DEAR AFRICAN LEADERS

DEAR AFRICAN LEADERS



From my 1897 album, this is a poignant musical letter to African Leaders to remind them of their forgotten responsibilities to the masses.



The entire album is loaded with tracks of consciousness. Buy and download this special edition of 1897 at www.agpnmusic.com to support the struggle to hold our leaders to accountability.



Bless up.



Monday Midnite.

DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY

The doctrine of Discovery is an international legal principle constructed by 
European Christian nations in the fifteenth century to justify their dominance of indigenous peoples and their lands, territories, and resources in the non-
Christian countries around the world. Its application continues today and sets 
the foundation of the laws in colonial states – the united states, Australia, New 
Zealand and Canada.

Examples of its contemporary application:

• The exploitations and human rights violations of indigenous peoples and their lands by Canadian mining, oil and gas corporations including Barrick Gold Corporation, Goldcorp Inc. Enbridge Inc. and TransCanada Corporation.
• The proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline, Keystone XL pipeline, Pacific Trails Pipeline and Kinder Morgan pipeline project
• Plan Nord of the Quebec government
• Ring of Fire in northern Ontario.
• Cultural appropriations such as Olympic mascots and Hudson Bay Co. sweaters.

The doctrine of Discovery is also the theme of this year’s UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Peoples concluded on Friday, May 18. In the permanent forum, the representatives of indigenous nations not only spoke about the ongoing impacts of this doctrine on their people but also recommendations on how to redress these impacts.

We felt that this important topic is worth our attention and understanding as it is a rationalization which underpins the colonization of Turtle Island (aka North America) and other parts of the world. It legitimizes the morally condemnable, socially unjust and racist policies against Indigenous peoples worldwide.

3 great resources on this Discovery Doctrine:

• The framework of Dominance: UN Preliminary Study on the Doctrine of Discovery
• The Doctrine of Discovery: its enduring impact on indigenous peoples and the right to redress for past conquests
• Steve Newcomb At Indigenous Peoples Forum On The Doctrine Of Discovery, Arizona

http://ipsmo.wordpress.com/2012/05/23/doctrine-of-discovery/

• DOCTRINE OF DISCOVERY « Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Movement Ottawa – www.ipsmo.orghttp://ipsmo.wordpress.com/2012/05/23/doctrine-of-discovery/
  

Back in the day, the infrastructures of this high school in Edo State were as good as those of any high school anywhere in the world.

But due to utter neglect and deficiency in maintenance mentality that's all too common across the board in Africa, the school is now not even remotely a shadow of its glory days.

As a matter of fact, some dubious private citizens with connections has audaciously appropriated most of the school's land mass for their own money-making schemes. 

I'm hereby using this medium to call on the current Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, to quickly investigate the atrocities being perpetrated against the school and act expeditiously in getting the school fixed.

https://youtu.be/lDNyLsUVLbs

MONDAY MIDNITE--AZZHOLES ROCK

Folks, hopefully, and prayerfully, after the 29th of May this 

year, I won't have any reason to produce another anti-9ja-

bad government track or clip again for the rest of my life.

But for now, here's my latest explosive YouTube lyrical/musical 

clip. It's a no-holds-barred blast against ALL the 9ja "leaders" 

whoever governed from the highest seat of power in Abuja.

For the benefit of my FB pals across the globe who may 

not know, ASO ROCK is located in Abuja, Nigeria, and it is 

the country’s version of the WHITE HOUSE in Washington 

DC; NUMBER 10 DOWNING STREET in London; and the 

KREMLIN in Moscow.

Since its inception in 1991, all the so-called leaders who 

have occupied this Africa’s most populous nation’s Villa of 

Power till date, have been excessively corrupt, incompetent, 

negligent, and utterly worthless. In short, they’ve all been 

A$$HOLE$.

So, given the above indisputable fact, it is my honest and 

unapologetic opinion that until a worthy leader occupies  

the official seat of authority, ASO ROCK should be called 

AZZHOLES ROCK.

But I do sincerely believe that Nigeria's first worthy leader is 

just a few months away from the throne.

Enjoy the clip.

Boko Haram: 7,300 Nigerian refugees flee to Chad in less than 2 weeks – UN

January 10, 2015.

Some 7,300 Nigerian refugees had fled from Nigeria to Chad in the past 10 days, Farthan Haq, a United Nation spokesperson said on Saturday.

