CHINA 🇨🇳

China 🇨🇳 knew but china 🇨🇳 locked up!
If you had not locked up, many lives could have been saved.  You want us to move forward like nothing happened? Never!

Until you own up and accept responsibility, all eyes 👀 remain on you.
God bless Nigeria 🇳🇬 

Nigeria is a Country?

Yes! I have been gone for too long. Am not back but I am just passing this path again as I muse and wonder if indeed Nigeria is a country.

We campaigned and fought passionately against our family and friends because we clamoured for change. We desperately craved change. What happened? What went wrong?

It is so depressing. So sad.

I am hurting, I am weeping, I am mourning as once again I say, God bless Nigeria 🇳🇬

UNHOLY ANCESTORS

Alh. Ibrahim Ahmed Babankawo 

 Ancestors? Yes, one day someone will refer to you as an ancestor. Ancestors are those who lived before us. What kind of ancestors do you wish to be remembered as? Nigeria as formed by the colonialists was founded on a rocky and faulty foundation. This is the reason why there were cries of dissatisfaction from many different quarters. This dissatisfaction led to riots, uprisings, military interventions and eventually the civil war between Biafra and Nigeria. It continued in the form of coups and counter coups until the people eventually settled into a form of democracy which displays all the features of civil rule.

Alhaji Ibrahim Ahmed Babankawo, an accomplished policeman of northern stock who among his many accomplishments was the discovery of the decomposing corpses of Alhaji Tafawa Balewa, Chief Festus Okotie Eboh and others who were killed in the coup of 1966.  This is not intended to be a tribute to Alh. Babankawo who died this morning; rather, it is a reminder that our ancestors did not do well in this matter.  Our national leaders were executed and their corpses abandoned to rot in the forest save for the vigilant policeman? Sorry the history lessons I took did not cover that part of our national history. This is the more reason why our children must study history in schools especially the origins of Nigeria and the war and coups that followed. Did we ever expect that everybody will simply forget about that aspect of our history? If we choose to be silent on it, it will not make the memory go away.  No it does not work like this; we must go back to address these issues of our past in order for us to make progress.

Nigeria has been battling corruption forever and the end is still not in sight after so much bloodshed.  While not condoning corruption, the corrupt ways of the modern leaders of Nigeria has made our past leaders appear like novices.  In what ways were they corrupt? They were said to be partisan and reckless in spending and also they were accuses of having mismanaged national resources; all of these combined cannot be compared to what a local government chairman pilfers with gross impunity in today’s Nigeria.

Not downplaying the relevance of the Oputa panel in terms of reconciliation, there are still too many ghosts hidden in the closet. A genuine Sovereign National Conference and review of the Constitution that is being used now are very necessary steps that must be taken.  If we fail to go back to these issues, then it makes sense to heed the calls from various quarters that we go our separate ways.

All have sinned and not one is free of guilt.

GOD bless Nigeria.

BUHARI’S ONE TERM AGENDA: ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUTH PARTICIPATION IN POLITICS IN NIGERIA.

I wonder why many Nigerians are surprised at the promise of the president not to run a second term.  What did they really expect of him? If the APC ever planned to field him again, it is a certain loss at the polls.

The VP, Prof. Osinbajo will also do well not to make any attempt at a second shot at the post because he will not get it. His occupying the seat today sadly is not by his own merit in that former governors, Fashola and Amaechi were better experienced and qualified and could be given a second consideration in future but definitely not Osinbajo. Unpleasant as it may seem, it’s just the way it is.

Sen. Bola Tinubu is on a collision course with former VP, Alh. Atiku Abubakar and the differences between them will cost the coalition dearly if they are not pulled out at the earliest.  This will in the end give the PDP the upper hand and make heroes of people like Sen. Ike Ekweremadu.

Saddest of it all is that APC may never have the opportunity to rule Nigeria again after this time out.

It is true that the coalition comprises of strange bedfellows but in Nigerian local markets, they have ways of defining and demarcating their allocated spaces with minimum rancor.

The above picture is the work of the old brigade who has refused to let go of the jugular of this sleeping giant named Nigeria. Like serpents, they have ways of crawling into the system while the bonafide operators sleep and cause the system to fail.

This is the perfect time for young Nigerians to once again put aside the sad reality that it is ‘not yet Uhuru’ and begin to arrange a formidable political party of young Nigerian politicians.

GOD bless Nigeria.

FOLLOWING THE INAUGURATION AT THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

The inauguration of Senator Bukola Saraki as the president of the Senate on the 9^th of June, 2015 was shocking to Nigerians. People patiently awaited a decent explanation of what transpired that saw the election of Saraki in the manner that he was elected. It did not seat well with many Nigerians but with an open mind, we waited in the hope that an enlightened analyst would be able to put to words the reason why it happened the way it did.

In the typical arrogance of the average West African, several senators ‘grabbed the mic’ and threw words at Nigerians and as far as they were concerned they had provided enough reason to the electorate and that was that. The glee with which they flung words at Nigerians again showed that they had gotten what they wanted from the electorate and whatever did not tally with their personal aspirations was considered to ‘not worth their time.’

In an article published in ‘This Day’ of 13^th June 2015, Dele Momodu tried to explain in simple terms and in clear language that the people could comprehend, I did not under that the PDP group that joined forces with APC had not been duly considered or compensated for the risk they took in confronting the leaders of PDP. Until then, I was looking at Saraki as one of those who defected to  APC late in the day, I did not look at it from the angle of Saraki uniting with the other 5 PDP governors who delivered their states to APC .  Until then, I believed that it was the people who made their choice and not their governors that made them vote out Dr. Jonathan. Until then, I did not see things from the perspective of people claiming that Senator Bola Tinubu was imposing candidates of his choice to be appointed, selected or elected into various offices. I did not and I still do not see the possibility of Tinubu being able to laud his will over that of the APC as a corporate entity or the President Muhammadu Buhari.

