitely not good for America.
To date Mitt "Raw Money" Romney has not told America what his plans are to fix any of the things he said he will fix if "elected" and he has also cleverly by half, provided generic non-answer answers to all the questions thrown at him on issues bothering and concerning America. Icheoku says BEWARE, America of MITT ROMNEY; especially now that the top conservative Rupert Murdoch has added his voice to affirm that Mitt Romney's Mormon is a mystery. By the same token, Rupert Murdoch castigated Tom Cruise's religion of Scientology as being a "very weird cult." According to Rupert, there is something very creepy and may be evil about Scientology and its adherents including Tom Cruise.

TOM CRUISE AND KATE HOLMES, NO LONGER AN ITEM?

Icheoku says what money and power joined together, Scientology and freakish behavior has set asunder. Tom Cruise has for the third time been proved a failed husband as his wife number three Kate Holmes has filed for a divorce from him after five years of unbearable living hell of a marriage. Icheoku wonders the merits of some marriages and all marriages for that matter as humans are not necessarily used to being in chains and treasure their independence a lot. 

Anyway it does not matter whose fault it was or what it was that caused the union to crumble, but suffice it to guesstimate that Tom's petite stature and his penchant for being a controlling Scientology freak could have taken a huge toll on Kate and she decided to walk away. But would former wives numbers one and two now feel vindicated that being married to Tom Cruise was a burden too heavy for any sane woman to contemplate, talkless of stoically bearing. Icheoku wishes both divorcing parties good luck and says to them, welcome to Splitville.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

JONATHAN'S DAYS NUMBERED - DR ALIYU U. TILDE?


"So from whichever angle one looks at it, appointing a proxy to Gusau would make a lot of sense for a scared Jonathan who is presently confined by the terror to the Villa. By appointing Sambo Dasuki, Jonathan might have bought some time, but only a little. How far he can run before the monster that caught up with those immediately below him also catches up with him is a distance known only to his destiny." - Dr Aliyu U. Tilde.

Icheoku says, scared, he is. Gutless, he also is. Jonathan lacks the courage to do what is necessary to right the wrongs in Nigeria including trading his own life if that is what it will take. He is commander in chief for crying out loud and all he had to do is give the orders. Icheoku had foretold the emptiness of this Obasanjo's imposition on Nigeria right from the onset and nothing has since changed that perception. Anyway, the office he holds is not Niger Delta's turn yet to hold and so it is with all that usurp what does not rightfully belong to them. Firing all the Azazis of the NSA will not help as Boko Haram is deeply entrenched and supported by some powers that be in the Northern Islamic enclave. Even the president confirmed that Boko Haram are everywhere including in his government? So how is the firing of Azazi going to help the president when Azazi was not allowed to do what it took to secure the government and Nigeria in the first place? Why are certain Northerners considered by Jonathan as untouchables when Northern presidents and Heads of States had never extended the same courtesy and reciprocity to Southerners no matter how highly placed they might be? Some of these Northern Islamic henchmen have said that Boko Haram are freedom fighters and not terrorists? Some said Boko Haram are fighting for justice? Some even said the Federal Government of Jonathan is a worst Haram than Boko Haram? Even Adegbite, a non Northern Muslim recently implored the Americans to treat Boko Haram as patriots? So is anything adding up here or is the probable conspiracy a mere figment of the mind? They all cannot be just coincidences.

Now tell Icheoku if President Jonathan is not surrounded and cornered in an island of total insecurity and lonesomeness with Azazi gone? Anyway the president did himself in when he cowardly professed that he is neither a general nor dictator and therefore should not be expected to preside over Nigeria competently and firmly and you wonder if resignation does not exist in his dictionary; hence not an option. What a shame and a curse of Nigeria when competence is usually relegated to the background and weakling mediocrity entrenched in determining who presides over the entity, PhD or other academic laurels notwithstanding. It is a well known fact and once again now proven, that bookworms are not necessarily competent people, administratively and politically speaking as evident in present day Aso Rock. Most academics are anti-social and anti-political loners who were glued to cramming the black and white letters of their discipline during school and had no time to learn how to mingle and/or socialize. Little wonder they lack the needed skill to schmooze and manage diverse people since such were never written down in any course they took while in school for them to cram; especially if the discipline is ZOOLOGY.