Mr. Haq said this when he spoke to newsmen in Abuja.

He said that the newly arrived refugees in Chad are staying 

with local communities in villages some 450 kilometers 

northwest of the Chadian capital, Ndjamena.

“The UN refugee agency teams in Chad are at the border and seeking more information on the new arrivals and their needs,” Haq said.

He said the number of refugees from Nigeria in Chad had reached more than 10,000.

Mr. Haq said the Chadian government had requested the assistance of aid agencies to help the refugees.

Citing the United Nation Refugee Agency, he said that the 

conflict in northeastern Nigeria has led to the exodus of some 135,000 people, with at least 850, 000 people displaced within Nigeria.

(NAN)

http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/174601-boko-haram-7300-nigerian-refugees-flee-chad-less-2-weeks-un.html

JONATHAN, BERLUSCONI And The Politics Of Sweet Talk--Rufus Kayode Oteniya.

Published on Monday, 27 June 2011 12:21

Written by Rufus Kayode Oteniya

Reading an article recently in The Economist entitled ‘Berlusconi: The man who screwed an entire country’, I couldn’t but draw a striking similarity between President Goodluck Jonathan and Italian Prime Minister, Mr. Silvio Berlusconi.

The two leaders are very popular in their respective countries and have enjoyed immense goodwill among their countrymen now or in the immediate past. Their popularity is not borne out of their achievements but for what they say. They are both gifted at knowing what their people like to hear and exactly, that is what they tell them.

In Berlusconi early days in government, he would always remind the people how he had been able to build a business empire from nothing; a feat that has made him one of the richest men in the world and at various times, Italy’s richest though now, the 3^rd richest according to Forbe’s latest ranking. He would always also remind them of how he planned to use his Midas touch to transform Italy; a transformation that never was. And since the global crises began, Berlusconi would often remind his countrymen how they are better off than the other Europeans because they are the least hit by the global crisis.

Berlusconi has governed Italy longer than anyone since the end of the Second World War. He has held the position of the prime minister on three separate occasions: from 1994 to 1995, from 2001 to 2006 and currently since 2008 and in all these years, Italy has witnessed a consistently declining economy. Despite his failed reforms, he has remained very popular until lately simply because he had mastered the art of knowing the sweet things to tell the people and always keeping them hoping for a brighter future while doing very little to bring it to reality.

 Thanks to his numerous escapades with young girls - some of them minors and some financial recklessness involving him and his numerous businesses, Italians have woken up to know that at best, Berlusconi does not mean good for their country and they are now saying NO to him and his party, though a little too late. He had already screwed an entire country! The economy has been battered! It’s now dawn on the people that Berlusconi is in politics to protect himself from going to jail for his numerous financial scandals and also protect his business empire. Now, it is clear that the saying is true that a good politician under democracy is quite as unthinkable as an honest burglar.

In the last local election, Berlusconi and his party were rejected by the people and they even lost in Milan. According to Dr. Anthony A Kila in his article entitled The Italian Festa, “Silvio Berlusconi was biologically, commercially and politically born in Milan, the city considered by all to be his stronghold…” He lost it! And he woefully lost the battle in his power base. Italians completely rejected him again in a recent referendum!

President Goodluck Jonathan has just won the election (fair or unfair). Most of his strong supporters would likely tell you tales like he’s humble, his one of us, he’s sincere, he’s got good plans for Nigeria, he relates directly to us on Facebook, he’s a lucky man, he’s a South South man and they hardly speak of his track records despites his being in politics for over 12 years.

On his part also, he has told us many times his story of not having shoes while growing up; he often reminds the people how he never thought he would get to where he is today; he routinely reminds his followers on Facebook his policy of saying little and doing much while always ending that he would always fight for our interests and never disappoint us. No week goes by without telling us his plan to fight corruption. Before the elections, he would often tell us how he planned to deliver free and fair election. All these sweet talks have endeared the president to the hearts of not a few Nigerians.

Even though his slogan is saying little and doing much, President Jonathan never said little, he was always saying much and more often than not, what Nigerians love to hear.

His electioneering campaigns were full of promises as detailed by the veteran journalist, Sonala Olumhense in his article ‘Non-governing Governance: A Mountain Of Promises.’ The campaign promises were so many such that if the president can fulfil only 20% of them, posterity will judge him as one of the best presidents of our time.

