A senior Nigerian diplomat like Nicholas Agbo Ella who has paid his dues in diplomatic service – broken bread with presidents, prime ministers and top intellectuals of statecraft across the world, served in some of Nigeria’s most strategic missions and handled multiples of diplomatic domains – cannot be a yuppie again. If a Murtala Mohammed were still in judgment, then it is the Ellas of Nigerian diplomacy that would be on the commanding heights of Nigerian diplomacy.
The Late Joe Garba at a meeting with Henry Kissinger who is still alive and close to 100 years
And that would simply be because Murtala was too elated that the late Joe Garba dwarfed Henry Kissinger in height. For Murtala, it meant everything that ‘Kissinger the Great’ had to be looking up to catch the eye of an African Minister of Foreign Affairs. Joe Garba’s overwhelming physical size was for Murtala the starting point of negotiation of peaceful coexitence.
It must, therefore, be safe to explain this smashing mixture of status quo and yuppie outing in the cover picture of this coverage. After all, as the old wisdom goes, the toad is not usually seen out in the day time without something unusual happening. A status quo minded Ella of a diplomat is not sure to get caught in a fashion statement outside formal engagements
Intervention’s scouts strongly insist it is nothing beyond the “Maria touch”. Maria is Her Excellency’s name unless you have been angling for her trouble as to add ‘Omoka’ to the name. (If you are not in that circuit, don’t even try to guess what ‘Omoka’ might mean because you will only laugh to exhaustion). The “Maria touch’ hypothesis must be right because this is the 21st anniversary of their wedding! So, the stylish outing here is not only understandable but permissible. After all, we must not forget what Plato said regarding what happens to a man at the touch of love.
It is still not clear to Intervention if any serious celebrations beyond this Facebook posting took place. If it didn’t, it must be understandable. Country hard! But if it did, then Intervention has been shortchanged and may be making claims in arrears.
Happy 21st yearers!