Anyway, what a pity that a hamstrung fine officer and gentleman has been sacrificed to appease the North who are now within very close striking distance and range of achieving their principal objective to take out the president who they hold with great contempt and disdain. But only an unthinking political neophyte would ask his arch enemy to man the gates while he slept or may be the Trojan Horse tale never mdke it to this president's curriculum? Odi was reduced to ashes by Obasanjo but this president could not turn the dogs of war loose on Maiduguri? Yaradua took the war to Maiduguri killing the then Boko Haram leader but this president lacks the guts to spill blood? Niger Delta was bombed into submission but this president could not drop a concoction grenade on any part of the North? Obasanjo declared state of emergency in Plateau etc but this president could not muster the courage to suspend one governor in the North? Even Buhari dared the president to arrest him if he can but this president turned tail? Abacha killed Ken Saro Wiwa and destroyed NADECO but this president cannot stand blood? Even during the height of Niger Delta terrorism, one Northerner called for the total annihilation of the region for the sake of the rest; since according to him they are merely a negligible fraction of Nigeria and can be expended? Just wandering out aloud in thought what the heck qualified this president as president in the first place if he is possessed only of the courage of Wizard of Oz's Tin-Man; and a PhD in ZOOLOGY is not necessarily a prerequisite to competently presiding over a complexity such as Nigeria.

WHAT REALLY HAPPENED, REILLE HUNTER CLAIMS YET ANOTHER VICTIM?

Icheoku says to home wrecker Reille Hunter, "What really happened" was that she is a shriveling gold-digging whore, who opened her legs for a married man, got knocked up by him and refused an abortion in order to blackmail him. In the process a home was wrecked, a marriage was ruined, a political career was destroyed, a cancer stricken wife was fast-tracked to an early grave by broken heart and now she has left the same man she destroyed hanging up to dry in an island of loneliness. That was 'what really happened' and no one needs a rehash of it or to be told or reminded of how this bitch completely destroyed the Edwards, especially Elizabeth and for crying out loud, JOHN too.

Icheoku says 'what really happened' was that Reille Hunter is a very dangerous daughter of Eve and the worst nightmare any married man could ever have or have happen to him; and if in doubt, please ask John Edwards how much he is smiling now? First to go was a marriage, then a wife who died of broken heart, admitted she was battling cancer as she lost the strength and support to fight on and now, the very libidinous man who yielded to a temptatious lecherous woman that cascaded his downfall. Reille Hunter, Icheoku asks, how many victims must you claim or take before you disappear from this earth or at least from our airwaves? How could you just walk away from John Edwards after what you visited on him or has he not suffered enough in your hands? At least you owe him your sticking around with him for making him lose everything he once treasured just because of you and now you have the temerity to dump him to write a tell-all book?

Icheoku says America, lets tell this woman that enough is enough and that we shall not indulge her heartless exploits of a family which she since brought to ruins. Please America, lets honor the memory of Elizabeth Edwards and not put our dollars in the hands of Reille Hunters. We do not need to know 'what really happened' especially from the conniving maggot herself since the drama played out before our own very eyes. Also whatever she may say or have probably written in the book can only be to tailor the story to fit her own very selfish interest, especially now that there is no longer Elizabeth Edwards to rebut such version and account of the lurid details. Look at the title "What really happened: John Edwards, our daughter and me?" So what about Elizabeth and her children whose family Reille Hunter destroyed? What about them or don't deserve a mention on the cover of what really happened; afterall it was her husband and their father that Reille Hunter stole? Hey what about them Reille? Please America, lets tell Reille Hunter that what she did to Elizabeth Edwards and her children was abhorable and that she is a despicable human-being not worthy of our dollars. What really happened, we must not buy. Let's boycott "What really happened" to send a message loud and clear that such behavior is unacceptable in a morally civilized society. Icheoku urges you to please not buy or even read Reille Hunter's 'What really happened' as she supplied nothing new in it. It is a self serving memoir, wherein she pretended that she did not know that John Edwards was married when she was kicking her wide spread legs in the air with him sandwiched between. What a piece of garbage.

