I STEP ASIDE.

I STEP ASIDE.

                         

''I step aside'', said the Evil Genius in the period when his governance had lacked legitimacy and popular recognition. The administration in which the masses had a high hope for. The expected messiah and deliverer of the commoner from abject poverty and excruciating sufferings of all manners. The much awaited changer. The propitiator. The parakletoe. The man of the people. The friend of all. The cynosure of kindness,care, softness, goodness and love. 

Indeed he came to power like David. Everyone was happy and no one was proud. The much awaited for. The commoners deliverer came and everyone was in euphoria and ecstacy. 

"He's here to solve all the fundamental problems of this country all at once. He's capable and ept. He is a graduate of Problems Solving. He's learned, experienced,well traveled and well trained. He graduated from the renown enviable and state of the art university. He can do it all alone. Thank God he's here. Rejoice! Rejoice! Oh ye commoners and the less privileged. For your sufferings have come to an abrupt end. "  

The above are the  propagandists'  words of exultation and salutation for the man of the people as Squealer does for Napoleon in Animal Farm.  Finally, the much awaited-for messiah and deliverer of the masses came to power. Smiling and waving hands to the people during his inauguration. The man of the people indeed. 

After donkey's ears in office, nothing changed. The sun  still rises from the East and sets in the West.Nothing changed. The conditions and living standard of the commoners were still the same. They still wallowed in abject poverty and sufferings as pigs wallow in the mud with ecstacy and heart of joy and fulfillment. Inspite of nothing changing for the good of the commoners, their hope was still high like mount Everest and hard like mustard seed. All hope not lost. They still paraded their much awaited messiah with utmost importance. Squealers at work, propaganda everywhere. 

 "He will still revolve everything. Things will still be better. Let's give him more time. Don't you know that those who are patient will eat the elephant meat. Let's continue to hope and pray for him."  The above are the courageous and hopeful words of the propagandists. Squealers at work, propaganda everywhere.

After several years in governance, the much awaited messiah of the commoners realized that uneasy lies on the head of whom who wears the crown. Although, he had good and godly intentions and plans for the commoners and everyone at large but a single tree doesn't make a forest. Governing a country like his required more eligible and godly hands and brains along with divine intervention to succeed. But in order not to truncate the commoners' faith in him, he did his best to placate their conditions a bit by making sure the commoners didn't die of false hope. 

With the passage of time, his tenure came to an end, the much awaited deliverer openly confessed the situation of the country to the people. 

He said, 

"Better a true slap than a false kiss. I'm really indebited to the commoners of this country who put much hope and faith in me. I'm sorry I couldn't help the nation's situation. I'm inept. I have disappointed the people of this country. I'm sorry! This country is really in a big mess. The national treasure is depleted. This country has suffered from the hands of selfish, rapacious, inept and evil leaders both past and present. We keep on celebrating independence in absolute dependence and servitude. No sector in this country is developing and effective. They are all starked with corrupt, inept and egocentric individuals, who know nothing but their pockets. 

The only solution to this country fundamental problem is having a leader chosen by God and popularly elected by the people. All lizards lay down their stomachs, it's hard to tell which one suffers from stomachache. But...I have faith in this country's ability to overcome all her obstacles. No matter what confronts her. Let all the citizens of this country use the election period for changing the country for better. 

Moreover, I step aside for the commoners to decide their fate once again. Vote wisely for the betterment of this great nation. 

I step aside. "

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IT IS WELL, THE NOTION OF FAITHFUL NIGERIANS.

 IT IS WELL, THE NOTION OF FAITHFUL NIGERIANS.

Have you heard of anyone saying ‘it is well’ to everything that happen and in all circumstances? These set of people are called the faithful people. They always have the notion that everything is well even in the well. Also, they believe in the possibility of things turning around for good. The faithful people.  In all situations of life, the faithful people are fond of saying, “it is well”. Bounty harvest, it is well .In state of sufficiency and abundance, it is well. In state of confusion and dilemma, it is well.  No money, it is well. No food, it’s well. No shelter, it’s well. No security, it is well. Bad road, it is well. Bad government, it’s well. Dying economy, it’s well. Incessant industrial strike, it is well .Incessant killing and kidnapping, it’s well.

