has anyone been following the federal house of assembly public inquiry on power and the incredible allegations and facts unfolding since it started?started watching it yesterday and im suprised at the level of blatant corruption and disregard for due process even bordering on arrogance on the part of the last administration under obj pls share on here if you have been following it

Mega watt scam:

Firm with N2000 capital paid N13bn

•Abubakar named in N19bn contract
•Reps summon Imoke, Okonjo-Iweala

Abiodun Adelaja, Abuja


FORMER Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar was yesterday named as the chairman of Energo Nigeria Limited, an unregistered firm which securred a N19 billion contract in the power sector during the administration of former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

The company, with a paid up capital of just N2,000 had collected over N13 billion part payment for job.

These facts emerged at the on-going public hearing on government expenditure on the power sector by the House of Representatives holding in Abuja.

The company won the contract for the 33kva Ugwu Aji-New Haven-Ikot Ekpene nine-kilometer substation transmission in 2003 and despite the 24 months completion period has barely achieved 5 per cent implementation.

Similarly the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Energy, Dr. Abdullahi Aliyu, yesterday gave graphic details of how Chief Obasanjo approved payments for over 300 National Independent Power Projects (NIPP) in questionable circumstances.

Aliyu whose presentation drew concerns from members of the House Committee on Power and Steel, which is investigating huge expenditure on power reforms programme between 1999 and 2007 said there were no inputs of his Ministry on the payment schedules, adding that the approvals did not even pass through their tenders’ board.

Also yesterday the panel summoned Cross Rives State governor, Liyel Imoke, to appear before it to explain the roles he played in the award of the controversial contracts.

The contract papers, he said emanated from then Minister of Power, Senator Liyel Imoke, who passed same to Due Process Office for ratification.

According to Aliyu, the documents were subsequently passed for presidential approval without input from the Ministry.

Aliyu said, "There were payments that were made that were not supposed to be made.

There are no records of payment for any National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) at the Ministry; the projects were done by the presidential committee.

"They felt that the money they were using (excess crude) belonged to the three tiers of government so, our input was not important."

He added, however, that following Obasanjo’s exit from office last May, the Ministry set up several task forces to look into the problems associated with the projects with a view to finding solutions to them.

On Energo its Managing Director, Mr. Dejan Gerotic, who revealed the identities of the firm’s Board members, said Abdusalami became the chairman of the company in 2000.

Other Board members, according to Gerotic, include former Managing Director of defunct National Electric Power Authority, NEPA, and later a Minister, Alhaji Hamza Ibrahim, David Oyeyele and Felix Oshinuga.

The company was awarded the contract, which has offshore component of Euro72. 6 million and onshore component of N4. 85 billion.

Although by the work schedule the job is billed for completion in 2009, Mr. Gerotic said they had achieved about 30 per cent progress, a claim the Managing Director of the NIPP, Mr. James Olotu, the supervising agency faulted declaring that the job progress was barely 5 per cent.

Also, while Olotu said the offshore component of the job was Euro73.68 million Gerotic quoted Euro72.68 million as contained in his own contract papers leaving a balance of Euro1million.

The Permanent Secretary disclosure during the probe followed an immediate summon of Governor Imoke of Cross River State, former Minister of Finance and currently the Managing Directors of the World Bank for Africa and Asia, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala and Mr. Solomon Matankari former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Power.

Aliyu in his submission said from available information, out of over 340 contracts approved by the NIPP, payment were made for 300 payments with Obasanjo approving directly.

Earlier Olotu, told the committee that an Alhaji Atiku Abubakar-led Presidential committee, however passed the mandate to the steering committee headed by the Former Minister of Power, Senator Imoke, with other members who were the former Minister of Finance, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, the former Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Chief Funso Kupolokun, former Managing Director, National Electoric Power Authority (NEPA) and later Presidential Adviser on Power, Chief Joseph Makoju.

He said other members of the steering committee, were Seke Somolu and the nine governors of Niger Delta States.

Also yesterday, the Managing Director of Pivot Engineering, a company chaired by Otunba Oba Otudeko, Mr. David Bray stunned the hearing when he revealed as the head of the contracting firm on a N607, 822,970 Enugu-New Haven-9th Mile-Nsukka 132kva Double Circuit Transmission Line electricity project, he has never been to the site.

He admitted that a payment for the onshore component amounting to N151, 955,742 has been paid to the company while it has also received an advance payment of $847,623.20 for the off-shore components since October 4, 2006.

