The Centenary

The ongoing celebration of Nigeria’s centenary by the government of Nigeria under President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has been generating much controversies. While the government and its ardent supporters see it as an anniversary totally worthy of celebration, the army of detractors have been up in arms pillorying our beloved president and his administration for rolling out the drums and painting the city of Abuja red in conviviality while some other parts of the country are dripping in the precious blood of innocent souls being bombed out of existence or murdered in cold blood through the most heinous methods that can ever be imagined by the invincible and invisible Boko Haram.
The ever implacable critics of our ever lucky chief of state have also denigrated the list of the centenary honourees, maliciously nitpicking about such choices as as that of erstwhile butcher, sorry for the slip, rather lord of Aso Rock, military strongman, Sanni Abacha, whom the government decided to honour for his economic wizardry.
And regarding the case of the scions of a number of post humous honourees rejecting the awards bestowed on their progenitors, we can only advise them to be more patriotic.
And for those who are accusing the government of exhibiting colonial mentality by celebrating a past that is best forgotten and honouring our ancient oppressors, we say they need to think a little smarter. Would they have had a country called Nigeria if not for the ingenuity of our selfless colonial masters?
Some might for ever choose to see it as a contraption based on the whimsical fancy of Lord Lugard and his imperial consort, and rather prefer to have their Benin, Kanem Bornu and Oyo Empires or Sokoto Caliphate still intact. Well, we wish them good luck. That phrase again!
And for those busy bodies who have singled out our venerable Baba Iyabo, the General of Generals and President of Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo for genuflecting most piously to his protege, Goodluck Jonathan, during the assemblage of the country’s still living chiefs of state during the centenary bash, we dare say they are seeing mischief where there is none. These mischief makers are telling Jonathan to be wary of the ides of the centenary, as Baba Iyabo is never to be taken at face value.

While we are still talking about the centenary affairs, we would like to have your comments on these. We would also like to have your own list of Nigerian personalities, living or dead, whom you think deserve to be honoured or dishonoured for their heroism or villainy.