I am firmly convinced that the earliest politicians in Nigeria who failed to approach equity with clean hands in that under their huge agbadas and babarigas, they were armed with:

·       1. Dubious intentions towards one another

·       2. Tribalism

with which they erected a faulty foundation for democracy in Nigeria and on the bad foundation, we continue to hope that our style of politics will work in favour of Nigeria.

The coalition formed by CPC, ACN, PDP, APGA, ANPP, etc which birthed APC was another chance presented to Nigeria on a platter of gold under the aegis of Tinubu to work with frameworks in building structures but again, the old brigade with their stale mentality crept in once again and have thrown a spanner in the works. Like the proverbial sower who sowed his good seeds and went home only for the enemy to come in at night to sow tares among the good seeds; Nigerians must wait until the thorns can be clearly identified before weeding them out of the system.

In the course of achieving his personal ambition, Saraki has succeeded in providing the platform for PDP to have a much stronger foothold in the Senate and sadly, this has greatly exposed ACN. And to a large extent this will have its impact on the administratio of Buhari. Now Saraki is no longer a member of the PDP but he will no longer be trusted in the ruling party so where does he truly belong? Strangely, the deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu while speaking at his constituency in Enugu jubilantly informed his people that he is willing to work with the ruling party if the members so desire but that he is also fully ready for a fight if that is what they prefer.  Furthermore, he told his people that PDP will come back to the centre stage in 2019. While the ruling party see nothing wrong with the present arrangements, other politicians are warming up to capitalize on the rancor among them.

Tinubu’s immense contribution to the success of the coalition does not make him free of corruption; for every case he has anywhere, he will have to answer for his actions in due season so people should stop using his name as an excuse to work against the interest of the coalition. The issue at hand is the need for Nigerians to begin to work with frameworks and not shift the post to suit anybody’s whims.

GOD bless Nigeria.

NIGERIAN YOUTH IN POLITICS

Many Nigerian youth like to act as if they have attained emancipation from traditional norm and dogma. It is quite a sight to behold when one comes across some youth who talk about how things are done in civilized societies and how government has failed to put structures in place for the effective working of the social systems. It is the norm in Nigeria to blame it all on the government. In too many ways, they blame government for not giving young people opportunity, employment, loans, etc., as a result many Nigerian youth resort to crime and violence and make themselves available tools in the hands of politicians with dishonourable intentions towards Nigeria and Nigerians.

Many young Nigerians contested in the recently concluded elections; a few of them came out successful and many of them lost. How many of them ran without the influence of politicians operating with expired and unprogressive mentality? How many of  those who have gained seats in the house of assembly and house of representatives can truly function without the overbearing weight of old politicians? Nigerians are watching.

In the light of the above, it must be highlighted that many young Nigerians were actively involved in cases of violence during the last elections. Some were arrested by the police while others escaped the law. They were paid some amounts of money to cause havoc which they  did to the satisfaction of the patrons. For those who were caught and those who escaped, one wonders how long such money will remain in their hands and when it is exhausted, what next?

This discourse is necessitated by the British/Scottish elections conducted on the 7^th of May. Among the contestants was a 20year old student, MHAIRI BLACK of the Scottish National Party who ran for MP in Paisley and Renfrewshire south where she defeated Douglas Alexander. She has by so doing become the youngest MP in Britain.

A 20year old female contesting for a party ticket in the primaries in Nigeria? No way, maybe in 20 years time. 

This is to urge all misguided young Nigerians to ponder on this while feasting on the bread of sorrow gleamed from the table of corrupt politicians.  There is a better chance for young Nigerians to attain political recognition and excellence in leadership if they resolve to come together in one political party that is free of the manipulations of the old brigade.

GOD bless Nigeria.

ADDITIONAL DRAIN IN NIGERIAN HUMAN CAPITAL

Folklore has it that there was once a chicken that was struck on the head by a piece of some solid material.  The chicken developed the impression that it was the sky that landed on its head and went about town announcing that the sky was coming down.  On and on it went until a more enlightened animal showed it the item that had landed on its head. I can imagine how that chicken felt when confronted with the truth; that is exactly how I felt a few days ago.  In the cause of my daily activities, as early at 9.00am, my colleagues and I came upon some very young boys by the railway line on Agege Motor Road at the junction of Fatai Atere Way, opposite Coca Cola depot in Lagos.  There was a police post just at the median of the road and this did not seem to make any difference to anyone. What was odd about the gathering is that they were all busy wrapping and smoking weed.  The boys ranged from eight to fourteen years and it was not like they were stunted in growth or overweight; their physical appearance portrayed their true age.

I quickly went for my camera and took two shots before I realized that one of them had come up from behind our car and was shouting and raving about me taking photographs of them. I tried to pacify the boy and I called him to come closer to me but he was adamant and I guess he too was afraid of what could happen because of my appearance. Thankfully, the traffic light cleared us to move and we sped away from the spot. In my flight, I lost the photographs taken.