Meanwhile, a group known as the Power Sector Watchers Group has asked President YarAdua to apologise to his former aide and former Senior Special Assistant on Power, Flouseke Shomolu for sacking him, and re-instate him because he, and not the President, was right that only $3.7 billion that was released to the power sector in the eight years of Obasanjo’s administration, and not the $10 billion credited to the President or the $16 billion credited to Speaker, House of Representatives, Hon. Dimeji Bankole.


http://www.nigeriamasterweb.com/paperfrmes.html

lucabrasi:

Mega watt scam:

Firm with N2000 capital paid N13bn

FORMER Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar was yesterday named as the chairman of Energo Nigeria Limited, an unregistered firm which securred a N19 billion contract in the power sector during the administration of former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.

The company, with a paid up capital of just N2,000 had collected over N13 billion part payment for job.
These facts emerged at the on-going public hearing on government expenditure on the power sector by the House of Representatives holding in Abuja.

The company won the contract for the 33kva Ugwu Aji-New Haven-Ikot Ekpene nine-kilometer substation transmission in 2003 and despite the 24 months completion period has barely achieved 5 per cent implementation.

I see no reason why this should not been detected years ago. This is 5 years after the start of the project, meaning about 3 years after it was supposed to have been completed. Who was in charge of foreseeing this project and making sure to update the records?? That person should be immediately relieved of his or her position, and even fined for waiting 3 years to reveal this to the nation.

Similarly the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Energy, Dr. Abdullahi Aliyu, yesterday gave graphic details of how Chief Obasanjo approved payments for over 300 National Independent Power Projects (NIPP) in questionable circumstances.

Aliyu whose presentation drew concerns from members of the House Committee on Power and Steel, which is investigating huge expenditure on power reforms programme between 1999 and 2007 said there were no inputs of his Ministry on the payment schedules, adding that the approvals did not even pass through their tenders’ board.

Also yesterday the panel summoned Cross Rives State governor, Liyel Imoke, to appear before it to explain the roles he played in the award of the controversial contracts.

The contract papers, he said emanated from then Minister of Power, Senator Liyel Imoke, who passed same to Due Process Office for ratification.

According to Aliyu, the documents were subsequently passed for presidential approval without input from the Ministry.

Aliyu said, "There were payments that were made that were not supposed to be made.

There are no records of payment for any National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) at the Ministry; the projects were done by the presidential committee.

"They felt that the money they were using (excess crude) belonged to the three tiers of government so, our input was not important."

i dont even think its a question of being detected cause at the end of the day who is going to step up to obj and tell him he s not following due process plus they were all in on it as well even the upper and lower house but in diffrent degrees of involvment read online yestd that obj s vowed to deal with hon dimeji bankole for instigating the public sitting naij we hail thee

When are these people going to just leave the country alone? I am not even asking for their death or anything like that, just to simply give the country back what they stole and leave us alone, i mean if they hate the country that much and don't care about anyone but themselves then why should anyone care about them? We keep on hoping that if we give them enough rope they will hang themselves (metaphorically speaking). However, many opportunities have come and gone for the whole "can of worms" to be exposed and each time whatever new scandal is rocking the country is simply swept under the carpet. Hasn't any of the politicians got guts? Aliyu had a chance in the House to reveal 419ers but said his friends stopped playing with him so he couldn't do it. This has gone on for a year now and if anything, it shows the current administration's dishonesty in "fighting corruption". My main question in this whole power fiasco is: what is the current administration actually doing to fix the power problem? What? Yaradua's excuse can't be because he is afraid money won't get results because we all know that those billions of dollars spent from the last administration did not go to power but went to bank accounts. Isn't there any honest person in government? If Yaradua does not address this problem very soon or even more importantly reveal his actual plan or any plan for that matter in tackling the problem then what is going to happen? Are we going to be having thesame power conversation after the next election?

What is obvious to me now is, Obj's haste to leave a legacy has landed us in a royal mess.

His ego was on display when he was gallavanting all over the place commissioning
projects that were only 5 per cent completed.

His only saving grace: At least he made an effort to put money in the sector, the first leader to do so
since 1979, which funnily was when he left office.

con someboby tell me wat we are goin 2 do in naija. if it is not fraud, it is impeachment, or assasinatio, or even election nullification. there is only one tin 4 us 2 do; Wheda u re a christian, moslem or traditionalist, PRAY 4 NIGERIA.