Monday, June 25, 2012

THE POOR HUSBAND, THE RICH WIFE AND BOKO HARAM - an article by Femi Fani-Kayode


I have nothing against the Islamic faith. As a matter of fact some of my most loyal friends are practicing muslims. There are many muslims in my family and my maternal great grandmother was an illustrious Fulani woman from the muslim core north. I do however believe that there is a world of difference between a true Muslim and an islamist. The former is a humble worshipper of God who seeks to peacefully and piously live his life in accordance with the dictates of his faith and in true harmony with his neighbour. He is tolerant, reasonable, rational and God-fearing.
The latter is the opposite. He is an islamic fundamentalist and an extreemist who seeks to impose his will and his own understanding and interpretation of islam on others by compulsion, intimidation, violence and terror. The overwhelming maajority of muslims in Nigeria today fall into the former category but there is a small and growing minority that sadly fall into the latter. That group constitute those that we describe today as Boko Haram and they have been waging a relentless and brutal war of terror against the Nigerian state and people for the last  few years. They are indeed the enemy within. The question is what should our collective response be to these men of violence and blood. That, together with the a cursory analysis of how we got into this mess and the way out of it is the topic of this essay.
Some are of the view that we ought to enter some form of dialogue with Boko Haram and that this would eventually solve the problem. My younger brother, Mujahid Asari Dokubo, enunciated that position rather well in an article titled ”How To Address The Boko Haram Problem In Nigeria” (25th June, 2011) . He suggested that President Goodluck Jonathan should enter into negotiations with the islamist terrorist group as quickly as possible regardless of the fact that they themselves have made it clear that they are not interested in any form of dialogue with the government and that they have murdered thousands of innocent and defenceless Nigerian men, women and children in the last three years alone. I respectfully beg to differ with Dokubo on this issue and indeed with all those that share this view.
In my view the solution is simple to the Boko Haram problem is simple. They must be utterly crushed by the Nigerian state and certainly not negotiated with. This is because in any serious society there can never be dialogue, compromise or any form of negiotiation with terrorists whilst they are still carrying arms and waging war against the state and the people. Worst still there can be no compromise with those that seek to forcefully establish a 17th century Islamic fundamentalist caliphate in our country and those that seek to impose their strange and outdated values on each and everyone of us. Worst still there is no doubt in my mind that Boko Haram is part of the world-wide Al Qaeda-sponsored ”global jihad” and if we give them one inch they will definitely take a mile. We cannot afford to have peace with them on any terms or peace with them at the cost of our hard-earned civil liberties, liberal and cherishedl values, plural and multi-cultural society and modern way of life.
There must come a time when we as a people can boldly say ”enough is enough” and when we draw the line in the sand. And if Boko Haram crosses that line they must be confronted by the full force of the Nigerian Armed Forces who must be ready, willing and able to unleash hell on them regardless of the collateral damage and immense infrastructural destruction that this will cause in various parts of our country. President Olusegun Obasanjo did this decisively and with ruthless efficiency in the town of Odi in the Niger Delta area a number of years ago with remarkable success. By the time the Nigerian Armed Forces finished shelling Odi from the land, the sea and the air there was not one building left standing there except for, interestingly, the local bank. The casualties in terms of human life were extreemly high but the point was made and the objective achieved. From that point on the Niger Delta militants stopped killing policemen and soldiers right up until the time that Obasanjo left power. Why can the same solution not be applied to the Boko Haram problem by the Jonathan administration today? What is the fear?
