As you already know, I started reading a new book this July titled “The Silk Roads” by Peter Frankopan. It has been an interesting read so far. Frankopan chose to begin his version of history with the Persian Empire as he argued that Persia should be accorded its pride of place as the centre of trade in the old world. As he said in the preface of his book, “I hope to inspire those who read this book to look at history in a different way.”

Drawing from this inspiration, I will reread the political and cultural history of the regions that came to be called Nigeria in the near future to see what further lessons can be learned from how past leaders ran their kingdoms and empires, their triumphs and errors. I will surely share the books I will be reading in this regard.

I said earlier that it was a mixed week for me. It was sad to see the residents of the Olodo area lose a connecting bridge. Although work had already commenced in that axis with the ongoing road construction, the rains wreaked havoc. We have since taken action to ensure the victims are catered for. We have also directed the contractor to take immediate action and speed up work on the project to reduce the strain on our people.

Before I go, let me also mention that we have heard our people’s call for palliatives due to the prevailing economic situation in the country. We have already taken some measures in terms of expanding the routes of our Omituntun Bus service and ensuring that transport costs are not increased. But we know there is more to be done, and in the coming weeks, we will be rolling out more sustainable actions for the benefit of our people.

Talk to you again soon.