TELL IT

By Dele Sobowale “When women have gone a step too far, they will stop at none”. Henry Fielding, 1707-1754. (VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS p 280). Henry Fielding, the author of world classic, TOM JONES, was an excellent writer and the classical “woman wrapper”. So, he knew what he was talking about. For Fielding as for all men, there is an abiding warning - be careful when your woman (wife, running mate, mistress, girl-friend etc) intrudes too much in your business. Irrespective of whether the business is politics or a church or illegal oil bunkering the odds of a happy ending are very long. Conventional wisdom has it that “behind any successful man, there is a woman”. But, conventional wisdom is not history and the verdict of history has not been too kind to conventional wisdom. Last week, in the first part, I mentioned three women, wives of Heads of States who interfered publicly in governance. One ended well, two ended in tragedy for husband and wife. In fact, the chances of a wife dam...

By Rotimi Fasan PATIENCE can carry a placard and decide to go on the street of Port Harcourt alone or with her side kicks, if she so pleases and nobody would be bothered. But she can’t and must not employ the apparatus of her husband’s office to do that. Each time Mrs. Jonathan opens her mouth to talk she confirms what many suspected: that she has got her husband wrapped around her little finger and can and indeed does twist him in whatever direction she pleases. [caption id="attachment_297988" align="alignright" width="250"] Patience Jonathan[/caption] This confirms Prof. Tam David-West’s statement in an interview with The News that this woman is actually the one controlling her husband and by extension the country. Given the close link between spouses, it may be to idealistic not to expect that they would somehow exert influence on one another. This is to be expected. But there should be a limit to it and the spouse doing the influencing should be care...

By Rotimi Fasan YOU only get to see one even if there are many more living out of public glare in semi-retirement. We are talking here of executive wives, women married to men of means and ways- inflated balloons turned power houses by virtue of straying into the corridors of power either by the imposition of powerful brigands misnamed godfathers or rigged elections. From the presidency down through the state to the local councils, these crops of women of no consequence whose only claim to glory is on account of their connections to political men manage to flaunt their emptiness in the face of those they consider less fortunate members of society. [caption id="attachment_313261" align="alignnone" width="412"] *Patience Jonathan[/caption] By their public posturing, monogamy seems the preferred way of Nigerian leaders, be they soldiers or civilians. But for one or two odd cases who, perhaps for reasons of quiet acceptance of their polygamous status, respect...

Abuja -The First Lady, Mrs Patience Jonathan, said in Abuja on Wednesday that she had committed the ongoing crisis in Rivers to prayer and that crisis  started as far back as four years ago. Rivers has been embroiled in a political crisis which culminated in a free for all at the House of Assembly last week, with some members injured. [caption id="attachment_314132" align="alignnone" width="412"] *Patience Jonathan[/caption] Jonathan said this during a courtesy visit to the Presidential Villa by 16 bishops from the South-South geo-political zone. ``Rivers state issue is one thing I’ve committed to prayer because I believe there is nothing God cannot do. God restored me and I’ll do His work without the fear of man. ``The truth will always remain the truth and what God ordains must come to pass and so Rivers issue is something we’ve handed over to God.’’ The president’s wife said contrary to some reports, she had always mediated between Gov. Chibuike Amaech...