Why should the same treatment not be meted out to any city or community in our country that grants the footsoldiers of Boko Haram covert support, safe haven, sanctuary or shelter? This is all the more important because they are not true muslims or believers in God. Rather they are a cancer that must be identified, isolated and cut out of our body politic before they spread their terrible diesease of hate, extreemism, violence and intolerance throughout the federation and the reprisals begin. That is what a strong, focused, resolute and purposeful government ought to do. Sadly we have not seen any such thing from our government. Instead what we have witnessed from them are a series of feeble and pathetic pleas for dialogue with the enemy and the shameful display of weakness, incompetence and insensitivity when faced with their terror. To make matters worse the National Chairman of the President’s own ruling PDP, Alhaji Bamangar Tukur, recently declared that Boko Haram was ”fighting for justice”.
What a thing to say by an elder statesman who I not only have tremendous respect for but who I have always regarded as a father. I really do wonder what type of ”justice” he is referring to when churches are now being blown up virtually every sunday morning all over the north and when thousands of defenceless christians are being slaughtered on a daily basis. Is that what the Chairman calls ”fighting for justice”. Are these the people that are denying Boko Haram their justice and that are denying them their rights? Are they the ones that killed their leader, Mohammed Yusuf, a few years ago? Boko Haram started by targetting government institutions and security agencies with extreeme and deadly violence but now they have graduated to killing the followers of Christ and they have made known their intention to wipe out christianity in northern Nigeria and to stop christians from peacefully worshipping their God. Is that the ”just cause” that they are fighting for?
We must understand that Boko Haram, what they stand for and what they seek to establish is patently evil and that what they are doing represents the greatest threat to Nigerian unity since our civil war. They are not just a danger to christians but to all true muslims as well. Real muslims like Dokubo, Tukur and all the others that believe that Boko Haram are fighting a ”just cause” would do better by trying to educate and enlighten their misguided islamist brothers. They should advise them to stop the violence, to stop the slaughtering of christians and true muslims, to stop destabilising the Nigerian state, to stop trying to islamise northern Nigeria, to stop trying to return our country to the dark ages of the 17th century and to stop trying to wage a global war of terror against the rest of humanity. We as a people must not allow ourselves to be intimidated by their evil agenda and we must vigorously and courageously resist them no matter what it takes. No responsible and strong government would compromise or enter into negotiations with such barbarous and evil men that have so much blood on their hands. To throw down the gauntlet and confront such evil is one of the major challenges of our time and it is a challenge that our government must not fail to rise up to in a fearless, vigorous and responsible manner.
A few home truths must now be told. We christians take strong exception to the fact that literally hundreds of thousands of our fellow christian brothers and sisters from all over the country have been brutally killed by muslim fundamentalists in northern Nigeria over the last 50 years for no just cause.
The innocent blood of those people cries to God in heaven for vengeance and it gets louder and louder by the day. Boko Haram have said publically that they want the adoption of full sharia law and the establishment of an islamic fundamentalist state in all the northern states of Nigeria before they stop killing and bombing innocent people and spreading terror. Yet the truth is that that will never happen as long as Nigeria remains as one nation and remains a secular state. And if Nigeria ever stops being a secular state then we will simply break it up and go our separate ways. It is as simple as that. No-one wants a full blown religious war but neither will anyone run away from it if it is foisted on us. For how long can the people of the south and the Middle Belt sit by idly and watch silently as their own kith and kin that reside in the core north and their northern minority christian brothers and sisters are subjected to nothing less than genocide and mass murder from the most ruthless and barbatric terrorist organisation that this country has ever known. I believe in restraint but is it humanly possible that we will be restrained forever?
