Congratulations! our dear President-elect. May our Almighty GOD grant you the strength, wisdom and understanding to take Nigeria to a greater level. The Lord will equally give you long life and good health as well but don't forsake the poor Nigerians that voted for you.

@ Dis Guy


^{what were the figures before 1999? the number of female applying for jamb/college and polytechnic increased by about 40% from that jamb site   he certainly isnt a miracle worker, think about their culture, poverty up north.}

So if he cannot change his  folks in the north, can he now perform miracle in Nigeria.  Can you provide an evidence to show that Yar'dua has increased JAMB application in his state to 40%.




[sup]the poeple that say he is less corrupt are not those in his state alone, CBN, EFCC and icpc* didnt really have anything to say about him moving money abroad. [/sup]

Did CBN, EFCC and ICPC say anything about Gorge Bode, Adedibe, Andy Uba, Tony Anenih? What happened to all the billions he received since 1999? Katsina got about 3.6 Billion from federal allocation in Feb 07. Here is a link for your perusal.
http://www.fmf.gov.ng/detail.php?link=faac

Dis Guy @

^{don't you think that will be a bit selfish; he actually built hospitals and one* with  dialysis facility why he didnt get treatment there is another matter.}
Selfish that he was not ranked in top five of performing governors or that he never made any landmark achievement in his state.  That means he built a sub standard hospital. How can you not live in a house you built?

^{what are the evidence utomi,buhari, atiku can perfom better?}

A comparison is based on two existing conditions. Yar'dua has a verifiable public record while Utomi has  none. I will forever vote for Pat Utomi because of his success in  business  and education. He has never held any public position, so we check Yar'dua on his achievements.   I can never vote for Buhari or Atiku. Comparing Yar'dua's achivement with Pat Utomi is like comparing an unsuccessful   medical student who has had the opportunity to study medicine for 8 years to a Jambite who wants to study medicine.


@ Iyke-D

[sup]Why all the anger?  [/sup]
The same anger that forced you to leave Nigeria. 



^{Don't concern yourself, but let me worry about my investment in Transcorp, its
my money - but thank you for being so caring, I will get back to you in about 6
months, okay?}   

When you will be wining and dining with Dangote.Good luck

^{Promised land? Why do everybody keep talking about promised land? Which
promised land are we talking about? As far as I know, such leader is yet to be
born in Nigeria, the political institutions or culture is not there and the people
are not ready. Lets worry about the basics first - like improved power supply,
water, Lagos - Benin road, and schools before we talk about space and the likes.}

What OBJ was not able to do, so do you really think Yar'dua who never wanted to be a president can deliver? Charity begins at home. He has not delivered in his state. Maybe is Nigeria is synonymous with bad roads. Promised Land is for Jews not Nigerians lol.


[sup]Finally, those wishing to have a Liberia or Congo in Nigeria, you truly have no
idea what war does to a people or to a nation. I will prefer my Nigeria the way
it is any day than to subject it to a Congolese or Liberian experiment. [/sup]

Always alluding to the fear of breaking up, yet the nation has  broken people’s lives and hopes.  We cannot prosper beyond the status quo unless we fight for our dear country. Abiola had to fight for OBJ to emerge as the president. Had MKO not fought Abacha , he  could have still been  the  president or Abubukar would have continued in office.  No society has ever changed without any form of revolution. The fact that you have USA boldly written in your profile is because people fought for it ,  MLK and   co fought for equality. It’s never the intention of the captor to live the captive free, but the captive should demand for his freedom. Zik , Awo and Co demanded independence from British colonialists, but this generation  does not want the same independence from their fellow black men.


_{By the way, how is that great new democrat of Nigeria, your friend Atiku doing, I
haven't heard a word from him this past couple of days - maybe the Sultan has
placed the phone call, you get my drift. .} .

I can never hold brief for Atiku. Just trying to say that corruption does not stop with Atiku.  OBJ is corrupt as well.

@b adconline

I am really sure you don't know what war does to a nation. don't pray for it, i beg you. besides, it is true utomi has contributed to business. i am sure ur verdict is based on the fact he has established a business school rite? now, let me ask u one question: how many people have gone or can afford to go throuh that school? utomi is a president an ideal nigeria would have, we are in a real nigeria. we have not gotten to the state of utopia yet.

