Sometime in late 2003 I was invited to a birthday party in Whittier, a suburb of Los Angeles California by some friends of mine at the USC (University of Southern California). USC is a private and expensive University, not to say I have anything against them having gone to one myself for a mini fortune. Now my friends had always told me about a Nigerian duo, sister and brother on campus with more money to burn that most students born to royalty. I agreed to go to this party more out of boredom than anything and it turned out to be the one of the most extravagant event I had ever seen. I must admit that night I was “proud” to be Nigerian and associated with such people, outrageous as they may seem. There were expensive cars in the garage, champagne overflowing and a 3-story garden. Anyway so much for my description because I partook in the feast most wantonly. The party was eventually shut down by the police because their neighbors in the round about 3 million dollar a home neighborhood couldn’t’ stand the noise anymore.

I must mention that leaving that party that night I had nothing but admiration for these folks, oppressing the oyibo man in his own country with our own money abundant and flowing. I had no anger, or did not wonder about the fate of all the poor people in that state who had made this singular gratification of mine possible through their sacrifice of power to access such funds to these folks father. I just felt proud an inappropriate feeling in retrospect. I heard later about property worth millions of dollars in holding by these folks for their father and so much stuff that I cant even begin to corroborate anymore.

I write this piece however because, the account of the arrest and denunciation by the accused reminds me of a nursery rhyme I heard so much of while in school that until date I have it so ingrained that a dedicated part of my brain refusing to delete it. What happens next really, does he get released go home, continue as governor, complete his tenure, and shrug off this event as false and instigated by his foe, or does this serve as a template for fiscal transparency and accountability by this government. I know many of the folks who would do this have soiled their hands somewhat, but an example certainly does more good than harm. Our lord corruption primate Abacha occasionally did exercise his discretion in dealing with looters, the question remains is Obas as capable. Anyway I will continue to burn the midnight oil studying this current governments politics’ and its machinations on the Internet, and someday I will stop to wonder what its true purpose is. I hope in baby steps at least we move this country to where it should be, or I hope I know at least that it wont be moved and make plans to come back and get my share of the national chin chin. Lest I forget there’s a certain governor of an eastern (Ibo) state that was at that party too and a regular at these folks house in Los Angeles, but a man must not tell all he knows in one breath if he’s not a journalist, or he wouldn’t be a man…………… Emeka Igbudu Ph.D.