Yet I believe that there is still hope and that a war can still be avoided. That hope lies in the speedy convocation of a Sovereign National Conference. That, in my view, is the only vehicle that can provide a lasting solution to the monumental challenges that we are facing in our country today, including the scourge of Boko Haram. I say this because whether we like to admit it or not, Nigeria is more divided today on ethnic and religious lines than it has ever been since our independence in 1960. We should iron out all these issues at such a conference once and for all. These religious clashes and killings feature in the northern part of Nigeria alone and hardly in the south. In the south-west where I come from the christians, the muslims and the traditional worshippers are one and we treat each other with love, respect, understanding and sensitivity. We do not kill ourselves on account of our religious differences. That is simply our way and clearly many from other parts of Nigeria and indeed the rest of the world have a lot to learn from us. My position is that if Nigeria cannot be built on a foundation of equality, equity and fairness for ALL her people, whether they be christian, muslim, northern, middle-beltern or southern, then we should reject the concept of a united Nigeria and we should begin to renegotiate the terms of our union. I love this country and I would always be amongst those to defend and speak up for her unity but the truth is that there is absolutely nothing that is sacrosanct about the unity of the Nigerian state if we cannot live together in peace.
As a matter of fact there has been a school of thought since 1914 when Nigeria was first created that it was an ”unworkable union” and a ”cruel joke”. Lord Frederick Lugard’s vision, and indeed his intention, when he recommended the amalglamation of the northern and southern protectorates of Nigeria in 1914 was ably described and enunciated by his own very words when he said that the northern protectorate of Nigeria could be described as the ”poor husband” whilst the southern protectorate could be described as the ”rich wife”. He then pronounced the ”permanency” of our forced union by saying- ”today we marry the two and our prayer is that this union lasts forever”. That is how the north and the south got ”married” and that is how the famous amalglamation of 1914 came about. The problem was that the two young spouses were never asked by their British masters whether they actually wanted to stay together, let alone get married. Worst still the ”poor husband” was never given the opportunity to court, woo or propose to the ”rich wife”.
To make matters worse the two spouses came from different worlds, had different backgrounds, had a different religion, had a different history and had a different world-view . Today the ”rich wife” and the ”poor husband” have suffered immensly in each others ”loving” arms. The marriage has been strained and turbulent. We fought a brutal and avoidable  3 year civil war from 1967 in which we killed no less than 2 million of our own people. Since1960 the story has been more or less the same and the tales of tragedy and woe have just continued to pour in. If it is not genocide, mass killings or sectarian butchery by groups like Boko Haram then it is always something else. Yet today’s barbarism and mass killings are far more horrendous than ever and are far better planned, funded, orchestrated and executed by those that are behind them than ever before.
The question is how much longer can the ”rich wife” and the ”poor husband” give and take this sort of thing from one another? For how long can the centre hold before the voices of reason and restraint are completely drowned by the irrational, compulsive outrage that is gradually building up and the uncontrollable outcry for reprisals and revenge? For how long can our hope and fervent prayers prevent the dogs of war from being unleashed? May God save Nigeria