In reality, President Jonathan has done little while saying much. He has spoken and broken too many promises. For the sake of space, I would like to look at only two of his unfulfilled promises in the power sector here:

As the Vice President to the late President Umaru Yar’Adua who was as at that time AWOL, and while directly supervising the energy sector then, Dr. Jonathan, while Speaking on 23 November 2009 in Kaduna at the inauguration of a production line for Peugeot 306 Sedan reiterated that Federal Government was putting necessary machinery in place to meet all its targets in the power sector, beginning with the generation and distribution of 6,000MW scheduled for December 2009 and that Nigerians would no longer need to use generators for their industrial and private power from January 2010.

About a year later, then as the substantial president following the death of Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua, his predecessor, Dr. Jonathan on 17 November 2010 while speaking in Abuja at a meeting with former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and the chief executive officer of JP Morgan Bank of the USA, Jamie Dimon announced to the nation that if his administration’s plans for the power sector are fully implemented, Nigeria should be generating enough power for use in homes, offices, and commercial enterprises by April 2011.

Nineteen months since he made the first promise and seven months after the second one and two months after the last set time for stable electricity, nothing is stable about our electricity other than stable black-outs.

While the former promise was an unconditional, the president applied a caution in the latter. He gave a condition that if his administration’s plans for the power sector were fully implemented.

I am quite sure that Nigerians would like to know if his administration’s plans for the power sector were fully implemented. If yes, why do we not have steady electricity supply as he had promised? And if no, why did he not implement his plans?

Since there was no change in the administration and the president was also directly in charge of the Ministry of Power, then, he must be totally responsible for this failure. On assuming office, first as the acting president and later as the president, Jonathan took over the Ministry of Power so that he could directly supervise his policy regarding power and as a result he had no excuse for policy implementation.

Jonathan has a history of saying something and acting another thinking Nigerians will always be gullible and support him regardless of his inadequacies or just banking on his name, Goodluck.

Before you start asking me to give him time to settle down for his new term, kindly know that these promises were not premised on his new term. He knew elections would be held in April, 2011 before making his promise; he knew a new term would begin on 29 May 2011.

I know you’d say Jonathan didn’t start Nigeria’s power problems. Yes! He didn’t. He campaigned and promised to solve the problems, he made ‘unforced’ promises to solve them and we elected him to solve the problems.

Let the president capitalize on the goodwill that he is enjoying while it lasts. Let him walk his talk on electricity so that his name will be engraved in gold when the true history of Nigeria is written.

We are not asking for too much. Just gives us light and we’ll take it up from there. Nigerians are creative, hardworking and ingenious people but without light, little can be achieved. If he fails to do this, he might be causing some who had had shoes while growing up to lose them as adults and by that time Nigerians will have no choice but to treat him the way Italians treat Mr. Silvio Berlusconi.

God Bless Nigeria!

Rufus Kayode Oteniya Writes! – oteniyark@hotmail.com

+2348166870008 (SMS Only)

2015: MEND Endorses Buhari.

 
General Mohammadu Buhari

By Segun James in Yenagoa.

Dreaded militia group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has endorsed the candidature of the All Progressive Congress (APC), General Mohammadu Buhari as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

MEND insisted that Buhari is the right man for the job to revamp the failing state of the country.

The MEND,in a statement issued on Tuesday via e-mail and signed by its spokesman, Gbomo Jomo, said the decision to throw the full support of the group behind General Mohammadu Buhari stems from the pathetic state in which the country has been put by the government of Goodluck Jonathan.

"President Jonathan, since assuming his office, has set up countless number of “committees”, none of which their report has ever been implemented. From the Nuhu Ribadu report to the KPMG and Fuel Subsidy reports, just to mention a few.
How can Nigerians expect a highly corrupt person like Goodluck Jonathan to fight corruption when he believes that “stealing is not corruption”, as he shamelessly told the nation? He has proven beyond all reasonable doubt, his inability to tackle corruption or prosecute a single government official in his six (6) years in office.

"MEND finds it laughable the recent statement by Goodluck Jonathan on his governments plan to fight corruption. This statement not only smacks of ignorance to the highest order, but also shows just how stupid he thinks Nigerians are. A president that had six years to tackle the problem but chose to shield corrupt government officials, joined in the looting of our resources and now has the temerity to say his government “has a plan” to fight corruption. This is a big slap in the face of every single Nigerian!"

www.thisdaylive.com/articles/2015-mend-endorses-buhari-/198522/

THE NEXT VICE PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA PROF. YEMI OSIBAJO.