 I think this can be extrapolated to the current state of failing nation of Nigeria. Despite the obvious dilapidated state of Nigeria, some Nigerians are of the notion that all is well. These are the set of Nigerians I refer to as faithful Nigerians. In all circumstances, their motion is, ‘it is well,’ when in actuality, it is far from being well. 

Going through the Christian Holy Book, the Bible, I found a revelationary story of the Shunamite woman in 2Kings 4:12-30. This story is a replica of the faithful Nigeria. The summary of the story is, there was once a Shunamite woman who helped Prophet Elisha by providing him accommodation and food. In return of this good gesture, the prophet blessed the woman with the fruit of the womb. True to the word of God, the woman gave birth to a bouncing baby boy. With the passage of time, the child died. What a vicissitude of life! The Shunamite woman and her husband were in deep sorrow.  The woman took the dead child to the prophet, on her way, she met Gehazi, the servant of the prophet, and he asked her, “Is it well?” The engrieved woman replied, ‘it is well’. This is shocking and surprising.  You just lost your only child and you are asked, ‘is it well?’ you replied “It is well”. A faithful woman. She believed in the possibility of things turning around for her good again. ‘My only child is not dead. He is alive.’These are the faithful words of the Shunamite woman.  

The above biblical story is quintessential of the faithful Nigerians. To be candid, the faithful Nigerians are aware of the failing state of Nigeria’s nation. No security, dying economy, glorification of theft and corruption, bad leadership etc. But they still say, It is well. What is well in this failing nation? Don’t bother to answer the question. They are faithful Nigerian. A mustard seed faith. They believe in the possibility of things turning for the good of Nigeria. I suggest the so called faithful Nigerians should think out of the box and work towards the turning around of Nigeria.  Drastic and pragramatic steps should be taken to realise their faith in Nigeria’s failing condition. After all, faith without work is vain. Pray for the good governance of Nigeria, for they that pray and take actions by getting their PVC and voting shall enjoy at the end.

For the realization of the possibility of change in Nigeria, people should rise up, get enlightened and sensitised about Nigeria politics, get politicised, get your PVC, vote your desirable candidate and pray for good leader. For all to be actually well with Nigeria, decisive and pragmatic actions have to be taken. In the above biblical story, for the faith of the Shunamite woman to be realized, she took decisive and pragmatic step by going faithfully to the one she believed was capable of restoring the life of her dead child. The faithful Nigerians should emulate this too, by adding getting their PVC and voting. I beseech all Nigerians both the faithful (those that are fond of saying it is well) and the non-faithful should rise up and take decisive and pragmatic steps. Pray for the good governance of Nigeria, for they that pray and work towards it shall enjoy at the end.

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Public Speaking:Comparison for Clearness.

Public Speaking:Comparison to promote Clearness.

 Clearness is sacrosanct in public speaking and cannot be do away with. And to achieve this, the comparison is a foolproof device to use. Similar things are compared together  says a Yoruba proverb. The use of comparison helps a lot in the achievement of clearness in public speech making. It boosts the clarity of an idea.  Dale Carnegie has this to say in his book entitled Public Speaking:

As to clearness: do not underestimate the importance of it or the difficulty. I once heard a certain Irish poet give an evening of reading from his poems. Not ten percent of the audience, half the time, knew what he was talking about. Many talkers, both in public and private, are a lot like that. 

When I discussed the essentials of public speaking with  Sir Oliver Lodge, a man who had been lecturing to university classes and to the public for forty years, he emphasized most of all the importance, first, of knowledge and preparation; second, of " taking good pains to be clear". 

>General Von Moltke, at the outbreak of the Franco-Prussia war, said to his officers:" Remember, gentlemen, that any order that can be misunderstood, will be misunderstood."

Napoleon recognized the same danger. His most emphatic and oft-reiterated instruction to his secretaries was: "Be clear! Be clear!" 

