In Search of The Nelson Mandela in us*

FINAL CHAPTER IN THIS SERIES

As the call of the time, I am taking some time off from blogging to get closer to God and search for my Aisha. Be that as it may, it is not yet a final farewell from the Social Media and all that it entails.  I look forward to seeing you again in the spring of 2013, or after the inauguration. Once again, I want to thank you for making my World, your World. Indeed, I signed off once in June, 2012, but came back immediately, believing that the situation at hand requires the concerted effort of the beautify minds and those who care about the middle class. Now that the eagle has found its course and soaring higher unperturbedly, and glistening with maximum effect in the blue sky, there is reason for optimism and it’s time to take a step of faith for new challenges. However, if the situation at home or in the US calls for my intervention or input, I will not hesitate to post a comment. When I do, it will take the form of a declaration of war - a brutal take down of the intended target. And that is a promise. 

As we close this chapter, let's not forget, it takes leadership and greatness to compromise, forgive, and make peace with your enemy. 

We shouldn't forget the Camp David Accord between Egyptian President, Anwar El Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, brokered by President Jimmy Carter in 1978. No one thought it could ever happen, given the aftermath of the Six-Day War. And the 1998 Northern Ireland Peace Accord (The Good Friday Agreement) brokered by President Bill Clinton, which put to end decades of sectarian violence between the Protestant Unionists and the Roman Catholic Nationalists. Today, the neighboring countries and the people of Northern Ireland live in peace.

In similar fashion, President Nelson Mandela was locked out of civilization for the better part of his adult life by the Apartheid Government in South Africa, but when he came out, instead of demanding justice and pay back, he asked for truth and reconciliation. What a man! The World needs great men and women right now - serious thinkers and real leaders like Sadat, Mandela, and Begin - to seek consensus and restore peace to troubled spots. The U.N. General Assembly should not be avenue for harangue and showmanship, but a place for peace talk and international business deals.

On a romantic note, if Rihanna could love Chris Brown again publicly, in spite of everything, while not us. Why not you and I? Why can't we start something new? What happened to love letters of old? Where is the message in the bottle? Why can't the World start to love again? For those who found love, treasure it. For those yet to find one, don't give up on tomorrow. The World needs peace, love and understanding now. And we all do.

We are not saying goodbye to blogging because we are running out of ideas or something new to write about. We are signing off temporarily, because we have written more than the World needs to be a better place. We have written for Nigeria all that we need as a people to grow out of present impasse, corrupt practices, and nepotism. Steadfastly, we covered every daunting issue in Nigerian politics and proffered solutions as appropriate, especially on how to move Nigeria forward and become great again. We concentrate on writing about innovative policy measures that we believe are appropriate for every generation.

Granted that we are progressive-minded politically, but we never take side or dabble into any issue, domestic or international, unless we know exactly what we are talking about. In most cases, we intervene when we sense injustice in the offing or where we feel that keeping silent will imperil the interests of the just and the meek. In doing so, we state our opinion unambiguously, consistent with the facts on the ground. That is the essence of education – the ability to make an independent judgment on familiar and not so familiar issues guided by informed judgment, civility, and respect for rule of law. That is a fundamental component of great learning, and we do not owe anyone an apology.

Finally, the goal of this Blog was never to generate revenue or to make money (we discontinued AdSense long ago), but to develop blueprints for purposeful governance from progressive perspective. Essentially, we focus on quality content as well as the status of our visitors and the influence they command in the larger society - in  what they do and in their writings. So, the volume of traffic and hits that we receive serve no useful purpose and do not determine our point of reference. 

In a nutshell, we are mostly concerned with the number of heads of government, special advisers, professionals, business and institutional leaders who are interested in making changes and find our Blog an invaluable part of a larger innovation framework.  It is about sound policy investment. That’s the goal, and that, my friends, is the motivation. That’s the main reason we're still publishing/writing, in spite of everything, confident that someone, somewhere is taking note and acting on the changes that we advocate.

Thanks to Google for providing the platform, to the Internet for bringing the World to my study room, and to Pastor Joel Osteen of the Lakewood Church in Houston, on whose motivational preaching/teaching the idea and concept of this Blog gained invaluable fillip during the moment of doubt. 

Right now, let’s learn to love and cherish one another again.  And to that special someone out there, this is for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-QKqIFSP_w - "Save Your Love For Me.' By Gwen Guthrie. Courtesy of youtube.