Prof. Yemi Osibajo

Professor Yemi Osinbajo is a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Senior Partner in the Law firm of SimmonsCooper Partners. Yemi Osibanjo is a professor of law and was the head of department of Public Law at the University of Lagos (1997-1999).

His tertiary education was at the University of Lagos and the London School of Economics and Political Science obtaining the LLB and LLM degrees respectively.

Previously served as the Special Adviser to the Attorney General of Nigeria (1988-1992), he later became the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Lagos State in 1999 reappointed for a second term in 2003. During the period of his public service, he commenced the Lagos State justice reform project. A prominent feature of that project was the establishment of the Directorate for Citizens’ Rights (DCR) which provides free legal services and legal representation to indigent citizens of the state. This initiative gave a voice to many who would otherwise not have a way to access their rights.

Prior to that appointment, Osinbajo, a Professor of Law, was the Head of Public Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos.

He is also the Ethics Adviser to the Advisory Board of the African Development Bank and is a non-executive Director of Citibank. He has served in various roles within the United Nations, United Nations Centre on Transnational Corporations, the United Nations African Institute for Crime Prevention, the International Criminal court for Rwanda in Arusha, Tanzania, the department of Peacekeeping operations and the United Nations Peace Operations in Somalia.

Prof. Osibajo is Co-founder & Board Member Convention on Business Integrity and the Justice Research Institute Ltd. In 2007, Prof. and his wife Oludolapo founded “The Orderly Society Trust”, a non-governmental organization that is dedicated to the promotion of Christian ethics and orderliness.

Professor Osibajo has authored, co-authored and edited several books and publications including “The Unification and Reform of the Nigerian Criminal Law and Procedure Codes” ; “Law Development and Administration”; “The Annotated Civil Procedure rules of The Superior Courts in Nigeria”; and “Cross Examination: A Trial Lawyer’s Most Potent Weapon”.

He also pastors at Olive Tree House of Prayer for All Nations, Banana Island, a parish of the Redeemed Christian Church of God and lives in Lagos with his wife and three children.

He will be speaking at the Platform.

Monday Midnite--MY NAME IS GEJ

Folks, here's a telling YouTube clip of the first single (MY NAME IS GEJ) from my current anti-corruption, anti-bad government album "AZZHOLES ROCK."

After watching this clip, I'm sure GEJ's attack dog (OKUPE) will be gearing up to "forcefully train" me. LOL!!!

Anyhow, for the benefit of those who don't know, GEJ stands for Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, and he's the current President of Nigeria.

In his 2011 presidential bid, he bamboozled the masses with 

his claim that he had no shoes, no school bag, and that he 

carried his books in his hands during his school days, 

thereby winning the sympathy of most people as one who 

understands their predicaments...having been through hard 

times himself.

However, after four years at the helm, he's proven to be 

anything but. As a matter fact, his administration will go 

down in history as the most inept, incompetent, rudderless, 

corrupt and clueless democratically elected government in 

Nigeria till date.

His most famous quote is "I don't give a damn," and it 

features prominently in the song and clip ... coz GEJ truly 

doesn't give a damn about the well-being of Nigerians who 

are not members of his family or his corrupt and looting 

clique.

His candid mindset is uninhibitedly unveiled in this rap song. 

I wrote it as if he's rapping the story himself.

Folks, the 2015 presidential election is upon us, and GEJ is 

hoping to capitalize on the gullibility of most Nigerians and 

con his way back to the presidency. Please, don't let him 

bamboozle you again. The time has come to shut him out of 

Nigeria's highest office and any other governmental position 

forever.

Jonathan Orders Removal Of Offensive Bring Back Jonathan Posters

| SEPTEMBER 10, 2014 - 12:22PM | BY ELIZABETH EMBU

President Goodluck  Jonathan has directed that the #Bring Back Jonathan 2015 signs and banners around Abuja which he and many

Nigerians find offensive and repugnant be brought down immediately.

According to a statement by the Presidential Media Aide, Reuben Abati, the 

President "wholly shares the widely expressed view that the signs which were put up without his knowledge or approval are a highly insensitive parody of the #Bring Back Our Girls hashtag".

