"Never in the history of our country has she needed the enthronement of effective leadership more than now, for that must be done if we must achieve our destiny as a nation. My tenure, I promise, will birth the change in Kua that has since been expected. We will take our rightful place among the most elite of nations in the world, especially in Africa. Change is coming, I know, I have seen it, and it will happen soon." - Dr. Enem Jilla on the day of his Presidential inauguration.
Dr Jilla stood at the podium, gazed the crowd over, took in their approbative cheers before whispering into the mic. He made a few light and funny comments about the country, his election campaign, and hearty laughter rolled over the room. In the silence that followed the much-favored politician gave his gratitude to all whose efforts helped hoist him to the position of presidency. He was happy for the free elections conducted without violence and other disruptive activities. He had been chosen to do a job, a difficult though honorable one, he said. And he would not fail the people.
The country of Kua, located in South-Western Africa had been a home to all sorts of crises. It was noted for it's unstable political system, the low standard of living, extreme underdevelopment, and the endemic corruption.
It's citizens had voted Dr Jilla into office as he seemed the only hope to set the country on the right part. Dr. Jilla's manifesto had been an insighful and very unselfish one, and those who heard it were convinced that if their country was to survive the trauma that threatened it's existence and peace, somebody like Dr Jilla had to take the reins. And now that dream had become a reality.
And he rose to the occasion as soon as he was sworn in. Changing the established order, albeit a corrupt one, in a country like Kua was almost a suicide mission, one had to battle the corrupt, greedy yet very influential politicians who were ready to fight to the death than see such happen. But President Jilla did just that. Under his watch the country began the transition from a third world country to a really modern one. Special attention were given to aspects like finance, agriculture, infrastructure, academics. In President Jilla's fourth year in office the change had really become visible in Kua. Kua had moved off such lists as " World's Poorest Countries", "Countries In The World Most Impacted By Terrorism" and the sort.
But then all this goodness screeched to an abrupt halt the night the industrious & resourceful president was assassinated. They say the sniper picked him out from his motocade and that the bullet had done so much damage that his life went out soon afterwards. Kua was thrown into serious pandemonium.
The corrupt politicians had done the dirty job. The day after the President's death there had been a little champagne party where the corruption-laden bozos congratulated each other for a job well done.
But their exultation at the elimination of the President was short-lived. A fire had been kindled in the bosoms of 30 million Kuanans, and no soft, persuasive talking on national TV or any thing of the sort could quench it.
During the weekend of the week of the assassination, the news floated in the headlines: The assassin that killed the President had been forcefully snatched from prison, right from the hands of the police, and lynched. Then followed complete breakdown of law and order.
The masses marauded, and exterminted several well known public personalities. The politicians who were rejoicing only a fortnight ago were soon fleeing in their private jets to secret locations.
The upheaval rolled and rolled for months until the Confederate Nations (CN) decided to step in and ensure peace. During this period the fire of vegeance and dissent had burned so fiercly from the engraged masses that even the fearsome military were afraid of intervening. A military take-over would have been normal in such situations. But then there was nothing normal in this deathly crusade which even the military found too hot to handle.
The CN peacekeeping forces arrived exactly on August 28, but the peace they fought to restore to Kua eluded them for a long time. In the end the CN had no option but to yield to the demands of the general population of the nation of Kua.
And so the reform which the good President had laboured to bring to his dear country was achieved by his death. He hadn't done enough during his lifetime, but his death, maybe by the intervention of merciful fate, we might say, it happened.
Exactly three-quarters of a century after the demise of the late President Jilla, Kua sits today a most flourishing nation, with all the aspects of it's society blossoming wonderfully. Kua's ascension to a state of utter modernisation and urbanization had been so incredible that she is today the perfect example of the quintessential African state, with a democracy that rivals that of The People's Republic Of China, or that of the mighty USA, the world's only two superpowers and hyperpowers.
Sitting on this glorious apex, people who are not so acquaintanted with her boisterous history may ask the question of Kua, "How did an African Nation get to this point?"
Well, anyone who wishes to know should just read the biography of President Enem Jilla, especially the time of his tenure as President, his assassination and what followed afterwards, he will then get his answer.
© Hector Owuite. Illina, FCT, The Federal Republic Of Kua. September 5th, 2578.