“Solace From The Beautiful Game.”
He has his eyes closed for a full minute before he dares to open them again.
He is already aware of the isolation. He wants to change that. He wants to be more open, make the mountain more of a bridge and the rock more of home. He will not do it quickly. The agenda is already getting away from him. He is not sure what he will achieve now.
He slows himself down. Focus. He cannot allow himself to be this way. A fake big man, in quiet rooms waiting for things to be brought to him so he can decide the fate of others or, at least, pretend to.
He is trying to remember if there are any more meetings before he must get to the national stadium. He is trying to say to himself it is a good idea not to cancel the friendly.
-do not get lost in your thoughts, he tells himself.
-what? He can hear the unmistakable voice of his wife.
-did I talk out loud?
-yes
-how long have you been here?
-are you serious?
He looks up to see she is already dressed.
He looks down to see that he is also.
-we have been talking for five minutes
-oh, he says.
She comes to his side and then sits down on his lap, drawing his heavy head close.
He is rubbing her backside, gently but in a very distracted way.
-do not get lost in your head
-I am not
-sure?
-okay, maybe a little
-keep on rubbing in that way. It feels good.
His eyes shoot open. He looks up into her beautiful face. She knows this look well.
-we do not have the time, but she is laughing at the idea, storing it, and not rejecting it forever.
He gets up. They hold hands as they walk to the door.
-the good thing is that you get to tell Chuks that Messi is not coming after all, she is still laughing.
Richard hates football with an uncommon passion.
-all I really need is solace from the beautiful game.
Dramatis Personae
Richard Edewor Williams-President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
Hadiza Williams-First Lady, Federal Republic of Nigeria
Anthony Nwabunor-Chief Correspondent, Daily Chronicle
Daily Chronicler
Anthony Nwabunor
Tony is throwing darts at a campaign poster on the door of his office. He can hear the ebb and flow of football chatter from the newsroom downstairs. He is frowning at the merriment of it all.
-they should all be in sack cloth and ashes, mourning our fellow citizens and the death of the republic, he thinks to himself and allows himself, for a moment, a sad smile.
He keeps thinking of the stadium and the President standing there with his hand on his heart, celebrating some corporate event while people mourn in four different cities for innocent people who will never come back, no matter what the billionaire pastors say. No matter what anyone says? Probably. There is nothing but the great abyss and all the meaning you can squeeze out of life.
Sometimes.
He squeezes on his rosary and the building beneath him erupts in applause. He throws another dart and this time it lands on the President’s right and smiling eye.
Report
Central Bank Of Nigeria Financial Stability Report: Wednesday, 1st June 2011
Governor’s Statement
Excerpt
The Financial Stability Report (FSR) is a bi-annual publication of the Bank that focuses on developments in the financial system and highlights measures taken to address vulnerabilities. The Bank commenced this publication in June 2010 and this edition is the third in the series. We are encouraged by stakeholder comments on previous editions as well as the growing interest in the publication. The global economy is going through a number of challenges in the aftermath of the recent global economic and financial crises. The major concern has been the rising debt profile, especially in the Euro zone, particularly Greece, Ireland, and Portugal; as well as uncertainties in Italy and Spain. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan triggered certain events, some of which were of global concern, such as the use of nuclear energy for power generation. The crises in the Middle East and North African (MENA) countries affected oil supplies and positively impacted Nigeria’s/African oil exports. On the domestic front, the country continued to experience numerous challenges, such as poor infrastructure, inflationary pressures, and unemployment. Also, the overdependence on oil as the major foreign exchange earner and the import-dependent nature of the economy exerted significant pressure on foreign reserves. The financial system also witnessed a number of challenges, arising mainly from weak corporate governance, undercapitalisation of some banks and low credit growth to the real sector. The global financial crisis also compounded some of these challenges. Notwithstanding the above, the smooth conduct of the April 2011 elections instilled confidence in the system, with potential for an improved business environment and increased Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). Also, the newly enacted National Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) Act, 2011, is expected to lead to a more efficient management of the nation’s excess earnings from crude oil. During the review period, the Bank continued monetary tightening, the implementation of risk based and consolidated supervision, and the new banking model as well as the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The Bank also re-introduced cross-border and on-site supervision of subsidiaries of Nigerian banks.