The statement added that "While President Jonathan appreciates the enthusiastic show of support for his administration by a broad range of stakeholders, he condemns the #Bring Back Jonathan 2015 signs which appear to make light of the very serious national and global concern for the abducted Chibok girls.

http://www.dailytimes.com.ng/article/jonathan-orders-removal-offensive-bring-back-jonathan-posters

GEJ HAS SHAMELESSLY HIJACKED THE #BringBackTheGirls CAMPAIGN.

 It was the social media campaign of the year. #BringBackOurGirls awoke the world to the ravages of Boko Haram, an al-Qaeda-linked terror group in Nigeria, and the plight of the millions of people who live in the midst of their insurgency. At the heart of the message were hundreds of missing schoolgirls, abducted in April from the remote village of Chibok by Boko Haram fighters, who vowed to make them into slaves. The #BringBackOurGirls hashtag channeled both sympathy from abroad and local outrage and concern in Nigeria, with many angry at the government of President Goodluck Jonathan for being unable to free the captured women.

But four months later, the girls have yet to be brought back despite the efforts of the Nigerian military as well as U.S. counter-terrorism forces deployed in neighboring Chad. More than 200 girls remain missing in suspected Boko Haram captivity. Others have perished from snakebite, illness and deprivation in the wild.

Boko Haram itself has continued its slaughter this summer, and seized more territory in the country's restive northeast. Over the weekend, itstormed towns along Nigeria's border with Cameroon, killing dozens of innocents.

Nigerian forces are now fighting Boko Haram in pitched battles around Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, the main hotbed of Boko Haram's operations. The U.N. reports that at least 1.5 million people have been displaced by the conflict since Jonathan's government declared a state of emergency in May.

But the gravity of the moment hasn't stopped some in Nigeria from appropriating the tragic hashtag for rather cynical purposes. Banners emerged in the capital Abuja over the weekend showing Jonathan alongside a new slogan: #BringBackGoodluck2015. The campaign appears to be the work of supporters of the president, keen for his reelection in presidential polls next February. It's not clear whether Jonathan has officially endorsed the new hashtag, but its seeming ubiquity suggests that he is not opposed to it.

The backlash in Nigeria, at least on Twitter, has been swift.

While #BringBackOurGirls was just a brief cause celebre in the West — a passing moment to get morally exercised and then move on — it had a deeper meaning in Nigeria. It echoed the larger frustrations of a society that has little faith in its political leadership, is fed up with endemic corruption and wants genuine reform and better governance. Jonathanblamed activists espousing the hashtag for "politicizing" the crisis.

Boko Haram is a fanatical, murderous outfit, but its insurgency gained sway in a region that has been historically marginalized and neglected by Nigeria's central government. Jonathan's seeming indifference toward the missing girls hardly helped. In the early stages of the protests, his wife even reportedly had a number of #BringBackOurGirls activists detained.

In this context, the new campaign slogan is particularly galling. Jonathan has not brought back the girls, yet his campaign expects Nigeria to bring him back to power. One wonders if it will spawn more rich satire among Nigerians on social media. After all, there's plenty of precedent.

Ishaan Tharoor writes about foreign affairs for The Washington Post. He previously was a senior editor at TIME, based first in Hong Kong and later in New York.

Why Mandela Was Angry With Nigeria By Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed

"It is better to help a friend pay his fine,than tell a lie to help him cover a crime."  - Nigerian proverb.

It was literally a life-long ambition, and I used every opportunity to meet the old man in person. I was finally in a position to press buttons and call old friends to render favours, and in early 2007 I succeeded. I was told I could see Mandela for only 30 minutes at his home, but I needed to get there one hour earlier. Colleagues I had leaned on were skeptical that I would see him despite the appointment, particularly since I will not say it was official. An old South African friend and course mate from South Africa who helped, suggested I asked questions or matters I wanted to discuss with him and send them in advance. I did not think that was the type of meeting I wanted, so I did not.

Mandela was surprised when he was told I worked at the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but had spent 6 months trying to see him to pay my personal respects. Why did you not go through your colleagues here? I told him the visit was not official. I just wanted to meet him. He relaxed and apologized that it had taken that long for me to see him. Others left us, except a lady who sat discreetly away from us. I thought she was a medical person.

