Friday, February 10, 2006

Perpetually closing down sales, a diary discovered & kudos and a plea to Obasanjo

Today it's freezing but bright, sunny, crisp and clear- the kind of day that still fascinates me- I suppose because I grew up in the tropics- associating sunlight with heat....

Last weekend, walking down bustling Oxford Street, I walked past a shop with huge red signs plastered all over its front windows -proclaiming "Closing Down Sale- Everything Must Go" Fantastic bargain you'd think, except that I could have sworn that that shop has been closing down ever since I arrived on these shores a couple of years ago. The owners certainly seem to be taking their time with the closing down- judging by the tackiness of the merchandise, perhaps even with the sale, they're finding it difficult to shift the goods. Or perhaps, as is more likely it's a form of English 419 to hoodwink the gullible tourists searching for a bargain.....

I've stumbled across the online diary of a young Nigerian woman professional living in the US . http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/content/blogcategory/0/135/ It's incredibly frank and honest, if true; and if it's fiction, then that girl better start looking for a publisher.....

On the Nigerian front- since too often people like me are criticized for seeing nothing good in the government- kudos to President Obasanjo on the recent appointment of the eighth female minister into his cabinet. As far as I can remember this is probably the largest number of female ministers in the Nigerian federal cabinet at the same time, and they are certainly making their mark- most of them.......Now if only Mr President would follow Thabo Mbeki's example and announce loud and clear that he's not interested in a third term, instead of this Abacha-like read-my- lips stance that he's adopting at the moment that'd be great; The current situation where the sycophants around ask him to stay on forever and he, like Abacha before him maintains a deafening silence is unhealthy. If only he'd speak out, it would let everyone concentrate on weightier matters, like bird flu.....

3 comments:

Pilgrimage to Self said...

What a coincidence.A friend of mine just referred me last week to the Soul Sista blog on Nigeria Market Square. Also check out the Nigeria International live stream on NMS as well.

Ore said...

Damn! I think I might know that store that you are referring to and I haven't lived in London for several years now.

Anthony Arojojoye said...

Obasanjo just did. Now you all know his stand. Then comes the hot pursuit of Aso rock which will be vacant.