@ Mosetra
While your president elect cannot even send his people to school even  with 3.6 billion naira  a month. kai naija is visionless.   Which one is utopia building school and not building school?

@adconline

The same anger that forced you to leave Nigeria.

I wish I could say I was forced to leave Nigeria in anger - my story is a bit different, but
then I will leave it at that (don't want to share too much private info with strangers).

When you begin to lead that revolution, hopefully, most of us will have a re-think and
join you. But I will repeat that the last thing Nigeria want is to be turned into a Liberia
or Sierra Leone because after all the blood letting and destruction is over, people will
be wishing things were back the way they were before the first gunshot. And guess
what too, politics [b]may[/b]just be business as usual afterwards. Will you die for Atiku?

You can knock Yar Adua all you want, but he will still emerge among one of the best
performing governors in Nigeria, maybe our standards are lower, but you can't take
that away from him. Also, since when has JAMB being the only yardstick for measuring
a governor's performance in office? Also, how much was Katsina's monthly payroll or
where you thinking the N3.6B should have been spent on education alone? What we
need most at the helm of affairs is a man of steel, honesty, and integrity - no one is
yet to accuse Yar Adua of lacking any of these.

So cheer up, all hope is not lost.

_{adconline, the number of female students taking jamb increased by about 65%; number of overall students by 35% 2002-2006}

kalu apparently succeeded in business but failed woefully as a state governor- i dont know much about pat utomi

Iyke-D
I hope we are not misconstruing revolution for war. Remember pre 1999, Chidi Ubani, Gani and co organized 5 million  march to counter Daniel Kanu's 1 million  march- (Youth Earnestly Ask for Abacha Anarchy) Ekwueme and G18 organized a political summit in Abuja, After which they went straight to Aso Rock to tell Abacha that he should jettison his idea of transforming into a civilian leader. Following the annulment of 1993 general elections, Nigerians protested. Frank Kokori organized labour and demonstrated against IBB and Abacha. In all these circumstances, did Nigeria break up? Did war break out? No

[sup]You can knock Yar Adua all you want, but he will still emerge among one of the best
performing governors in Nigeria, maybe our standards are lower, but you can't take
that away from him. [/sup]

I am not praying that Yar'dua should fail, but he  has no impressive record to lead me to believe that he can deliver. Why don’t you provide a contrary evidence to show that he is one of the best performing governors in Nigeria even though he never made it to the top five? This list was prepared by UNICEF and National Planning Commission.

[^{color=#990000]Also, since when has JAMB being the only yardstick for measuring
a governor's performance in office?} [/color]

Maybe you should tell us other ways of measuring his performance in education. Using JAMB as a yardstick is even a lower benchmark given the fact that it reflects his achievement in education only. Let's remember that education is one out of many problems facing Nigeria. A sitting governor who has not done much in that area is very incapable of being a leader.  He could not change the status quo in his state, do you now think that he can change anything in Abuja where he will work with NASS, and unfamiliar ministers?

^{Also, how much was Katsina's monthly payroll or
where you thinking the N3.6B should have been spent on education alone? What we
need most at the helm of affairs is a man of steel, honesty, and integrity - no one is
yet to accuse Yar Adua of lacking any of these.}

I wonder if any of these qualities make any meaning to Nigerian politics.  Does a person of integrity and honesty rig elections, commit electoral fraud? Intimidate opponents? and impose his electoral fraud on Nigeria? Let's not exaggerate issues; most Nigerian politicians do not embody these characters you ascribed to Yar'dua. If he judiciously spends a  considerable amount on education, there will be a lot of progress in his state. As Tinapa is to Duke, what will Yar’dua be known for?

so between Yar'Adua, Buhari and Atiku - who will you have preferred?

I believe Atiku is his man!

But then, I wonder what Atiku has ever done in his life to get that
honor, besides being the richest retired civil servant on earth!

@adconline

Mind you, I am not comparing Duke and Yar Adua. The choices were
Atiku, Buhari, and Yar Adua which was no brainier. Also, that PDP
rigged the elections doesn't necessary translate to the fact that Yar
Adua rigged the elections as well - that's an unfair statement.