And when you talk on a subject strange to your hearer or hearers, can you hope that they will understand you any more readily than people understood the Master? Hardly. So what can we do about it? What did he do when confronted with a similar situation? Solved it most simply and naturally imaginable: described the things people did not know by likening them to things they did know. The kingdom of Heaven...what would it be like? How could those untutored peasants of Palestine know? So Christ described it in terms of objects and actions with which they were already familiar:The kingdom of Heaven is likened unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. Again, the kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea...

That was lucid; they could understand that. The housewives in the audience were using leaven every week; the fishermen were casting their nets into the sea daily; the merchants were dealing in pearls. 

And how did David make clear the watchfulness and loving-kindness of Jehovah?

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures, He leadeth me beside the still waters...

Green grazing grounds in that almost barren country... still waters where the sheep could drink- those pastoral people could understand that. 

Here is a rather striking and half- amusing example of the use of this principle: some missionaries were translating the Bible into the dialect of a tribe living near-equatorial Africa. They progressed to the verse: "Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. "  How were they to translate that? Literally? Meaningless. Absurd. The natives had never shoveled snow away on a February morning. They did not even have a word for snow. They could not have told the difference between snow and coal tar; but they had climbed coconut trees many times and shaken down a few nuts; so the missionaries likened the unknown to the known and changed the verse to read: "Though your sins are as scarlet, they shall be as white as the meat of a coconut."Under the cicircularces, it would be hard to improve on that, wouldn't it? 

An excerpt from Dale Carnegie tells you how to develop self-confidence and influence people by Public Speaking. 

Be clear! Be clear!

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RETHINK: LEARNING FROM THE MOSQUITOES

 RETHINK: LEARNING FROM THE MOSQUITOES 

What do they think?

I wonder.

Sucking blood now and then

Ever since I was small

Or even to be born 

They only have one food, sucking blood.

Don’t they think of another food?

Being killed on sight

Being killed during sucking

Being killed after sucking

Don’t they think?

Think of a new medium of survival. 

  

                              COMMENTARY

I wrote this short poem in 2020 during the 9-month ASUU strike. On that particular day, around 10 pm or thereafter, I was about to start my marathon reading from 10 pm-7 am, and these mosquitoes just came buzzing all around disturbing me. As I was trying to get rid of them, I just found myself meditating over the life of the mosquitoes. I compare the life of a mosquito to a person who only bases his source of income on a single source. As the mosquito does not have any other source of food (blood) so also such a person does not.

This is not good enough as the present situation of things requires diverse sources of income for a person. The government workers may seem to be exempted from this because of the rigid government rule but there is a way out. They can invest part of their salary in shareholding companies or banks where such investment will be yielding interest for them. The tycoons too can diversify their sources of income to various money-making areas. Students are not exempted from this. Although the education system of Nigeria does not give room for work and earning while studying scheme. But students can learn various digital skills such as; Graphics design, copywriting, Content Creating, Video Animation, blogging, etc., and earn from it. The most important thing about all these digital skills is that they are not time-consuming, easy to learn, and accessible online to learn for free. 

 

This is just a piece of advice for everyone. Let us plan for our future and be self-reliant and independentt.

 I stand to accept all errors committed in the course of writing the poem.   

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Hospitality:The virtue of Abraham and Lot

HOSPITALITY: THE VIRTUE OF ABRAHAM AND LOT.

‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.’ Hebrew13:2 (KJV). 

Sometimes ago, I was in a Bible Study Class. I can’t remember the topic for discussion again but I remember that it had to do with Abraham and Lot. People were making comment about Abraham and Lot in regards to what happened in Genesis 13 where the two parted because of strive between their herdsmen (Genesis13:7-8). People’s comment was that Lot was selfish and greedy. He should have allowed his uncle to choose first as courtesy demands and also due to his covetousness he chose the plain of Jordan because it was good leaving his uncle with Jordan (Genesis13:10). As the discussion was going on, I observed a virtue to learn and emulate from Abraham and Lot. The virtue of hospitality.  