Most of those in government have no conscience at all. I believe that this is just the tip of the iceberg. The amount of damage that Obj did to this nation is monumental, yet he goes about his business everyday with all the money he made off the nation intact. He still has the guts to proclaim himself Nigeria's Messiah and went as far as comparing himself to Jesus saying that Jesus was persecuted as well. This is a man that even his own people despise and revile him. Kudos to Bankole for doing the right thing, it's not a matter of being brave, it's simply the right thing to do. I hope he doesn't allow himself to get carried away and influenced negatively by the old school. They should all leave politics and let the younger ones take over.
This is just one ministry or sector. Take into account the number of sectors and you'll might just start to have an idea about how much damage Obj did.

@doyin, he made an effort to put money in the sector? How is embezzling money under the guise of addressing the power problem putting money in the sector? I am tired of hearing so and so person "tried". leadership is not a must, no one forced him. So why on earth should we defend gross mismanagement, looting, embezzlement, and overbudgeting? I am sorry but i believe if i am going to praise sub par, below mediocrity achievements in a PRESIDENT, then i don't have a right to complain when the next guy does thesame things or worse. Please can we at least set ourselves some standards and stop appreciating crumbs or being beggars? It sounds like an abused wife that is grateful to her husband for the night she is not being beaten. People are already praising Yaradua because he seems like a nice person, are we going to throw a party for the next president because he breathes?

Sky Blue:

When are these people going to just leave the country alone? I am not even asking for their death or anything like that, just to simply give the country back what they stole and leave us alone, i mean if they hate the country that much and don't care about anyone but themselves then why should anyone care about them? We keep on hoping that if we give them enough rope they will hang themselves (metaphorically speaking). However, many opportunities have come and gone for the whole "can of worms" to be exposed and each time whatever new scandal is rocking the country is simply swept under the carpet. Hasn't any of the politicians got guts? Aliyu had a chance in the House to reveal 419ers but said his friends stopped playing with him so he couldn't do it. This has gone on for a year now and if anything, it shows the current administration's dishonesty in "fighting corruption". My main question in this whole power fiasco is: what is the current administration actually doing to fix the power problem? What? Yaradua's excuse can't be because he is afraid money won't get results because we all know that those billions of dollars spent from the last administration did not go to power but went to bank accounts. Isn't there any honest person in government? If Yaradua does not address this problem very soon or even more importantly reveal his actual plan or any plan for that matter in tackling the problem then what is going to happen? Are we going to be having thesame power conversation after the next election?

they dont want to leave the country alone because nigeria is realli blessed with the oil,you can imagine a minister or smone in government stealing  hundreds of millions like 20/30 years ago and seeing ppl like obj,atiku and co stealing in billions of dollars.
he/she will probably want to come back by all means and break that record so as not to be seen as being slacking ,there r honest ppl but they end up frustrating them so they ll either resign or stay at some useless desk job for years, guess we need to continue praying to soften their hearts cause  come to think of it ,wud u have imagined a public hearing  just 10 years ago?so i think we r moving foward albeit slowly

Also yesterday, the Managing Director of Pivot Engineering, a company chaired by Otunba Oba Otudeko, Mr. David Bray stunned the hearing when he revealed as the head of the contracting firm on a N607, 822,970 Enugu-New Haven-9th Mile-Nsukka 132kva Double Circuit Transmission Line electricity project, he has never been to the site.

did you gys see this,how can a man otuba oba otudeko who nigerians know as the head of a generator assembly business be involved in a power generating contract??if that isnt a conflict of interest i dont know what is, its actually people like oba otudeko and the rest of the generator selling cabal that ll go to any lenght to make sure the power generating thing ends up in failure, i wount be suprised if his only mission is making surepivot engineering makes sure they sabotage the process ,i dont blame the leaders but the hustlers in the corridors of power like the kenny martins,the oba otudeko s and the rest of em

lucabrasi:

[b]they don't want to leave the country alone because nigeria is realli blessed with the oil,you can imagine a minister or smone in government stealing hundreds of millions like 20/30 years ago and seeing people like obj,atiku and co stealing in billions of dollars.[/b]he/she will probably want to come back by all means and break that record so as not to be seen as being slacking ,there r honest people but they end up frustrating them so they ll either resign or stay at some useless desk job for years, guess we need to continue praying to soften their hearts cause come to think of it ,would u have imagined a public hearing just 10 years ago?so i think we r moving foward albeit slowly

Please do not believe that for a minute longer. The one main reason why they don't want to leave is cause of OUR SPINELESS way of life. Instead of giving them the boot or even killing them as information is revealed of the evils they have done, we have people with no spines who come in here to play the "THEY ARE TRYING CARD" over and over and over as if having it better is impossible. Nigerians are the cowards in this case. We as a people do not want better. We enjoy having thieves and miserable idiots in office that is why they continue to remain. No amount of prayer is going to save us here as we will never do better until we face our fears and fight to be treated like humans. We can switch out these old men for younger men but the same will continue. The younger one's will come to do the exactly the same thing and not until we decide enough is enough and actually do something about it will any change come in.

