by Deman Pete

Have you noticed that Wikileaks’ allegation that Ngozi and her brother were involved in Nigeria’s corruption hasn’t cropped up?

Below are excerpts from a heated “conversation” among five supporters of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala’s candidacy for the position of World Bank president.

Red Lion: Obama is losing his marbles! His nomination of a common pharmacist, Jim Yong Kim as America’s candidate for World Bank president is more idiotic than putting square pegs into round holes!

Blue Lion: I agree with you, Red. Those excusing Obama’s choice of Kim on the basis of 2012 being an election year in the US and that it would be political suicide to support a non-American over an American are just as loony as Obama is!

Red Lion: Not only is Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala the most eminently qualified of all three candidates vying for the World Bank’s top job, the fact that she is a woman and an African at that, should have made Obama who is in many ways an African, to support Ngozi! What kind of rubbish is this?

Yellow Lion: Ah, did you see the polite insults that The Economist magazine gave him on our behalf? They were cleverly disguised but dripping with sarcasm! They called this and I quote: “a golden opportunity for the rest of the world to show Barack Obama the meaning of meritocracy.” Save for the well-deserved heckling George W. Bush received in the media during his time as US President, I can’t remember any POTUS getting such a telling-off!

Black Lion: And what a telling-off he’s getting! From The Economist to the New York Times, across the world and even in the US, condemnation of his opposition to Ngozi’s candidacy has been vociferous! A generality of Americans don’t support Obama on this one! From presidential candidate Mitt Romney to House Speaker John Boehner and even that percipient netizen who remarked that America would have found it hard to find a President whose economic failures would surpass George Dubya’s but in Obama, they have one –are booing him! Obama’s underbelly has been exposed and in this election year, the presidency is as The Economist observed in its last issue of 2011, the Republicans for the taking!

Red Lion: Well, he’s not taking our opposition to Kim’s nomination lying down! In what could be deemed the first salvo in a war of attrition against Nigeria for presenting and lobbying internationally for a more worthy candidate in Ngozi, he has asked the US Embassy in Nigeria to increase its non-immigrant visa application fees beginning from April 13. The reason they are giving is as ridiculous as his recent open-mike gaffe with Dmitry Medvedev! That it’s because of a high demand for non-immigrant visas and so that the US can raise funds for its foreign missions! Arrant nonsense I tell you!

Blue Lion: WHAT? That is an act of war against the Nigerian state! So we’re to help fund America’s foreign missions which are more or less outposts for spying?

Yellow Lion: As if AFRICOM isn’t bad enough! President Goodluck Jonathan must find a way to reciprocate Obama’s undiplomatic gesture! America’s eagle is not greater than Nigeria’s eagle!

Green Lion: It’s instructive that you mentioned America’s espionage, Blue Lion! Have you noticed that Wikileaks’ allegation that Ngozi and her brother were involved in Nigeria’s corruption hasn’t cropped up? You’d think by now that if it was true, America would have brought it up to discredit Ngozi!

Blue Lion: True! Like Obasanjo, I dey laugh! Let’s wait to see if after Ngozi wins, they will try to make Nigeria ungovernable! May the best woman win!

About the author

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He is well-respected for his intellect, charisma and passion for life. He is among other things, a poet, writer, an astute businessman, public speaker, and a social entrepreneur committed to ushering in positive change to his home country of Nigeria.

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Editor’s note: Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.