In Genesis Chapter 18, the Bible recorded that Abraham, the father of faith, saw two men (Genesis18:2-3) After receiving the two stranger into his house, he gave them water to wash their feet as it was their custom and a morsel of bread (Genesis18:4-7). Abraham gave shelter and food to total strangers. This is an exemplary of hospitality ever recorded in the Bible. Unknown to Abraham that they were the angels of the Lord. After this show of uncommon hospitality, Abraham was rewarded handsomely. His wife Sarah was blessed with the fruit of the womb, (vs10), Abraham was able to know the secret of the Lord (vs17) and blessed by God (vs18). Abraham was indeed a man of hospitality and he reaped the fruits of it. 

Also, in Genesis Chapter 19, Lot the nephew of Abraham exhibited the same virtue.  According to the chapter above, Lot sat at the gate of Sodom and he saw two angels. He went to meet them. He offered them shelter, food and protection. This is great and wonderful. What then did he gain in return for this good gesture? He and his family were saved from the gruesome destruction of the city of Sodom and Gomorrah. Hospitality pays. 

Hospitality pays a lot as we see in the lives of Abraham and Lot. The teaching of this article is that we should be hospital and friendly to everyone. The Bible says in Hebrew 13:2 (KJV) says ‘Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.’   And also Galatians 6:9 (KJV) says, ‘and let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.’  

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NIGERIAN INVENTORS AND DISCOVERERS

NIGERIAN INVENTORS AND DISCOVERERS. 

What is a discovery?

 According to Google.com a discovery is recognizing something that has already exists for the first time that nobody has found before. E.g. how Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas.

 What is an invention?

 According to Google.com an invention is creating something totally new with one’s own ideas and development. 

 Introduction

 The history of machinery can be traced back to the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century. This event marked the drastic movement from manual labour to the use of machines. This was firstly experienced in the cotton industries when John Kay invented the Flying Shuttle in 1733 followed by others. Since then, there has been drastic advancement and development in science and technology which is making life easier and convenient for man. Although the European and American scientists and technologist seem to have a head over the rest in invention and discovery but with the passage of time, some genius African scientists and technologists have proven otherwise. This paper aims at showcasing five prominent Nigerians who had discovered one thing or invented something for the betterment of the society.

 They are:

 1. AUGUSTINE NJOKU OBI (1930-2003)

He was known for the discovery of a vaccine for Cholera in 1970.

 Augustine Njoku Obi was born in 1930 in Owerri, Imo State. He was a Nigerian professor of Virology of the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in Enugu State (UNN). He was the former president of the Nigerian Academy of Science. He was known for developing a vaccine for cholera in 1970 and approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) as efficacy in 1971. He died in 2003.

 2. DR. PHILIP EMEAGWALI

 By emulating the bee’s honeycomb construction, Emeagwali used 65,000 processors to invent the world’s fastest computer, which performs computation at 3.1 billion per second. 

Dr. Philip Emeagwali who has been called ‘the Bill Gates of Africa’ was born on August 23, 1954 in Akure, Ondo State. He was raised in Onitsha in the southern eastern part of Nigeria. His early schooling was suspended in 1967 because of the Nigerian Civil War (1967-1970). At the age of 13 he worked as a cook in the Biafra Army. However, his father continued to teach him at home, and everyday Emeagwali performed mental exercises such as solving 100 Mathematical problems in an hour. His father taught him until he ‘knew more than he did’. In 1989, Emeagwali emulating the bee’s honeycomb construction, Emeagwali used 65,000 processors to invent the world’s fastest computer, which performs computation at 3.1 billion per second. His computers are currently being used to forecast the weather and to predict the likehood and effects of future global warming. 

3. SAHEED ADEPOJU

 He is the inventor of the INYE-1&2, tablet computers designed for the African markett. 

Saheed is the co-founder of Encipher Limited, a Nigerian-based technology company that introduced the first android powered tablet into Nigeria. The INYE-1, which was unveiled in April 2010, is a 7-inch resistive screen tablet. It runs android 2.1 and allows users to connect to the internet using its inbuilt wifi card and to use an external 3G modem from GSM networks. It offers about 3 hours of battery life and allows HDMI output to HDMI capable devices. INYE-2, which was unveiled in May 2011, is an 8-inch capacitive screen tablet. It runs android 2.2 and allows users to connect to the internet using its inbuilt Wi-Fi card as well as its inbuilt SIM. It offers about 8 hours of battery life and allows users to connect to other USB devices.