I was disturbed as I took to discussing my experience with different people; the outcome of my report was that many people in Lagos are aware of this situation. Many people are aware that this area is related to Mushin area of Lagos which is known for its high population of hoodlums.  It was new to me but it was nothing to many other people.  It was particularly disturbing that law enforcement agents were nearby and the boys went about what they were doing without fear or concern. I was informed of a similar colony in Maryland, Lagos where Nigerian youth idle and waste away. 

Who will take responsibility for this sad development? Children who should be in school or training  in view of their future are found smoking weed and idling their lives away as early as eight years of age. What will happen when they become adults and family men? How do they sustain their living now and how will they sustain their lives then? Why do people not see the danger in what is happening under our nostrils. What this amounts to is a waste of the lives of these children and children who have been nurtured and prepared for the future; nobody is safe having people like this around them. People should not look at them and look away because what they are doing today will come round and hunt all of us some day in the future.

The next administration that claims to have the interest of the people at heart must make this a matter of priority of government. Evangelists who go about preaching the good news should make effort to work with social workers and any NGOs that are interested in ridding our society of people wasting their lives.

GOD bless Nigeria.

WHAT ABOUT US? 3

Issues arise and while we react and respond, we must be guided by the fact that to every action, there is an equal but opposite reaction.  Accounts must balance as there is no room for vacuum; we take from somewhere and the gap must be occupied.  When we receive pittance from politicians who no longer make it a secret that they are making attempts to purchase the votes of the people, someone must be at the receiving end.  The politician will not expose himself to the inconvenience of having to accept responsibility for squandering the resources of the land; he would have taken adequate precaution to protect himself from disappointment.

Much as knowledgeable people tried to convince the people to desist from what is now popularly tagged “stomach infrastructure” in Nigeria, the politicians simply raised the game and squandered much more. In the cause of campaigning for the upcoming elections, politicians have used the joint resources of the nation to campaign for their personal ambitions. The lives of a few Nigerians have been turned around because of the largesse extended to them by politicians.

The Nigerian youth ordinarily would have been in the position to further drive home the message of discouraging politicians from insulting the sensibility of the polity; they have also been adequately provided for.  The next group would have been our religious leaders; without any shame they have also been catered for. When Gov. Rotimi Amaechi raised alarm over the settlement of pastors by the ruling party, there were heated denials from different quarters within the Christian group. To our greatest embarrassment, many more church leaders or owners who may not have received their own share of the loot have been making frightful predictions in the media and calling for special prayers for the presidency, PDP and the incumbent.  Then the witch showed up claiming to be a white witch and generally promoting his business while at the same time claiming to be in possession of information that will see to the conclusive end of insurgency in Nigeria.

Sadly, on a daily basis, we read of fresh endorsements for the incumbent leader and knowing Nigerians, the endorsements would have cost Nigeria a fortune. All manner of groups have arisen to pledge their support for the administration of Dr. Jonathan. The age or profession is not necessarily prerequisite for qualifying to endorse the incumbent.

The question now is why don’t we realize that funds that could have been expended on different community projects for the good of the whole have been mischannelled for the selfish motives of politicians; we shall be made to bear the brunt of this manner of mismanagement of government funds. We must not loose sight of the fact that after all said and down, there will remain the entity Nigeria and her people.

GOD bless Nigeria.

Shoplifting On Allen Avenue Ikeja Lagos part 2

WHAT ABOUT US 2

The amount of noise from Asari Dokubo’s quarters has continually been a cause for worry to decent people; sadly his kinsmen see nothing wrong in his inflammatory utterances. Asari Dokubo’s cause is not in the interest of Nigerians or his people. His utterances are expressions of his selfish interest in propagating the ambition of the incumbent.

This is not about us at all and people must understand his position as that of a man running on his own. The good people of the Niger Delta will do well to dissociate themselves from this campaign of violence and further needless bloodletting. All battles eventually end in dialogue and not in perpetual threats of war. It is utterly selfish for this man to continue to have a retinue of Nigerians running around the wheel of violence with him. If truly he has the interest of Nigerians at heart, he would not be beating drums of war where trained warriors are clamoring for calm and peace.

Asari Dokubo’s campaign will not in any way benefit the good people of the Niger Delta. His physical appearance alone goes a long way to confirm this line of thought. If the incumbent does not see that Asari Dokubo is embarrassing him, then the good people of the Niger Delta who know better should dissociate themselves from his cause at the earliest.

The proper thing to do is to call him to order but where that fails; he should be made to face the wrath of the laws of the land. Alas! His kinsman does not see the need to because he would want to give the lame excuse that Asari Dokubo is an adult Nigerian who is entitled to his own opinions and free to do as he pleases. There are laws in the land and this man is violating them under the watch of his kinsman.

I reiterate this is not about us; it is not in our interest for this man to continue to incite the polity.

GOD bless Nigeria.

Letter To President Jonathan By Niyi Osundare | Sahara Reporters

Letter To President Jonathan By Niyi Osundare | Sahara Reporters

WHAT ABOUT US?

NIGERIAN ELECTIONS

With the reality show moving from one episode to the next, we see many more cases of accusations, counter accusations; allegations, blackmail, threats, violence, etc in a bid to gain the upper hand.

I have seen many election seasons in Nigeria; all of them with the attendant election issues that arise but I have never seen one as charged as this one. There are about sixty candidates vying for the office of the president of Nigeria. The main titans however are the incumbent, president Goodluck Jonathan and the former military head of state, retired Gen. Muhammadu Buhari. Issues concerning these two gentlemen are splattered all over any literary channel on a daily basis, making it look like the other contestant are simply waiting for the next president to be announced and inaugurated.