How are my Nigerian brothers and sisters? He asked me. He will not let me take the initiative. 'You know I am not very happy with Nigeria. I have made that very clear on many occasions'. Now I was curious. I knew of course that he led our suspension from the Commonwealth after the hanging of the late Ken Saro-Wiwa and his Ogoni compatriots. It was also no secret that South African governments including one he headed had considerably cooled off towards Nigeria, and by the time I was meeting him, Nigeria was a dirty word in most cities in South Africa. I mentioned that Nigerian people had very strong and positive dispositions towards South Africa and the Southern African region, and many were puzzled that people who marched all the way with South Africans can be despised by the governments and people of South Africa. Yes, he responded. Nigeria stood by us more than any nation, but you let yourselves down and Africa and the black race very badly.

I knew I was going to get a lecture, so I sat back. He spoke with passion and anger at a nation which has one-quarter of the black race, and had everything needed to be great, but is known principally for its dictators and its criminals. Your country, he said, used to be respected. After your suspension from the Commonwealth, many western countries approached me to help in isolating Nigeria so that it will be easier to bring down your military dictators. I consulted many African leaders, and all were unanimous in their advice. They told me to stay clear of Nigeria. That you will fix your problems. You have done it before. ‘But’, he shook his head, 'you have not.Not this time'. The world will not respect Africa until Nigeria earns that respect. The black people of the world need Nigeria to be great as a source of pride and confidence. Nigerians love freedom and hate oppression.Why do you do it to yourselves? He remembered Tafawa Balewa, the first leader who gave his party, ANC, financial contribution.

I saw an opening here. I suggested that all Africans are bitter at their leaders. With due respect, I  said, his presidency had not changed lives of black South Africans much, and his successors are not likely to do so. Yes, he agreed,' but we raised hopes that others can do so. ‘He was back to Nigeria. 'Your leaders have no respect for their people. They believe that their personal interests are the interests of the people. They take people's resources and turn it into personal wealth. There is a level of poverty in Nigeria that should be unacceptable. I cannot understand why Nigerians are not more angry than they are', he continued.

Since it was obvious that he was intent on pouring his heart out, I decided to let him speak. 'What do young Nigerians think about your leaders and their country and Africa? Do you teach them history? Do you have lessons on how your past leaders stood by us and gave us large amounts of money? You know I hear from Angolans and Mozambicans and Zimbabweans how your people opened their hearts and their homes to them. I was in prison then, but we know how your leaders punished western companies who supported Apartheid’. I reminded him that we had elected governments since 1999, and he knew some of our leaders in person. Yes, he did. 'But what about the corruption and the crimes?' he asked?  'Your elections are like wars'. Now we hear that you cannot be president in Nigeria unless you are Muslim or Christian. Some people tell me your country may break up. Please don’t let it happen'.

He sat back. I obviously got a lot more than I bargained for. Then he mellowed down, and apologized. He had not even asked me what I wanted to see him for, and he was tearing at my country. It was fine, I assured him. I merely wanted to meet him and pay my respects. He then asked me a lot of personal questions, and in particular what I was doing personally to improve the capacity of the Nigerian people to build the nation to be a source of pride and comfort for Nigerians, Africa and the black race. But he was in a lecturing mood.

'Let me tell you what I think you need to do' he said. 'You should encourage leaders to emerge who will not confuse public office with sources of making personal wealth. Corrupt people do not make good leaders. Then you have to spend a lot of your resources for education. Educate children of the poor, so that they can get out of poverty. Poverty does not breed confidence. Only confident people can bring changes. Poor, uneducated people can also bring change, but it will be hijacked by the educated and the wealthy'.

'Like South Africa today, sir', I quipped. He paused. 'It will be difficult for the world to understand that it will take generations to eliminate the structural roots and effects of Apartheid.' 'But', I drove the point home, 'You created the impression that the political compromises and concessions you made would lead to a dramatic change in the fortunes of black people'. 'Drammatic?' he asked. 'In many ways we achieved dramatic results'.' Like in sports', I pressed further. 'Sports is important to South Africans. It gave them confidence to believe things are possible. And it united them”. 'But sir, it created a false sense of progress, and people here think it is all a gimmick by white people to create a diversion'.' It is not a diversion, he countered. It is real. South Africans will have to come to terms with the reality that their country is a multi-racial, multi-cultural nation with rich and poor. Any efforts to reduce the gulf between  the races and classes is useful, he insisted.