If we were to use that line of thinking to judge every politician in
Nigeria, then you know even your man Duke who was a product of
PDP will not come out clean. Same goes for Buhari or ANPP states
or AC (Lagos). I am all for peaceful protest/revolution by the way,
but like I said earlier, I don't find much of the opposition credible.

If indeed they are able to protest, you bet PDP will marshall out more
people to counter that protest, because the truth of the matter was
that there were millions of Nigeria that truly voted for Yar Adua too.
I guess this weakens your Abacha's argument since no one voted
for him.

Duke will be known for Tinapa alright, but the Obasanjo haters will
not admit that had it not being for the support of the Federal Govt.
and its reforms, Tinapa wouldn't have seen the light of day.

yap yap yap - thats all you guys know.

I'd rather not bias my mind here "landers", and if I'm to choose who'd be nigerian president from the list of candidates at the poll, I'd say Yar' Adua. The name sounds sweet pronouncing it but, neverthless, I'll be fooling myself if this is meant to be my reason. Yeah, it's obvious OBJ has a deal with the man but just like Ngige of all people now in Anambra, I believe the man will stop at note but to nail our old foolish presido. If you like bet it with your life, and I'll first dig six feets for you. Anyway, what course have I to choose a man of tyranny. I'm simply talking about Buhari, or is he trying to portray himself as a saint. You don't practice the use of your left hand in your old age; nor have I another course to uplift the hand of a shameless face running into the hands of the white Americans just to spit on the faces of us all landers. This is just about the people we are looking up to have the chance, and if you think other candidates have a chance to access this seat of presidence, you better wake up (I think I bluffed here, but , wait a minute). Though PDP is a party of  monsters and thiefs, but it is not always through that evil beggets evil. It is high time we choose the candidate irrespective of the party. The way I view things, I have come to some conclusion that this partywise of a thing is part of the things behind our problem. I liked AC as a party but does belonging to this part that I like most make Atiku worthy enough to rule our dear motherland. Yar'Adua though not a saint but a look at his feat is enough to convince me that he will bring us a change.

Just the way I viewed things, nobody's giving me money.

Hmm we neva can say anything till its over

I just hope the whole noise about the election doesn't drive Nigeria to the precipice again.
Even if the election was not rigged, what is there to choose between the main front runners, Buhari (the general turned Sharia fanatic) and Atiku, super rich VP for 8 years, with no discernible vision, except to continue his looting of the nation's wealth.

My own guess is that Yar'dua would still have won if the election was free and fair. And under the circumstances, he might well be the best of the unelectable lot. He has a university degree, if only to please those that have been craving for a graduate to rule Nigeria, he was one of the few politicians in the whole country to ever publicly declare his asset as a governor, so he can at least, lay claim to being a man of integrity.
Not that If I had the opportunity to vote, I would have voted for him. I would have gone for somebody like Pat Utomi, but I know he doesnt stand a chance in that Nigeria political terrain as it's presently constituted, (he's not politically tested too, you might say, it's just his credentials I find appealing).

After all said and done, let the Nigerian elites and political contractors sort themselves out, after all, most of their actions have little or no positive benefit to the generality of the people. Things would continue as they are (Pray am proved wrong).They are actors in a revolving circus, and when the shenanigan turn violent, they would flee to join their wives, concubines and children in their mansions in Europe and America.

don't judge a book by it's cover
i have a feeling he's a changed man

Iyke-D

I do not know if you were reffering me as Atiku's man even when all my posts are not indicative of it.



^{Mind you, I am not comparing Duke and Yar Adua. The choices were
Atiku, Buhari, and Yar Adua which was no brainier.   Also, that PDP
rigged the elections doesn't necessary translate to the fact that Yar
Adua rigged the elections as well - that's an unfair statement.}

I highlighted some of Yar'dua flaws and you rose to his defense by saying that he was one of the best performing governors. You are yet to prove me wrong on  this. As for Yar'dua not being an accomplice in rigging election is just like absolving Chris Ngige from 2003 rigging in Anambra. When the courts ruled, the decision affected Ngige's position as governor. What you are saying is that someone who keeps or buys a stolen property is not an accomplice. How could Yar'dua not rig elections when PDP led government committed electoral fraud? It will be foolhardy to think that Yar’dua was not in the know when PDP hatched it plans to rig election.  He is the greatest beneficiary of electoral fraud in Nigeria, so he cannot be absolved.