It is quite interesting to note that the team of the incumbent are displaying some level of fear and this has led them to take to the style of hostile attacks on the personality of the opposition leader. Nigerians who are at the fore of these attacks are Chief Femi Fani Kayode, a lawyer who is also the presidential campaign director of PDP and Mr. Ayo Fayose, the governor of Ekiti State. These are gentlemen who have cases to answer in Nigeria and with the promise by Buhari to send all corrupt Nigerians to jail looming over their heads, it is to be expected that they would use every possible tactic to scuttle the presidential ambition of Buhari.

Nigerians express their opinions through various forms of expression especially on social media and atmosphere appears to be very charged. Past rulers as well as religious bodies are not spared from it all. It is either they support Jonathan or they support Buhari and the opinions are inclined towards outright hostility and hate.

One and only one president will come out of it all despite threats of violence and lawlessness. Nigerians however must not forget about their own wellbeing. Nigerians must still live their life after the election no matter how long it takes for the dust to settle and they must have to continue to live with each other whether peacefully or otherwise. People are so engrossed in the election campaigns and all the antecedents that come along with such activities that one wonders how they can still maintain focus on the pressing issues that have been made to take the back burner.


Among these pressing issues are Boko Haram, reduction in price of PMS (petrol), pending cases of corruption that have not been effectively addressed, mismanagement of pension funds, the Chibok girls, mismanagement of oil revenue, mismanagement of oil reserves and a host of others.

These issues affect the masses directly as they feel the impact directly. We must not loose focus of these pending issues while we vigourously participate in the election campaigns, mudslinging and violence. Thinking of these issues should give reason for people to be calm and rational in their decisions of who the next leader should be.

GOD bless Nigeria.

WHEREVER THE DOUGH IS HEADED

Which way is the dough headed? The dough is headed in the direction of the entertainment industry; that’s where the dough is at.  This is the consciousness that most young Nigerians should imbibe quickly. Nigerians have proven established their presence in the entertainment industry and without any doubt, the returns are visible enough. As a digression, names of the cars that most of these goons use are so complicated to pronounce, like one has to return to school to learn a new language in order to get the name right.

Nigerians are proud of the effort and the results of young Nigerians are producing; like everything else that is shrouded in the dark in Nigeria, one cannot put a finger on their financial worth or earnings but snippets from here and there indicate that they earn well enough to  run their own business empires.  It makes one cringe to imagine what these young Nigerians would have been doing for a living if not for their determination to cease the entertainment business by the jugular and master the industry.  As elections parole heat up again in Nigeria, there is an increasing number of cases of election related violence and acts of malpractice being sponsored by political money bags with young Nigerians as their tools of havoc. It is however heart warming to observe that many young Nigerians like 9ice, Desmond Elliot, Kate Henshaw, KWAM=1, etc are pulling their weight in their party primaries.

I feel very proud of the success recorded by young Nigerians in the entertainment industry and I look forward to many more of them following this path to politics and governance as another route to chasing out the old brigade of politicians. Stakes have been raised so high that securing the application form or the ticket of the party cannot be achieved with a little bit of assistance from one godfather or the other.  The assistance turns out to be so costly that it appears like the office holder would  have to compromise his authority to the godfather who sponsored his/her success at the polls.

Thankfully, with the revolution in the entertainment industry, funds will be raised through sources other than corrupt enrichment that had hitherto been the norm. Nigerians also expect that this being the case, the electee will have some freedom to carry out his responsibility in the interest of the whole rather than in the interest of the party or the godfather. As a true and faithful citizen, one expects that these young people will be able to free themselves from the warpped mentality of the old brigade and perform their elected duties with Nigeria first and last on their agenda.

GOD bless Nigeria.

THIS LAGOS!

Things people will not venture to do in their home-states/towns, etc., but they would boldly attempt (and perform) it in Lagos; maybe because of the anonymity Lagos seems to provide.

Under normal circumstances, people will not dare harvest the crops on a farmland they did not sow even if the land belongs to them; rather they will wait for the planter to harvest his crops and clear away from their property. It is not the same in Lagos as people are fond of saying that anything goes in Lagos.

People will not dare to defecate on another man's farm because of the dire consequences such irresponsible behavior will attract but it is not the same in Lagos. People see nothing wrong in defecating in public; in broad-daylight and in this modern age.

When I was on assignment in Abuja some years back, I was alarmed when I got to know that the then governor of Nassarawa State was disturbed enough to leave the opulence of his office to confirm reports and personally supervise the removal of a corpse that was found by the road side at Mararaba. My alarm stemmed from the fact that it was not a big deal to see corpses by the roadside in Lagos metropolis; however, for the last couple of years it has become like an aberration to see corpses by the roadside in Lagos.  Nevertheless, the strange trend resurfaced with the sighting of several decomposing and decapitated corpses between 'the long bridge' and Ojota ends of Ikorodu Road  

 

Is it a way of saying the people of Lagos have no regard for their neighbours?

Does it mean that with money, everything is allowed in Lagos?

Whose responsibility is it to protect the environment and the culture of the people of Lagos? 

 

With a mentality like this, how does one begin the onerous task of educating the people with a view to make them change their perception towards one another and towards the environment? At this point, we will need to give a clear definition to the terms, 'people of Lagos' as against 'Lagosians.' We must be able to identify the people who the custodians of the welfare of Lagos and those who are committed to the growth and development of Lagos as against those who came to Lagos in search of the 'Golden Fleece.'

 

What punitive measures exist for cases where offenders are caught? If there are presently none, is it possible for lawmakers to consider instituting some?

