Nigeria, Oct. 21 -- I do not recall when I first met the great man, Ambassador Patrick Dele Cole. I had read his very illuminating opinion articles in the Guardian. He was at that starting block of that great flagship of Nigerian journalism. Our path later crossed during the Obasanjo era. Debonair, swanky and effervescent, Ambassador Cole cut the image of a man who was beyond prim and proper. His regal visage and radiance suggested that life had been very kind to him. His voice wasn't thunderous but it had a gentle depth. In his articles or in conversation, he laid out his points with gentle finality, authority and conviction. He exuded confidence and his opinions suggested a man who was a thoroughbred. He was persuasive but not argumenta...