^{If indeed they are able to protest, you bet PDP will marshall out more
people to counter that protest, because the truth of the matter was
that there were millions of Nigeria that truly voted for Yar Adua too.
I guess this weakens your Abacha's argument since no one voted
for him.}.



This does not in any way weaken my argument because Nigerians "revolted"   during military regime and war as you espoused did not break out. Comparing Nigerian situation to Liberian situation is a little bit exaggerated because we are not at war but in disagreement with INEC results. By the way Liberian elections were much better organized than Nigeria's.


^{Duke will be known for Tinapa alright, but the Obasanjo haters will
not admit that had it not being for the support of the Federal Govt.
and its reforms, Tinapa wouldn't have seen the light of day.}

I dont know why you get the gist that OBJ should be glorified for Duke's Tinapa. Why didn’t FG build one in Abuja? Does it mean that we only need one Tinapa in Nigeria? Duke had the Tinapa  vision OBJ did not have .  If OBJ is glorified for Duke's vision, could he also be vilified for bad leadership in Abia state? It’s also worthy of note that Duke is not OBJ's appointed minister, so there is a clear separation of functions among three tiers of government.  I wonder if you really know the difference between OBJ haters and OBJ policy haters. I am for the later.

yaradua, or whatever u call him, sorry to say, that guy doesnt even look educated, even it is said he is the 1st educated elected president for Nigeria.
The recent election is jus a shame to Our country.
I wonder what nigeria will look like in the next 7yrs, its just getting worse and worse, !

@adconline

Its obvious we will never see eye to eye on this. Name one election that has been truly
"free and fair" in Nigeria, the one in which [b]no rigging [/b]took place?

You believe Yar Adua is a dis-honest man and lack integrity, fine, but strange coming from
someone supporting Atiku, strange indeed.

You can live in denial all you want and be quick to condemn OBJ and attribute all the woes
in the country to him, but fail to credit him with any positive contribution - that's your choice.
I guess when it comes to OBJ, objectivity is thrown out the window. Oh well.

Here by the way. . .

Investment opportunities abound in Tinapa Calabar

By Peter Egwuatu
Posted to the Web: Friday, April 20, 2007

History was made last week as there was joy and happiness within and outside Calabar municipal city of Cross River State, when the most prestigious African resort, Tinapa Calarbar was commissioned by President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The project which is Governor Donald Duke’s initiative was sponsored by both the Cross River State Government as well as the private sector.
While commissioning the prestigious resort, President Olusegun Obsasanjo praised Duke for his dream to make Calabar a tourist attraction as his thought has metamorphosed as the fulcrum of business development, which has placed Cross River State and Nigeria in general in world tourism map.

Commenting on the project, Obasanjo likened the Tinapa Calabar to a haven of plenty sighted in our fatherland Nigeria.
The African most largest tourism resort, (Tinapa Calabar) have two gigantic studios, capable of accommodating two films production at the same time, five star hotel facilities , artificial lake , casino, and four emporia for high tech export free zone and shopping plaza.

The project is valued with a potential of injecting over N500 billion annually into the Nigerian economy.
Addressing the large crowd who witnessed the commissioning ceremony, Governor Duke said that over 15,000 Nigerians stand to reap the benefit of gainful employment in the project, in addition to other supply outlets and consultancy services to Tinapa.

Duke attributed the success of the project to President Obasanjo who gave him all the support and encouragement , promising that other phases of the project will in no distant time be operational.

He added that by the time all the embodiment of Tinapa becomes functional , the state will be reckoned as the most developed state within the West African sub region.

He commended all stakeholders for their unwavering faith in the project, noting that the dividend will soon be reaped.
Also at the commissioning day, three banks showed their presence in support of the tourism resort. The banks are Ekobank Nigeria Plc, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, and FCMB Plc .