 

GOD bless Nigeria.  

WAITING THEIR TURN

 

The name Ruben Abati stirs passion that is completely opposite to what it did in the past.  The ease with which the man Ruben Abati switched positions from a highly revered political opinion columnist to an appointee of the present political leadership is a source of worry to many who looked forward to his articles as a yardstick for taking a position and for sound knowledge. The ease with which he justifies political blunders that he would ordinarily have castigated and condemned to the high heavens in the past leaves much to be desired.  The columnists of today are made to look like wolves waiting their turn to have a bite of the lion’s kill.  It makes one wonder if they will find it easy to switch positions just the way Abati did.

The late Chief Gani Fawehinmi was able to resist offers of government appointment all through his life; many Nigerians who had the privilege of being mentored by Gani are of the same mind and would never compromise their position in defense of Nigeria and her people; what could it be that prevents other Nigerians who lay claim to honour and integrity to do the same? In many cases it is not even the quest for wealth as such that prevents these people from declining the offer because at the end of the tenure they are no better than they went in.  Most of these people are dismissed from office with ignominy because they assume office under obscure circumstances in the first place and the excuse they regularly put forward which is the need for them to contribute their bit to making Nigeria a better place is always forgotten as soon as they start work.

The question of state pardon granted Mr. Alamieyeseigha (Alams) came upon Nigerians with the characteristic shock that this government has over time perfected how to land.  While processing the rude shock of the announcement, Ruben Abati took to the media in fruitless attempts to rationalize and justify the actions of the present government.  Abati very conveniently forgot the article he wrote in October 2005 titled ‘Alamieyeseigha should resign.’  The article was written by a Nigerian who was thought to be very much in touch with happenings in Nigeria and it would have stirred up much passion in any Nigerian who read the article.  A few years down the line, Abati hits the media intent upon making the people believe that the decision to grant Alams state pardon is ok.  Thankfully, he was quickly reminded of his position which he made no secret of in the article he wrote on the same subject a little earlier.

Sometime last year, it was believed that Abati had been relieved of his official duties by the presidency after the appointment of Dr. Doyin Okupe but he survived it.   Well he will surely return to the street at some point in his life and he being a writer and a political commentator will not be able to resist the lure to comment on political affairs of Nigeria.  One wonders what position he will take again once he is out of office.  Does Abati care what the future holds or does he believe that the Nigerian society is still at that level where having money makes everything alright?  If that were the case, Alams would not have any issues being raised over the state pardon granted him; he could be made the next Minister for Petroleum or the head of the Senate and no eyebrows would be raised but Nigerians have gone beyond that point.  Nigeria is the focus of many African and western countries and issues will be raised over any unreasonable suggestion of embarrassing Nigeria by the leadership that appears to have been compromised.

Nigerians have become more discriminatory than that; Nigerians recognize the difference between a coup plotter and a criminal minded office holder who had no respect for his personal dignity or for the office he held. Nigerians die daily in the hands of known terrorists and other negative minded people who have gained prominence during the tenure of this administration but there will be many Nigerians alive and waiting to see the position Mr. Ruben Abati will take when he is out of government.

GOD bless Nigeria.

 

RENAISSANCE OF AMAZONS?

 

Greek mythology records the existence of a tribe of female warriors known as Amazons; Turkey also has stories that show that they recognized this force of women who thrived for a long time in the history of Greece and Turkey.  The Amazons were dreaded and to a large extent avoided by the few men who had knowledge of their existence.  The Amazons were women who trained in hunting, agriculture and the art of war.  Amazon warriors regularly slaughtered men they had no use for; however for the continuity of their tribe, they carefully and strategically selected the males they considered worthy of mating with strictly for the purpose of procreation. They nurtured and groomed their female offspring to be warriors like them but for their male children, they were either sent to their fathers or they were left in the forests to fight for their lives or perish.

African mythology has time and again represented the fact that man is greatly feared and distrusted by all animals; even where women and children would be welcomed, animals would steer clear of men because of the purported wickedness of men.  The Christian scripture makes it abundantly clear that the heart of man is wicked and also desperately wicked.

Nigerian history features the immense contributions of women who were bold, brave, and strong and determined to secure their kingdoms and their people. Among these women were Amina of Zazau, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, Queen Iden of Benin, and so many others. Records show that these women were not of the Greek or Turkish Amazon packs but their lifestyles were predominantly Amazonic.

The few modern women who show any interests in tougher exploits are branded ‘feminists.’ Women are made to believe that they are not created complete and until they are acquired by a husband, they have not started to live their lives.  By wit, cunning, manipulation of the word of GOD and the power of the law, man has tamed the Amazonic spirit in women. The woman has become so tame that she is made to believe that she is the weaker vessel and quite embarrassingly, women actively clamour for reduced standards and concessions for women because they are ‘weak.’ Women are made to walk beside men on high heeled shoes which further expose their vulnerability and lack of balance; they are convinced to focus on keeping the home and reproduction. In essence a lot of women have put themselves at the level of well-loved pets to men; the slight difference between women and these well – loved pets is that the women share the beds of their men  and whenever he is inclined to, he takes her out to display to his friends and relatives.

What obtains in this day and age is a generation of men who feel zero tolerance for women.  it is easier for men to show respect to an infant male than to a grown and independent woman.  Some men claim to love their mothers to pieces but they passionately hate other women.  For the slightest offence, men would raise their hands against women and dehumanize them to extents that leave one wondering if the women had been run over by a large truck or they had encountered a grizzly.  In the end women are left with scars that will never heal if they are lucky to escape with their lives.

