IT’S “the day after” the first day into the New Year. The coolness of the morning has dissipated into  humid hot afternoon that makes one feel like a swim or just to lull lazily on the patio. I chose the latter. I was armed with all the necessary accoutrements of a chilled long drink of home-made ginger beer, chocolates, sugared and spiced nuts, chin chin, slice of Xmas cake all neatly arranged on a tray. Then I made for the vantage position I had chosen to nicely and comfortably place myself for a good view of the garden.

To justify all the extra indulgence in all these delicacies, I had a big 2013 diary to use as notebook with pen to jot down all the action plans, the “must dos” for 2013. The way to start is to plan and adopt appropriate strategies before moving into action, that’s wisdom.

Now then, for a little bite a little sip and one thought began to wander back and forth into the past and the New Year. Oh, thank God! We have safely crossed over from 2012 to 2013. It all went peacefully with very little hiccup. Considering what we went through from beginning to the end of 2012, the transition into the New year was peaceful. One can feel it already in the atmosphere. There is a quiet cheerfulness and optimism pervading the cool air borne by the Harmattan across the Nation.

Even Boko Haram seemed subdued and one just wishes they will fall into deep slumber in 2013 never to wake up again.

The hope is high that 2013 will not resemble 2012. Maybe because it was a leap year with an extra day, 2012 was overburdened and everything went beyond the normal to the extreme. It was fraught with too much ill from the beginning to the end.

Before we could finish saying Happy New Year, there was that announcement that brought the swift response of violence and the mother of all civil protests and strikes against that which the masses simply christened “Oil Subsidy.”

As 2012 started on a bad note, the jollity of the New Year was quickly quenched. What followed from then till the end was a litany of violence, bloody deaths, inflicted on the innocent masses both old and young, women and children from bomb blasts and cruel slaughter at places of worship, institutions of learning, in the market place. Nowhere was sacrosanct to the perpetrators.

The name Boko Haram became synonymous with terrorism and horror! It was not alone, kidnappers had become a national syndicate with international networking for big time ‘ransom money’ in foreign currencies.

The looters of the national treasury, continued to have a field day. Corruption scandals became rife in the National House, in the oil sector, in the power sector, in the aviation sector, the pension funds. Everything and everyone groaned under the escalating inflation and unemployment.

Even Mother Nature took up the protest, with flood surging over the land from North to South. Uncountable lives, communities and properties were destroyed.

Those that survived became homeless and destitutes overnight, packed into refugee camps as internally displaced persons.  They barely survived on “relief materials” reluctantly doled out by officials of government and humanitarian agencies.

Corruption again!

Why must everything be tainted with this hydra-headed monster! It has so choked this nation from breathing or growing. It really leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Time to chew some ‘sweet meats’ and a long sip of ginger beer to wash it down and clear the mouth.

O.K. what happened again? Plane crashes upon plane crashes and more kidnappings. And horrors and horrors of a people who had become hardened, for whom life has no value and for whom life is no longer sacrosanct!

The inhumanity and satanic murders mirrored in the Aluu horrors still leaves one shuddering in unbelief and anger! As a nation, we have reached the brink and going under, unless something stops it.

A change for the better we hope.

Even when the Number One citizen had to run to the man of God at the Redemption Camp confessing that may be as the ‘Head’ it was all on his head because he had “sinned” —- no—- “back-slid” was the word . He asked to be prayed for forgiveness, for the year 2012 and its calamities was just too much and escalated even three much and had gone beyond all control. A stop had to be put to it if the entire nation was not to be consumed and go under. Divine intervention was the seemingly last resort. If the president was confessing publicly and humbly of repentance and for forgiveness and mercy, that’s serious! By the way, we must pray for our No.1 not to be misled or to stray from the right way, because if the shepherd is toeing the wrong path, the led will also be led astray. Just think where corruption started and where it has taken this nation. So let us pray (as Prof. Jerry would say) that the leader(s) lead the nation well.

In 2013, peace, prosperity, against deaths, that Boko Haram will fade away, no more kidnapping, no more floods, no more fires, no more fuel scarcity, no more “NEPA” or is it PHCN? No more plane crashes, no more road accidents, no more flying abroad for emergency medicare, no Molues and Okadas and traffic jams and accidents caused by them, no more high school fees and teachers’ and workers’ strikes, no more inflation, no more unemployment.

Pray this 2013 will be a year of cleanup and good values and recovery of the National Cake. We have to sit up and tell all those lawmakers to bake it first before eating it. We have to build the ‘project Nigeria’ for the right results, a nation that is united in vision and purpose.

Let me clear my tray, there is work to be done. One needs a real “work-out” some exercise in the garden to shed the extra weight of over-indulgence into all those delights of the festive season. Back to the garden then where work, certainly has its many delights too. Welcome to 2013!

— A happy and prosperous New Year.