THE FALL OF AZAZI, THE RETURN OF GUSAU - an article by Dr. Aliyu U. Tilde


THE FALL OF AZAZI, THE RETURN OF GUSAU
Sambo Dasuki, I am tempted to believe, got this appointment by his marital link to the longest serving NSA, General Aliyu Gusau (rtd). Gusau is married to Sambo’s sister, the wife of late Aliyu Dasuki, may God have mercy on him.
Boko Haram has claimed its most important victim yet last weekend: the National Security Adviser, Andrew Owoye Azazi. For an avowed enemy of the nation’s security apparatus and political system, only the ultimate target remains: the President. If it can manufacture his downfall or the end of his regime, the group would boast that it has proved its mettle.
The fall of Azazi must have surprised many Nigerians. Ah, so the ‘clueless’ and ‘weak’ Jonathan can also bite, they would exclaim. Beyond that, biting his Ijaw brother was least expected. Many people think Azazi did not expect his sudden fall. He has since his resumption as NSA walked firmly on the presidential turf with a mien that was informed by the confidence of an insider and the assurance of a kinsman.
As the weakness in the President became clearer, the arrogance of Azazi as his untouchable protector and indispensable ally was increasing by the day. His display of power reached its peak last week when his contempt for the president was reported online. Somewhere the idea of declaring the state of emergency in Kaduna State was discussed and it was agreed that it was a good idea. To seal its fate however, the former NSA employed a sarcasm that portrayed his level of disdain for his boss, the President. “Where is the president to declare it”, was his reported remark, as if Jonathan was missing in Bermuda Triangle or he has abandoned the hot seat for a mere trivial summit in Brazil.
Azazi left office with the same demeaning impression for the President. After receiving the news of his sacking, his spokesman issued some statements that did not hide his long-standing poor rating of Jonathan’s courage to face challenges squarely. The spokesman said when Azazi suggested that Buhari and some top northerners be invited for ‘questioning’, Jonathan refused and accused the NSA of trying to “scuttle his government.”
As a tribute, I feel compelled to attest that Azazi was different from former NSAs in his relationship with the Nigerian public. Two months ago, he declared the ruling party and the northern presidential aspirants guilty of precipitating the present security crisis in the country. Right or wrong, the public felt that such statements should not have come from a person so close to the President and his NSA for that matter – a Freudian slip, you can say.
The tradition of the NSA in Nigeria as cut by his predecessors is complete silence. They understood that the strength of any security apparatus lies in its secrecy, through leaving the public guessing about its opinion and what it onows about any security issue. Even if Azazi shared that philosophy, the politician in him was not comfortable with it. He preferred activism to mystery. Under him, even the secretive SSS went public, appointing a spokesperson, issuing press statements, parading suspects and holding press conferences. The public could easily discern from these development that there was a competition for its recognition between the SSS and the police in any success, no matter how small, which was recorded in the fight against Boko Haram.
Azazi might have usurped the functions of the police and demystified the office of the NSA. But if it were not for his approach, we would not have been able to read the mind of the administration regarding crucial issues like its perception of the causes of the Boko Haram insurgency. To the delight of journalists, commentators and the opposition, Azazi was always there to let the cat out of the bag.

Well he is gone, for whatever reason and for whatever sin he committed. He is the latest victim of Boko Haram. He is familiar with sackings though, having suffered one as the Chief of Defence Staff under Yar’adua when he was indicted by an army security report on the theft of weapons from his 1 DIV by a Niger Delta militant syndicate. Perhaps, that was the first time he established relationship with Jonathan, who the report fell short of naming as one of the financiers of the gun running activities of the syndicate.
Azazi’s return as NSA might be a reward for his ethnic chauvinism. Our own, an Ijaw, possibly, my partner in the illegal arms deal is now the President, Azazi must have calculated rightly when Jonathan became the President. Jonathan too might have wondered if he could trust anyone better than the devil he knows. And on the NSA seat, we saw all sorts of sumptuous security contracts awarded to Niger Deta militants, the latest being the concession of our maritime security to them by the Jonathan administration. We also witnessed the largest allocation of our budget to national security in our history.
Azazi may now be bitter for losing the top security job but he can still keep himself busy by paying full attention to the execution of those security contracts that were fronted for him by Tampolo and other Niger Delta militants. With his departure, the dream of Niger Delta republic has suffered a serious setback. It is clear that Nigeria is bigger than his dream. Safe journey, sir.
At his heels comes Sambo Dasuki, a lesser known person from the Sokoto royal family. Compared to General Azazi, Sambo is a dwarf: a junior officer who retired almost two decades ago as a colonel. Politically, the highest position he held in the army was the ADC to President Babangida. He was nowhere close to commanding a division or becoming Nigeria’s chief of defence staff. Likewise, I doubt if he ever dreamt of becoming the NSA.
Now, if the NSA job has put his predecessor general to shame during these trying times, how did the President got convinced that Sambo would succeed in disabling the bombs of Boko Haram and silencing their guns? Look at the gamble: apart from his political appointment as the Managing Director of Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Corporation, the new NSA has nothing in hand to prove that he is competent in heading the security apparatus of country as it is today. At its face value, one is tempted to think that the appointment of Sambo is one of the most stupid things that Jonathan ever did as the President. So are we heading for the rocks, again?
Hold your breath. we are not. The President is not stupid. Come with me.
The reason is simple. Some things we get by birth. Many others we get by hard work. Few we get by association. Sambo Dasuki, I am tempted to believe, got this appointment by his marital link to the longest serving NSA, General Aliyu Gusau (rtd). Gusau is married to Sambo’s sister, the wife of late Aliyu Dasuki, may God have mercy on him.