Every suggestion that women acquire self-defense skills are rebuffed by women who are spurred on by men who are yet to show their true colours.  Taking training in martial arts as a form of defense is something that goes without saying among Asians.  Many women of African origin are fortified by their families with psychic and magical powers like voodoo and witchcraft which are fundamentally intended as means of protection from physical and psychic assault.  Adopting the western religion has made many families put away such practices and many men now see it as the perfect opportunity to treat women the same way they would treat their dogs.

The number of incidence of violence against women (VAW) has increased so much that it now appears like a competition of whose attack would be deemed the most dastardly.  It makes one wonder if the victim was drugged prior to the attack as there is no evidence of self-defense in many reported cases. No race or nation is spared of this scourge; even the USA, Britain, etc are not spared.  Up till recently, one could boast that Nigerian males are not rape inclined but reports keep revealing that cases of VAW are becoming a fast growing delight among them.

Repeated appeals that parents take time to train their boys to be gentlemen seem not to have much impact; the implication is that parents are satisfied with the freedom their sons have and they must be willing endure the consequences of the son’s actions bring upon him and the family.  There are rumours of pockets of vigilante activities master-minded by ex-military men, ex-sportsmen, etc in some western countries and a few of them have been mentioned in Nigeria.  While not supporting irresponsible behavior in taking the law into one’s hands, the idea of a vigilante arrangement does have some appeal in that it begins to look like the only way of guarding against VAW.  Furthermore, there is money to be earned by people who are contracted to give intercessory services to women who may not be in a position to ward off attacks of psychos who look like brutes.

GOD bless Nigeria

NIGERIANS MUST KEEP TALKING

 

 

 

The passage of the FOI bill by the Nigerian legislature is a bonus to democracy as it paves the way for information gathering and dissemination and general access to information.  Without the passage of the bill, the Nigerian society will still adjust to the changes that social media has allowed to the way information is handled in the modern world.  The response of Nigerians to social media has turned out to be in favour of the people as a means of negotiating with the government.  every attempt by the government to discredit social media and discourage members of the public from subscribing to social media for information has met with stiff opposition from members of the public.  Nigerians of all ages and stations in life subscribe to using social media and as insignificant as the result may appear, there are records of positive changes in the society.

People do not have to wait till the next morning for updates on news anymore.  Many platforms update their news items almost per minute and some of the most relevant news can be found on social media networks. The key factor is the fact that people give real time response to issues as they impact their lives.  For as long as people are responding, it shows that they are still alive and able to speak up.  In the course of speaking up, they speak to defend themselves; they speak to negotiate issues to secure advantage.  For people who are able to speak, there is a limit to how much people will take them for granted or take advantage of them.

In moments of discouragement, one wonders what can be achieved from mere talking.  We have come to realize that a lot can be achieved by talking. It does not matter that people are using the 26 letters of the alphabets to form words that turn out as essays on the same points of focus.  The essence is that many people are responding by speaking up or by writing something.

For the government that is known to take unilateral decisions and spring surprises on members of the public, the more the people talking, the better because such behavior is symptomatic of a leader who assumes office with a mind-set. It shows a leader who has a chip on his shoulder.  The cure for such tactless and undiplomatic manner of leadership is continuous protest by writing and speaking.

Many actions that this government would have taken under the misguided notion that the people can be taken for granted have been suspended or frozen altogether because of the public outcry.  There is strength in numbers and many groups that seem to have taken key positions in decision-making in the USA have succeeded because of their number, because of their consistency in stressing their positions and of course their determination to achieve what they have resolve to achieve.

The outrage of citizens contributed largely to the apprehension and conviction of the 2 Ohio rapists; the same goes for the Indian men who raped and mutilated a female medical student which resulted in her death as well as the rape of a Swiss female cyclist was camping in a village in India in the company of her husband.

Nigerians must be spurred on by the records of achievement in common protest cases like the sudden removal of petroleum subsidy and the sudden name change of the University of Lagos.

It is a shame that this government sees nothing wrong in the state pardon said to have been granted by this government to Mr. Diepriye Alamieyeseigha (Alams) but Nigerians must keep talking.

Under the watch of this government, Mr. John Yusufu who admitted to stealing pensioners’ funds to the tune of N23.3bn was sentenced to 2years in jail with an option of payment of N750,000. Despite the public outrage which saw his re-arrest and detention at Kuje prison, he has been granted bail at N10m.  the people must never get tired of talking.

One wonders what would be the lot of Nigerians if a country like Mali chose to wage war against Nigeria; maybe Nigeria will be wiped out.  A relatively small band of terrorists started operating in Nigeria today, almost three years since they started out, the band has gradually grown to be an army that Nigerians in the north must live or die with.  The combined armed forces of the republic of Nigeria have thus far failed to come up with a logical suggestion of how to stamp out the activities of terrorists in Nigeria. 60 plus have so far been confirmed dead by the terrorist attack which rocked Kano yesterday 18^th March, 2013. 

Nigerians may not be achieving much from their protests but the attitude of speaking up must never again be compromised.  It is hoped that this government will listen to the voice of the people in the case of Alams and search for another ‘worthy’ Ijaw individual to elevate instead of a man who is so notorious that members of the international community know of his atrocities better than most Nigerians.