Then he was back to Nigeria. People had said to him that South Africa could become an alternative beacon of hope and inspiration for the black race and Africa. He told them it was always going to be Nigeria. Nigeria, Egypt and South Africa can provide a tripod for real change but young Africans need to capture that vision. 'So', he said to me, 'If this audience has been useful, I am glad. But it will be more useful to me if you go back to Nigeria and work to give young Nigerians good education. Teach them the value of hard work and sacrifice, and discourage them from crimes which are destroying your image as a good people.'

I have re-lived that rare opportunity many times since that visit. The 30-minute audience lasted for one hour, and I was escorted out by a man I saw close up as human as anyone. I had rarely come across such candour about my country, but it was clearly the product of genuine concern that one of Africa’s greatest assets was being frittered away.

As he shook my hand to say goodbye, he apologized again over his comments, but assured me that he would love to see Nigeria grow and develop into a world economic power under a democratic system. If there is any comfort to draw from Mandela’s disappointment, it will be that he may not have observed our free-fall as a nation in the last five years.

http://saharareporters.com/2013/12/09/mandela-was-angry-nigeria-dr-hakeem-baba-ahmed

Nadine Gordimer, South African author, dies at 90

 Nadine Gordimer and Nelson Mandela were close friends

South African Nobel Prize-winning author Nadine Gordimer has died in Johannesburg aged 90.

The writer, who was one of the literary world's most powerful voices against apartheid - died at her home after a short illness, her family said.

She wrote more than 30 books, including the novels My Son's Story, Burger's Daughter and July's People.

She jointly won 1974's Booker Prize for The Conservationist and was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1991.

'She cared most deeply'

The Nobel committee said at the time it was honouring Gordimer for her "magnificent epic writing" which had been "of very great benefit to humanity".

The daughter of a Lithuanian Jewish watchmaker, she began writing from an early age. Gordimer published her first story - Come Again Tomorrow - in a Johannesburg magazine at just 15.

Her works comprised both novels and short stories where the consequences of apartheid, exile and alienation were the major themes.

Gordimer's family said she "cared most deeply about South Africa, its culture, its people, and its ongoing struggle to realise its new democracy".

Committed to fighting apartheid, the author was a leading member of the African National Congress (ANC) and fought for the release of Nelson Mandela.

Jump media player

MediaThey went on to become firm friends and she edited Mandela's famous I Am Prepared To Die speech, which he gave as a defendant during his 1962 trial.

The Nelson Mandela Foundation paid tribute to Gordimer, saying it was "deeply saddened at the loss of South Africa's grande dame of literature".

"We have lost a great writer, a patriot and strong voice for equality and democracy in the world," it added.

A number of Gordimer's books were banned by the South African government under the apartheid regime including 1966's The Late Bourgeois World and 1979's Burger's Daughter.

Her last novel, No Time Like the Present, published in 2012, follows veterans of the battle against apartheid as they deal with the issues facing modern South Africa.

Despite her hatred of apartheid, the author was proud of her heritage and said she only considered emigrating once - to nearby Zambia.

"Then I discovered the truth, which was that in Zambia I was regarded by black friends as a European, a stranger," she said.

"It is only here that I can be what I am: a white African."

The author featured on the 1981 BBC series Writers And Places, narrated by authors about places which are important in their work and lives. Gordimer's film focussed on Johannesburg

In her later years, Gordimer became a vocal campaigner in the HIV/Aids movement, lobbying and fund-raising on behalf of the Treatment Action Campaign, a group pushing for the South African Government to provide free, life-saving drugs to sufferers.

She was also critical of South African President Jacob Zuma, expressing her opposition to a proposed law which would limit the publication of information deemed sensitive by the government.

"The reintroduction of censorship is unthinkable when you think how people suffered to get rid of censorship in all its forms," she said in an interview last month.

The ANC said it sent its "heartfelt condolences" to Gordimer's family.

"Our country has lost an unmatched literary giant whose life's work was our mirror and an unending quest for humanity," it said.

Paying tribute on Twitter, Canadian author and fellow Booker Prize winner Margaret Atwood said: "Very sorry to hear that Nadine Gordimer has died. One of the greats, and a fearless spokesperson for human rights."

Gordimer's family said a private memorial service would be announced at a later date.

She is survived by two children.

http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-28295542