Zuckerberg’s Visit Sets Forth The Values For A New Nigeria

FACEBOOK Founder,Mark Zuckerberg is in Lagos, Nigeria unannounced. He is here to 'learn' and to inspire.He is 32 years old and ranks as the fifth richest man in the world and he is worth 53.7 billion dollars. Well you heard right. He was born May 14, 1984.

He is dedicated to human development and equality and so he is donating 99% of this money to Charity in this direction. He started Facebook as a student programmer at Harvard University USA and hails from New York. It was his quick realisation that the world needed this service rather than limiting it to campuses as was the case coupled with his passion to give service that brought him overwhelming success. Well he has changed Nigeria in just few days.

He is here dressed simply in his trademark T-shirt and jeans and young Nigerians are excited by his presence. He came without sirens or the usual boisterous security and walks the streets,eats jollof rice and yes even jogs on the Lagos bridge with his hosts, a private hub of developers.

He has already identified the Nigerian amazing " energy " and wants to soak into it. So in 24 hours he changed the perception of our youths about the connection between opulence and riches, now they know you can be rich and simple.

They can verify that you can lead without making noise about it or throwing your weight around. Success and simplicity of life. They know now that you do not have to be 50 to aspire to lead your generation or the world. And it is youthful leadership that listens.You heard him ,that he came here to learn,to listen and in 24 hours here he has created more hope and sense of equality than 4 decades of Nigerian rulers could ever hope to achieve.

Well I am a bit biased about this topic as you can understand. I have been there to know just how much unfair wrong indoctrination Nigerian youths have undergone over the years since I declared my Presidential bid in 1991 at the age of 29. Since then a conspiracy was systematically woven by the rulers to ensure that what they termed as" nightmare " did not repeat in their lifetimes. To keep me out of the race in future years,they got together decreed the entry age for Presidential Aspirants as 50 years.

Then they made it into Act of National Assembly at the end of military rule. You know the night mare was that I was almost winning the 1992 Presidential Primaries of the SPD in Lagos and I refused to step down,I refused to use traditional methods of communication and ran a mobile campaign thereby helping them to waste their billions while I was achieving the results without funding.

So after raising the age limit they made sure that no youth including had any access to meaningful economic breakthrough without going through the retired generals who have now transmuted into party leaders and oil barons.

There is indeed no political undertone in the August visit by Mark to Nigeria but being the man whose invention gave Nigerian Youths, once again, the voice to continue to press forth for some of the ideals that I set down in 1991, this visit is indeed a giant leap for Nigeria towards her manifest destiny,towards enduring values for the New Nigeria of our dreams.