GOD bless Nigeria

 

SOUTH AFRICA ON THE SPOT

The rainbow nation, the ubuntu nation, etc are endearing names by which South Africa is also known today.  Years past when the white supremacist leadership of the settlers vide apartheid and racial segregation throve in South Africa; violence and bloodshed did not attract much alarm in South Africa because they were the norm. Militancy and violent insurgence reared their heads and grew in all corners of South Africa. The original South Africans from as far back as the time of the great Shaka of the Zulu were fierce warrior tribes; peace was a very rare and uncommon commodity among the South African tribes.

The apartheid government relinquished the hold on power due to pressure from the international community and extensive struggles of South African freedom fighters over several years. Nelson Mandela who had been imprisoned for a period of over 27 years was eventually released from incarceration and the democratic election conducted immediately after his release from detention was won by landslide.

FW de Klerk and Nelson Mandela were co-awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 for their contributions towards the peaceful termination of the apartheid regime and for laying the foundations for a new democratic South Africa. While Mandela lives and preaches peace, many South Africans see the need for application of violence in driving home their points.

Conditions of the termination of the apartheid regime and human rights activism have effectively made room for the white settlers to retain their lands and other property in South Africa and there have been reports of continued violence involving the white racists and many of such reports have gone without being charged to court. The issue of racism in South Africa is clearly still paramount to the people; this makes Robert Mugabe appear saintly in his drive to re-claim the land of the people of Zimbabwe from the white farmers.

Another sad aspect of the South African society is the battered psyche and warped mentality of the black South Africans.  A people who had been stripped of every dignity and power to the point that they were not allowed the right to vote in their own country; a group of people who were made to feel like outcasts in their land and people who knew no language save for violent struggles and intense hatred.  It is surprising that as soon as Nelson Mandela took office as the democratically elected president of the nation, many people thought, believed and expected that the racist mentality of South Africans would dissolve or come to an end.

Many musicians like Miriam Makeba and Sunny Okosun centered their message on the freedom of South Africa and Nelson Mandela and as soon as Mandela became president, it was like there was no more need for these revolutionary messages.  This is a great oversight in that after such injurious circumstances as what South Africans endured, what should have followed was intense rehabilitation and re-orientation of the minds of the people.  Many domestic and international organizations contributed their own quota towards this course but what is evident in modern day South Africa reveals that apartheid did not go anywhere and the subjective mentality of the black South Africans remains so strong like they are still under the burden of slavery.

Over the years, reports of activities of sick minds continue to increase; infants, the aged as well as the infirm are raped on the run.  Young and upcoming people have had their lives cut short because some crazy kid wants their wallet, miners are shot dead in broad day light, blacks kill whites and vice versa and visitors are also brutalized and murdered in South Africa.  One cannot undermine the achievements of South Africa or else it could easily be said that South Africa is becoming an embarrassment to Africa.

When the Arab Springs started to take the centre point of affairs in the political terrain in Africa, we still boasted that no one could attempt any uprising in Libya because of Ghadaffi’s firm grip on the people.  Today, Ghadaffi is history. South Africa is on the spot and it will do Africa a lot of good to beam more light on the activities going down in South Africa because recent events reveal that too much dirt is being swept under the carpet there.

All of this go to point at the fact that Nigerians must celebrate our past heroes like Oba Ovonranmwen who as much as possible resisted the British, the earliest political leaders of Nigeria and all those who made sacrifices that Nigeria may be a truly liberated and self-governed state free of every suggestion of colonialism and racism. Racism is a scourge which must be resisted at all costs and as many NGOs that have cases of violation of human rights or racial abuse before them should spare no costs in exposing the culprits for proper sanctioning.  And we must not forget what our past heroes have sacrificed to secure our freedom; it is only reasonable that we retain that freedom with the last drop of blood in us.

 GOD bless Nigeria.

NOT WHO BUT WHAT NIGERIA NEEDS TO EMERGE FROM THIS ERA

 

At a time like this, history will be re-written, interpreted and manipulated to the point of distortion to suit the purpose of the party (mis)representing the history.  Prof. Chinua Achebe’s latest literary work has stirred up much controversy in respect of how people perceive the way he chose to present certain activities of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo.  To an extent, history may be distorted however, some people will know the truth and it is our hope that they will not allow the truth be washed away in dark waters.

The activities of today will make up the history that Nigerians of generations to come will have to study in a bid to understand the quality of people that manned the affairs of the republic during this era. Some of the key points of this era will include:

ü  Except for the civil war of 1967 – 1970 between the Biafra regime and the federal troops of Nigeria, the present administration has seen a large number of Nigerians brutally executed by violent terrorist groups and other criminal perpetrators of evil. 

 

ü  Many resourceful and able-bodied Nigerians have deliberately taken to the path of criminal activities like kidnapping people for ransom, advanced fee frauds by government officials and agencies, internet fraud with credit cards fraud, etc.

 

ü  The energy sector is plagued by the many travails of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN), the nation’s electric power supplier.  For over 20 years, every new leadership of the corporation has ended in scandals and further waste of national resources.  The trade in power generators continues to thrive; the trade has been so lucrative that Nigerian traders attempted to extend their tentacles into Ghana save for the timely opposition and very strong protests of Ghanaians who are well informed of the negative impact the trade is having on Nigeria.  The cost of powering and maintaining generators are ten times more than bills that consumers pay to PHCN.

 

ü  The judiciary has not provided the much desired comfort that people expect as the many cases in Nigerian law courts that require urgent attention are not given the expedience that such cases attract.  Plea bargain is being used as the perfect tool to effectively neutralize the penalty for financial crimes.  Worse still, Nigerian judges have time and again handed down judgments that make people question their integrity.