The MD/CEO, Ecobank, Mr Offong Ambah, stated that Ecobank was the first bank to be granted license by Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) to establish branch in Tinapa.

He stated that the bank would partner with the state government in the area of financing Small Scale Enterprises (SMEs).
Speaking ,Ambah, said, “We are always willing to support business ideas with great potential to contribute to the economic growth and development of Nigeria and indeed Africa. Tinapa happens to be one of such. Its the first, largest, and presently the only business resort in the entire West / Central African region and Ecobank Nigeria is proud to be associated with it.”

Ecobank, which formally opened its Tinapa branch to customers in Calabar introduced the Ecobank Naira Credit Card.
Speaking, the bank’s Head, South East Region Mr. Sylvester Mbamali noted that as a Pan African Bank with strong retail pedigree, Ecobank will extend its products and services to customers visiting Tinapa. Speaking earlier, Mr. Ambah explained that “our branch here is simply an attestation to our commitment to supporting local and foreign business in the region.

Duke, said “when we went to the banks with our vision, only a few of them responded favorably, and today, thanks to Ecobank, UBA, First Bank and others, our vision has become a reality, and baby Tinapa has being delivered ” The Tinapa business resort was commissioned by His Excellency President Olusegun Obasanjo, on the 2nd of April 2007. A one stop business and recreational resort, it boasts of recreational and commercial facilities, a film studio, banks, shopping centre, and others.

In the same manner, FCMB MD\CEO, Mr. Ladi Balagun said “ Our bank will not only identify with Tinapa project, but will also assist agro industrial development, micro credit lending to both small scale industries and large industries both in local and foreign currencies.
UBA comment here.

Responding also, Governor Duke commended the banks for erecting an architectural edifice in the heart of the city, Calabar.
He advised the banks to integrate into local community by providing jobs for the indigenous population, noting that local workforce was critical to the development of any community.

Meanwhile , Nollywood displayed its movie during the launch of Tinapa, Calabar. Nollywood has been an idea, resident only in the minds of Nigerian movie buffs. Agreed that the word Nollywood had always stood for the Nigerian movie industry, in fact representing the industry, unlike its American counterpart Hollywood, Nollywood was not occupying any space on the earth surface. Thousands, perhaps millions of visitors to Hollywood in California, USA have seen the lettering, H O L L Y W O O D boldly engraved on the green and rugged hills of California as the location of the film capital of the world.

Hollywood ’s clone in Africa which is Nollywood for years had no home of its own, no location except in the minds of people and on the pages of newspapers and magazines. It was perhaps enough for the patrons of the Nigerian Dream Factory and those engaged in it to be content with just producing the films and buying them without bothering to give it a place of its own. For years, therefore, Nollywood was an abstract term in the sense that it had no location in terms of physical infrastructure and no one could point to a place and say, Nollywood is here or that it is over there. But that deprivation, that sense of homelessness or rootlessness is now history. The Duke, that is, the governor of Cross River State, has, as they say, stolen the show. He has found a home for Nollywood on the green hills of Tinapa in Calabar.

The glittering and diverse infrastructure that make up Tinapa sit on the lush greenery of Africa ’s tropical forest like a plateau of extravagant beauty.
Henceforth, anywhere in Nigeria or outside the country, whenever the question is asked on the location of Nigeria ’s movie capital, the answer would be Calabar. The Duke has stolen the show by giving Nollywood a home. This is one big plus for Cross River State tourism industry and this gesture has the potential of increasingly enhancing the state’s tourism concerns even as the years go by.

Governor Donald Duke, by a stroke of genius, has made Calabar, Cross River State , Nigeria ’s movie capital and, guess what, nobody can take him to court! This is a public relations victory for Cross River State and the implications have far reaching effects. It would mean henceforth that Nigeria ’s film capital is not Lagos , not Abuja , and not Jos, but Calabar in Cross River State . Soon, fans of Nigerian movies along the West Coast of Africa would get to know that Nollywood is in a place called Calabar in Nigeria and that Calabar is Nigeria ’s tourism capital and they would in turn begin to dream of visiting the tourist attraction, Nollywood! Tagged Studio Tinapa, the movie studio in Tinapa is fitted with a state-of-the-art editing suite and advanced sound studios and it will serve as a post production centre.