In the past few months, there have been reports that Gusau was resisting the pressure to return to the NSA office. Gusau might have calculated the cool reception that Nigerians would accord him if he were to return for the simple fact that he has been there three times before. Man is hardly excited with the familiar. Also, he might have been hindered morally by his contest for the PDP presidential ticket against Jonathan under whom he last served as NSA. The idea of a proxy is therefore apt. Sambo would sit in as the figurehead NSA, definitely, while Gusau would ably determine the security operations of the country.
From his position at the top, Jonathan must have perceived that Boko Haram is inching closer and closer to him. It has caused the sacking of all categories of police and security chiefs. With some clerics warning him of an impending war, the President must have realized that he could be the next victim. The nation has, with distinctions, fulfilled all the requirements for a coup d’etat. The condition is so critical that he will not hesitate to call for the assistance of anyone perceived to be capable of making a difference between democracy and military rule.
It is easy to see the idea of involving Gusau as based purely on the merit of the former NSA. However, it surely goes beyond that. I do not also believe that it is a gesture made to appeal Northerners to dismiss the notion that the inability of the government to handle the situation is not a conspiracy to destroy the North.
In my humble opinion that the return of Gusau was due to two reasons. One, from what Azazi said two months ago – that violating the principle of zoning in PDP was responsible for the present security challenges in the country and that no one expects that those aggrieved would fail to respond by creating difficulties for the Jonathan administration – it is clear that he meant that Boko Haram is recruited by those who lost the ticket to Jonathan. So they must know the secret behind it.
Nobody expects that Azazi will make such serious accusations without any support from the hundreds of files he has treated on the matter. Jonathan, according Azazi’s spokesman yesterday, has resisted the fomer NSA’s advice that such people be called for questioning. Gusau, being one of those aspirants, must have made it to Azazi’s list conspirators.
Jonathan here took a directly opposite route. If he cannot invite Gusau for questioning, it would not be a bad idea to saddle him with the challenge of restoring security to the country.
The second reason is that possibly few people, if any, in our security domain would know about Boko Haram than Gusau. It was under the tenure of Obasanjo that Boko Haram was conceived, hatched and nourished to full growth. The first we heard about the group was when it called itself the “Nigerian Taliban” after it clashed with the police in Yobe in the early 2000s. Many of the arrests made then turned out to be sons of influential people in the old Borno State. The suspects were eventually released. From there, the group moved its headquarters to Maiduguri and enjoyed the support of people like Governor Sheriff. Perhaps few people knew that it would turn so dangerous.
But the SSS director then, Gadzama, has raised sufficient alarms which, for unknown reasons, were not heeded to. It took the vacation of Obasanjo from that office, along with NSA Gusau, before the authorities could provoke a violent engagement with the group resulting in the present crisis.
Why was the group not stopped from blooming and fruition during Obasanjo still remains a mystery to many of us. But it will not be a mistake to assume that the person at the helm of our security structure during the formative years of the group clearly knows its dynamics and the forces behind it. Who else is then best qualified for the job than him?
So from whichever angle one looks at it, appointing a proxy to Gusau would make a lot of sense for a scared Jonathan who is presently confined by the terror to the Villa. By appointing Sambo Dasuki, Jonathan might have bought some time, but only a little. How far he can run before the monster that caught up with those immediately below him also catches up with him is a distance known only to his destiny.
Finally, I would like to put this question to my readers. Should the new NSA fail to meet the expectations of Jonathan and Nigeria precariously attains a tipping point, would the country be ready to sacrifice Jonathan in order to avert the impending disaster or would it prefer to go into an indefinable civil war and dismemberment simply to maintain him as the President of a democratic Nigeria?
Jonathan would be keen to know your answers. But he must be under no illusions as to what they would be. Nigerians have answered such questions each time the country reaches the brink in the past. And consistently, the answers have never been in favour of the presidents. This one too will not be different, I suppose.