 

ü  Monumental frauds have been spotted and reported in the management of Nigeria’s premium product which led to protests that shut down Nigeria for about 10 days in January, 2012 and over a year after, the reports submitted by the committee established by the government cannot be addressed.

 

ü  There have been issues between some northern governors who claim to have some documentation that contains an agreement entered into between some northern political elements and the leader of the present administration.  This however is being strongly refuted by the president.

 

ü  The first lady of this administration has also made a demand for over N4billion on the national treasury of Nigeria to expend on the project of her mission house.

These are some key points that modern day historians must not leave out when writing the history of Nigeria. It has been one embarrassment after the other, one shocker after the other and it is not like the end is in sight yet.  The abuse and the plundering of Nigeria without making room for sustainable development shows people who have a vendetta against Nigeria; like they have come to contribute their own quota to ensuring that the nation Nigeria gets wiped off the face of the earth.

In the face of all the challenges that Nigeria is going through, it is quite depressing to see that people still put forward their own myopic reasoning in the search  a good leader for Nigeria.  What Nigeria needs is more of salvation than administration.  The last few years have shown that Nigeria is groaning under the leadership of barbaric, unenlightened and scarcity-mentality infested minds whose main aim is to drag Nigeria back into the dark ages.  If not for the pressure from the international community, there would have long been military intervention in the running of Nigeria. 

Nigerians have been (mis)led by the military and now by politicians of the old brigade and the corrupt new generation ones as well as modern day religious leaders; in the end they have profited greatly at the expense of Nigerians.  It is time for Nigerians to stop being swayed by religious or ethnic bias as a reason for choosing a leader for this great nation.  Nigeria must move forward in civilization, technology and domestic as well as international trade and all of these can only be achieved within certain extents of political stability, national security and electricity power supply.  It is time Nigerians started to actively practice the art of thinking again.  It may not be easy to pre-determine who will support the drive to attain these progress-inclined objectives but it is very clear who has failed to improve on what existed and who saw to the breakdown of what little there was.

GOD bless Nigeria.

BETWEEN FAST FOOD AND HEALTHY EATING

Ordinarily one would want to steer clear of this area by virtue of the fact that food and nutrition as a topic is not particularly exciting enough for some of us. However, it keeps coming back in one form or the other within the consumer parlour. The issue of healthy eating as against feasting on fast (junk) food becomes paradoxical as it concerns consumers in Nigeria.

A large number of consumers in Nigeria appreciate such fast food like burgers, potato chips, shawarma, club sandwiches, pizza, ice-cream, milkshakes, various forms of pastry, meat, etc.  These are items that one could easily buy from the street corner vendor and dash off in developed countries where they are a common sight.  An appreciable number of food vendors have brought their business to Nigeria because of the abundance of opportunities the Nigerian economy avails.  Many outlets have been opened in Nigeria for delivery of the service but the snag is that what is being served is strangely no match with what obtains in other countries and they come at outrageous prices.

In Nigeria, junk food is viewed as ‘oyinbo food’ and our inability to believe in our worth gives reason for the service providers to mark up their prices. It is quite disturbing to see that people come from as far as Lebanon come to Lagos to vend sharwarma. By the time one takes into consideration the total cost of relocation and establishing the business, coupled with the many challenges of doing business in a terrain as peculiar as Nigeria, the consumer would already have been earmarked as the one to make up for what may have turned out to be a loss to the business owner.  Ordinarily, a sharwarma seller in a street corner in Beirut or Tel-Aviv is no different from the man selling barbecued beef which we call ‘suya.’  Anyone who feels like a meal of suya can easily afford it and it is troubling to see that other quick meals that are made from ingredients and material that are easily available in our markets are being sold for such outrageous prices.  It is so bad that the few Nigerians who have the skills to put together such quick meals also mark up their price to match what the non-Nigerians offer.

A news report on the African section of China Central television news (CCTV news) showcased  the new Johnny Rocket outlet in Victoria Island, Lagos where a beef burger is being offered for about US$22.00 and an ice-cream cup for about US$15.00. Quite remarkably the reporter went on to say that ‘the cost has not in any way deterred consumers from patronizing.’  This is far from the truth as many consumers are complaining about the outrageous prices of the good stuff they have on offer.  These are things that a consumer in other countries in Europe, America and even some West African countries can easily afford without digging too deep into his pocket.  At this point we need to raise issues about this trend.  Time and again, many economic reports make reference to the fact that the average Nigerian survives on less than US$2.00 per day so the very suggestion that some Nigerians are happy to spend as much as US$50.00 on junk food is like a blow below the belt.

The consumers will need to contribute something towards negotiating these outrageous prices downwards.  Products that are being vended are locally made and all materials required are locally sourced and the notion that the consumer is being saved the trouble of having to travel abroad in order to have access to such food is complete hogwash.   Local stuff being sold locally should not in any way attract such prices. 

Like every aspect of life, there will be consequences, the implication is that young people would tend to compromise a lot of things to have a taste of what is being offered and the vendor is not assured of his franchise because as soon as Nigerian workers in his kitchen come to understand how to put the stuff together, they are off to open their own business which may not be as expensive as the original franchise.  Worse still, there are many fast food vending companies that have entered the Nigerian market and they have been growing with every new day and their service is getting better; there are others who have been in Nigeria for many years and they continue to thrive decently. 

Nigeria requires foreign investors and investments and Nigeria is safe enough to attract viable and attractive investments including individuals who prior to this opportunity were groaning under the burden of economic melt-down being experienced by most developed economies. 

GOD bless Nigeria.