 

4. COL. OVIEMO OVADJE (Rtd)

 Oviemo is a Nigerian medical doctor who is credited with the invention of Emergency Auto Transfusion System (EAT-SET), which is an effective, low cost and affordable blood auto-transfusion mechanism that saves patients in developing countries. He has patented the invention in 9 countries. 

Oviemo was born in Nigeria and hails from Delta State. He began working on the invention in 1989 with 120 dollars. In 1995, he was declared the best African scientist and founded EAT-SET industries, in April 2001. The United Nations Development programme (UNDP) and the government of Nigeria funded the EAT-SET project with the World Health Organization acting as the executing agency and providing assistance in the coordination of the projects.

 5. SEBASTINE CHINONYE OMEH

 He is the best known for his research in to the use of wind-propelled turbines to generate electricity.

 Sebastine is the Managing Director of Hybrid Micro Machine Products Limited. He is from Ogrute town in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area. Of Enugu State, Nigeria. He is a graduate of engineering from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN. Challenged by the energy crisis in Nigeria, and the need to develop indigenous technology he conducted research into the use of wind-propelled turbines to generate electricity, thereby pioneering wind energy in Nigeria. 

The above are the some of the genius inventors and discoverers in Nigeria. If you know more indicate at the comment section below. 

Reference 

• Wikipedia.com
•  Nairaland.com
• Google.com

Sanafflatus

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The Prospect of a Female President in Nigeria

Khadijah Okunu-Lamidi a female presidenttial 

Image from Google

THE PROSPECT OF A FEMALE PRESIDENT IN NIGRERIA.

According to Mary Wollstonecraft a nation is defined as a union of men and women. The upsurge of the political equality of all sexes can be traced back to the French Revolution of 1789 when the Declaration of Right of Man and Citizen was declared on August 26, 1789. But unfortunately, women were disenfranchised and excluded from holding any political office. It took the effort of Olympe de Gourge and Mary Wollstonecraft to stand up and fight a good fight of faith for the right of women. Here in Nigeria, the giant of Africa, 2022 marks the 23rd year of democracy yet the story of political marginalization of women is prevalent. There is chronic political inequality at the poll. The men have upper hand than their female counterpart in politics. The Inter- Parliamentary Union (IPU) as cited in Daily Trust ranks Nigeria at 184 out of 187 countries in the global monthly ranking of women in national parliament. This ranking is true as it is being corroborated by the number of female senators and honourables we have presently in Nigeria. The total sum of the Nigerian National Assembly is 469 out of which 21 are women legislature members; eight female senators from the Red Chamber and thirteen female honourables from the Green Chamber. Also, this is applicable in the in the House of Assemblies across Nigeria. Cross Rivers has five female honourables out of 25; Enugu, Ekiti and Ogun have four; Ebonyi, Lagos and Bayelsa have three; Akwa Ibom, Benue, and Delta have three while in the northwest it is only Kaduna state that has one female honourable.

This is the 23rd year of practising democracy in Nigeria yet the prospect of a democratically elected female governor is slim not to talk of a female president. It seems practical but unattainable due to some intricate factors. Since the start of democracy in Nigeria, women have always taken the lead in any political activity such as rallies, campaigns, political meetings and voting. 

According to Zubaida Baba Ibrahim, in the 2019 general election, there was eighty-four million accredited voters of which forty million of them were females amounting to about half of the accredited voters 47.4%.  This shows the great number of women activeness in politics. The question now is why is the political marginalization of Nigerian women rising day by day?  According to UN Women, as cited in the Daily Trust, “women face several obstacles to participating in political life. Structural barriers through discriminatory laws and institutions still limit women’s options to run for office.”  This is right and applicable to the Nigerian women problem in politics. Although section 42 of The 1999 Constitution of Federal Republic of  Nigeria frowns at discrimination but politically in reality, the reverse is the case. Of recent, there was a protest by women for the passing to law the Affirmative Action Bill by the National Assembly. The ideology of the Affirmation Action Bill is that women should have 35% slot for any political office in Nigeria. Whereas this is not the case with other African countries as they have implemented such law ago the likes of Rwanda, Namibia and South Africa had given 30% slot to their women. In Nigeria, we are still protesting and praying the legislature to pass it into law. Section 6 (5) of the PDP Constitution states that the party shall support the emancipation and participation of women by encouraging their representation at all levels while section 6 (7) is emphatic that: “In nomination for Party offices, not less than 35% shall be reserved for women.” This however, has not been the case (Daily Trust).