During the launch of Tinapa studio, President Olusegun Obasanjo could not hide his excitement over the completion of its first phase. His words: “When you leave here today and go home and when you travel back in Nigeria and abroad, sing! And when you sing, sing “I see Tinapa, I feel Tinapa and tell everyone what is happening here, that there is a dream in Nigeria that is a reality. And that’s what we’ll all be thinking about when we’re singing the praises of Tinapa.”

Duke who visualized Tinapa bubbled with mirth on the day of the launch. “Tinapa sets new standards. When you walk around Tinapa you will see that the quality of building work is higher than that of any other project in the continent. I’ve always said that we must never shy away from the challenges of developing our country, no matter how difficult they are. Tinapa is a testimony to the fact that we Nigerians can equal, if not exceed, the best in the world.”

Duke went on: “Wealth can only be created through vision, imagination and, most importantly, through dint of hard work. Tinapa has been created by a team of Nigerians and international experts, who worked hellishly long hours for a period of three intense years. What we’ve achieved together wasn’t easy, but it was worth it.”

The chief executive officer of Tinapa, Mr. Sam Anani, was not left out. To him, “This dream was presented before one of the most courageous leaders in the history of this country, His excellency, President Olusegun Obasanjo. The single most important factor which was to ensure Tinapa became a reality was the president’s enthusiastic and unambiguous endorsement, which he followed through with concrete action in unleashing the Federal Government’s might in support of the project. Our president authorized the granting of sovereign guarantees to support the project’s fund-raising-an initiative that motivated the private sector to commit support for Tinapa.”

Also, read up on [b]NEPAD [/b]and Tinapa.

Na wa oh

Iyke-D
You are always mixing up issues. I challenged you to show me where I supported Atiku. It looks like you are not able to see corruption when it’s perpetuated by OBJ and his cronies. That's the difference between me and you. You believe that every good thing that happened in Nigeria came as a result of OBJ reforms, but still don’t believe that every bad thing that happened, occured as a result of lapse in his leadership as well. That's what leadership is all about.

Let's keep holding Nigeria to lower benchmark. Election rigging is now synonymous to Nigeria as power failure is also a Nigerian. Can you tell me any election in Nigeria that all observers including local and international called a sham. Even OBJ acknowledged it in his national broadcast. The only lasting legacy he could bequeath to Nigeria is by holding a credible election. He made the same mistake he made in 1979 by enthroning Shagari who became a lame duck president to political jobbers like Alhaji Alhaji and Umaru Dikko.

@adconline

Please google my screen name on Nairaland and you will see my comments regarding the just
concluded elections - no where did I say it passed the smell test. You are the one mixing up
issues here, that is, hatred for Obasanjo equate everything wrong with Nigeria. Once again,
please google my screen name on Nairaland and highlight where I gave the elections a pass
mark. My position on this is effectively same as that of the US government (recent statement)
in which they pledged to work with Yar Adua inspite of the flawed elections.

I have criticized Obasanjo for some of his bone headed decisions or policies and have also
given him credit for the right policies, unlike some people who [b]NEVER [/b]sees anything good or
right that his administration has done over the past 8 years. Again, your last statement says
it all - that is Obasanjo is the cause of Nigeria's problem since 1979. It was his fault, that the
Umaru Dikkos, Wayas, and co emerged, and I suppose its been downhill ever since.

is this dude hausa?

U mean the president?Of course he is

Na wa for you my man,na you just dey rubish the Athem of our Great Colledge Ikirun,well i was also in the Second set.

I am Attaching my photo for you to know me,this is Jerry,i was in Yellow house Room 3 and 4,our Ewa was so watery that the Iso was so Loud,but nothing much dey happen,keep the good work going,i love u all.

Na wa for you my man,na you just dey rubish the Athem of our Great Colledge Ikirun,well i was also in the Second set.

I am Attaching my photo for you to know me,this is Jerry,i was in Yellow house Room 3 and 4,our Ewa was so watery that the Iso was so Loud,but nothing much dey happen,keep the good work going,i love u all.

:-x

how do U mean man?