Nigeria, Jan. 16 -- Katsina State is one of the reasons I count myself out as someone who would wish anyone to be Nigerian president just because he is from my state or because we speak the same language or because we profess the same religion. This consideration is too childish for anyone who is in their 40s - my age bracket. A fool at forty is said to be a fool forever. I don't consider myself a fool even if I am not intelligent or very educated.

This state, Katsina, has had two Nigerian presidents in the past. Yet it's one of the most insecure states in Nigeria. One begins to ask if having a president from one's state or having a governor from one or particular part of a state is of any use. When people clamor for ethnic, religious, o...