Friday, June 22, 2012

MIAMI HEAT'S NBA WIN, THE KING FINALLY GETS HIS CROWN.

King James that is - the king of basketball court and he holds it with audacious bravado. Now all the naysayers and haters alike, particularly the folks at Cleveland and their Cavalier owner, Dan Gilbert, who ate their hair and went acerbic because LeBron James left in search of the elusive NBA championship, would now be forced to swallow their vomit. Their alleged curse of LeBron has been completely debunked by James with his stellar win of a championship; thus consigning the curse to the dustbin of unproven myths like the Scottish Loch Ness monster. What a people, a very sore people, the Cavalier clan are.

Icheoku queries Dan Gilbert's credit worthiness now that the King has won the NBA championship before his struggling Cavaliers? Recall that Dan Gilbert has boasted that he personally guarantee that Cavaliers would win an NBA championship before the "self-titled former King wins one?" To make matters worse, Dan Gilbert had told his Cavalier fans to take his promise to the bank; which promise, unfortunately bounced today with the stellar performance put up by the Miami Heat led LeBron James culminating in their well deserved championship win.

Icheoku harpoons the Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert as a disgruntled, self effacing scumbag, who took a purely professional business decision by LeBron James to take his talent elsewhere to Miami Heat so personal he sucked. Suddenly James became cursed but was not so cursed while toiling away for the Cavaliers? Suddenly James became a "self-titled King" but he was a worthy king while doing all the heavy lifting for the Cavaliers? In sports participants are expected to take both a win and a loss in strides like sportsmen; but unfortunately such admonition see not applicable to this Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert? Icheoku queries, were LeBron James to be an under-performing player during his days in Dan Gilbert's owned Cavalier, would Dan Gilbert have cut him some slacks and not fire him before blinking an eyelid and turning him loose as a free agent? What a compound loser Dan Gilbert is that couldn't deliver on his promise to motivate the Cavaliers to a championship before the "self-titled king" gets one. Icheoku asks, who is now a "self-titled" whatever - a King who finally wrestled his crown or a sorry ass Cavalier boastful owner who could not keep his promise thus making him a "self-tiled" promisor without performance! Dan Gilbert was only sulking because his golden goose walked away in search of a better pasture.

Nothing was wrong with LeBron James except that he sacrificed so much with a mediocre team called Cavaliers and for seven long years with no championship to show for his effort. Like any rational human-being would do, he left the Dan Gilbert's under-motivated Cavaliers to a more fired-up Miami Heats, where today's crowning victory has proved he was not under any spell or curse and that he is simply the greatest now that plays the hoop. To King LeBron James, Icheoku says may your reign last long and may the ten-foot tall basket become shorter faced with your menacing take no prisoner dunks. Icheoku is particularly happy for you because so many people have said so many bad things about you for no just cause, despite your four times MVP awards which is now five times with today's win; and also not minding that it was not because of you that Cleveland Cavalier never smelt the championship or Miami Heat lost the previous year's championship since a tree does not make a forest. Even the best General needs good soldiers to win any war.

Thankfully you and your soldiers of Miami Heat convincingly anchored the 2012 National Basketball Association championship over an equally tough and talented side the roaring Thunders of Oklahoma City. It was a well fought and won 4-1 aggregate victory and both teams deserves some encomiums. What a glorious day for Miami, the only city in Florida that makes that state still somewhat attractive to visit; the Stanford vigilantism called in mind. Icheoku says well done LeBron James and the boys. However the gist of this championship is all about LeBron James and his first championship ring in his nine years playing career, seven of which were wasted in Cleveland Ohio with an ungrateful Dan Gilbert and his team Cavaliers. Who said there is nothing in a name like cavalier manner? Now just two seasons in Miami, the eagle has landed and LeBron James is a proud and fulfilled NBA champion with a ring to show for it. Icheoku reechoes his sentiment that "It's about damn time; it's about damn time" and LeBron James richly deserved the championship. At last, his dream has now become a reality and according to him, it is the best feeling he ever had.