Image from Google

 More so, the cultural and religious factor is mountainous and demanding in limiting the political right of women in Nigeria.  In a remote Nigeria cultural and religious setting, women are excluded from decision making or suggesting decision. They are relegated to household chores and the kitchen. The political arena is only meant for the men. This is not supposed to be so. The world is changing. Our culture and religious perspective must be dynamic and accommodating to changes in the world. As Chimam Ngozi Adichie rightly said that we are in the century where what matter are the intellect, knowledge and capability of an individual and not physical strength. Had it been the world was not dynamic and receptive to changes, Amina Mohammed and Okonjo Iweala would not have been in the position they were today.  

Also, one of the important reasons for the prevalence of gender disparity in Nigeria politics is the non-charlant and lackadaisical attitude of some women in politics. They have accepted their fate that certain political offices like the president is not meant for them while the qualified ones among them see politics as a dirt game. This shouldn’t be so. Women should organise public enlightenment program that will educate and sensitise themselves about their political right. And more so, women should come out in their numbers to contest for any political office in Nigeria and they should sponsor one another for the actualization of their goal. 

The issue of female presidency is not an unprecedented event in the political history of man. It has happened in several parts of the world and it will still happen. According to Wikipedia, Vigidis Finnbogadottir of Iceland was the first woman elected president of a country who won presidential election as well as three later elections to become the longest-serving non-hereditary female head of state in history. She served for 16 years. Sirimavo Bandaronaike of Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka) was the first woman to be democratically elected as Prime Minster of a country when she led her party to victory at the general election of 1960. Coming down to Africa our motherland, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was the first female president in Africa 2006-2018. Mariada Neves was elected the Prime Minister of Sao Tome and Principe 2002-2004. Of recent, Najla Bouden became the first female Prime Minister both in Tunisia and Arab world. Sahle-Work Zewde is the current first female president of Ethiopia from 2018 till date. Also, Mrs. Samia Suluhu Hassan was elected as the first female president of Tanzania in 2019 till date. These women are not mediocre. They are making ground breaking achievements. If this happens in Nigeria, heaven will not fall. It is also attainable in Nigeria if certain things are put in place. 

Ellen Sirleaf Johnson first female President in Africa,(Liberia, 2006-2018). 
Image from Google

For the attainment and actualization of a female president and political equality of all sexes in Nigeria, the National Assembly should first and foremost pass the Affirmative Action Bill that allows 35% of slot for female in all elected offices into law.  Rwanda presently has the world’s strongest female participation in parliament out of 193 countries, boasting a 61.3 percent of seats in the country’s lower parliamentary chamber. This achievement is largely due to the country’s 2003 constitution which set a 30 percent quota for women in elected positions. From the countries constitutions, political parties had equally adopted a quota system for female candidates. Namibia seats comfortably on the 6th position while South Africa has earned the 10th position (Daily Trust). Nigeria should emulate these countries. Secondly, the Independent Electoral Commission should be empowered to ban any political party that does not adhere to the Affirmative Action Bill if passes to law. In addition, there should be continuous protest for the political equality of all sexes. The women should not be tired of this. Public enlightenment and orientation should be organised in all parts of Nigeria for the political equality of all genders.  Also, there should be reduction of price of nomination form for women. More women should contest for any political office in Nigeria even the presidential seat is not exempted.      

Conclusively, the politics of today does not value physical strength. What matter are the intellect, knowledge and capacity of an individual. Female presidency in Nigeria may seem impossible but there is much hope for its actualization in Nigeria.  

 

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