For the last 50 years, the progressive forces in Africa and friends of Africa all over the world have, at any given opportunity, raised the above clarion call for all forces that are willing and prepared to move Africa forward. In the first 10 days of 2013, the signals and trends coming from Africa is both alarming and disgraceful. Problems confronting Africa as a continent such as economic stagnation, civil wars, religious and ethnic conflicts, foreign debt, starvation and diseases are increasing daily.

Often it seems that we humans never appreciate where our attempt to employ our individual or group comparative cost advantage to exploit others especially the weaker ones. Many decades after the first attempt by mankind to see how best the use of outer space can serve the communication need by first attempt by Sputnik in 1957 by the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republic, USSR, over 75 percent of people from the developing countries especially Africa is still a mere consumer of the commodity of internet.

When the federal government carried out a comprehensive reshuffle on the upper cheron of its security organs many Nigerians thought that the Boko Haram menace was reaching its final days. From official quarters, we were assured that peace is around the corner and the days of reconstruction and rebuilding of our country were about to begin. Again we were told by the powers that be that before Sallah, which is the Muslim festival, just celebrated last week that the long awaited peace would come.

 
During the contest for the chairmanship position of the African Union, AU, Commission, Nigeria’s foreign minister, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru said that the country would be on the same page with Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS which backed the former chairperson of the commission, Dr. Jean Ping of Gabon who was challenged by South Africa’s Nkosazana Dlamini. ECOWAS and Nigeria did everything possible to ensure that Dr. Jean Ping got elected but unfortunately he failed to clinch the position.

In the world where we live they are many countries. There are big countries that have population that run into billions like china and India and also many countries that are made up of small population like Gambia and Madagascar existing in the same world. In a setup like Nigeria, big nationalities, Like Hausa/Fulani, Igbo and Yoruba live side by side with some tribes less than 50,000 people without written dialect or vernacular of their own. 

The recent military coups in Mali and Guinea Bissau represent many steps background, in African quest for genuine democracy and rapid development. The military coup leaders in Africa create more problems than the ones they try to solve. They end up making fake promises that increase people’s misery at the end of their regime. 

The great people of Nigeria have a very old and rich tradition of mutual relationship with some countries of Middle East like Syria, Libya and Lebanon. In fact, there are some shops, schools and cultural centers managed and controlled by citizens of these countries in Nigeria. What is more; many citizens of these countries through their admirations of our ways of life have adopted Nigerian citizenship. That is why it is very wise and logical to watch with close attention and interests, social and political process in these countries.

President Goodluck Jonathan after months of dilly dallying did the needful by striking the police high command with a shakeup many Nigerians see as overdue. Consequently, former Inspector General of Police, IGP, Hafitz Ringim, and his deputies were relieved from office. Mr. President yielded to public pressure which greeted Ringim’s inglorious tenure.