So the people selling generators should take all the blame? So what was the minister of energy or whatever doing? He could not visit the site? I don't know wether all these so called leaders don't know the meaning of leadership or anything about managing a project. Forget the fact that the whole thing was greatly over budgeted in the first place, but to spend all that and get no results? If that does not warrant a conviction or jail time then i really don't know what does. $16 billion is not chicken change. I am not going to defend such gross ineptitude.

Sky Blue:

@doyin, he made an effort to put money in the sector? How is embezzling money under the guise of addressing the power problem putting money in the sector? I am tired of hearing so and so person "tried". leadership is not a must, no one forced him. So why on earth should we defend gross mismanagement, looting, embezzlement, and overbudgeting? I am sorry but i believe if i am going to praise sub par, below mediocrity achievements in a PRESIDENT, then i don't have a right to complain when the next guy does thesame things or worse. Please can we at least set ourselves some standards and stop appreciating crumbs or being beggars? It sounds like an abused wife that is grateful to her husband for the night she is not being beaten. People are already praising Yaradua because he seems like a nice person, are we going to throw a party for the next president because he breathes?

I am in no way absolving Obj of culpability in the whole mess. My point is the money was embezzled, not by him I am almost sure, but by his
underlings and largely because of his ego and conceit.

He bears ultimate responsibility for the mess no doubt cause that is the way the cookie crumbles.

But you should also appreciate the complexities involved in these grandiose projects.

Even in the UK with a mature accountability system, all manner of corrupt practices are coming to light in the privatisation
of the Tube system.

Obasanjo compounded accountability on these power projects in his haste to have a legacy.

@kobojunkie

feel you on that bred,but who ll bell the cat?i dont think nigerians are spineless but i reckon the problem is lack of patriotic leaders, lets face it look around and name ppl that you can 100% vouch for cause i dont see any,not even the likes of them gani fawehinmi and co because even though they r not hutling for contracts n stuffs they r exploiting the system in their own way, making them millions
the kind of revolution you r talking about needs a fidel castro or che guevera to instigate so dyu realli think we have that, cause if gani fawehinmi whose children are schoolin and living in uk or femi falana whose kids are abroad and the rest of them tells me to come n fight sorri mate im not stepping out of this semi detached

Sky Blue:


So the people selling generators should take all the blame? So what was the minister of energy or whatever doing? He could not visit the site? I don't know wether all these so called leaders don't know the meaning of leadership or anything about managing a project. Forget the fact that the whole thing was greatly over budgeted in the first place, but to spend all that and get no results? If that does not warrant a conviction or jail time then i really don't know what does. $16 billion is not chicken change. I am not going to defend such gross ineptitude.

i know its not solely the generator ppl's fault but you can appreciate the fact that its easier to put the clog in the smooth running of a process that ll put you out of business,im emphasising on them because no one actually talks about them but these guys are making a killing when you check out the rate ppl are buying generators and how much they go for, theres this gen in naij sold for i think 12 grand naira and they use it for like a couple of months before it packs up and they look for money to buy anuiva one i dont know if this is true but i read in one of the dailies last year femi otedola sayn (in private obviously)that he wouldnt mind spending millions of dollars to make sure we dont have a working refinery in nigeria, so i dont think its that far fetched saying these guys contribute a lot to the way the energy/power sector is the way it is , 16 billion is not chicken change to us but trust me it is to them by the time they finish sharing it amongst each other , check out the contractor's body language and their confidence especially the chinese/japanese ones, shows they know there r ppl behind them

lucabrasi:

@kobojunkie

feel you on that bred,but who ll bell the cat?i don't think nigerians are spineless but i reckon the problem is lack of patriotic leaders, lets face it look around and name people that you can 100% vouch for cause i don't see any,not even the likes of them gani fawehinmi and co because even though they r not hutling for contracts n stuffs they r exploiting the system in their own way, making them millions
the kind of revolution you r talking about needs a fidel castro or che guevera to instigate so dyu realli think we have that, cause if gani fawehinmi whose children are schoolin and living in uk or femi falana whose kids are abroad and the rest of them tells me to come n fight sorri mate im not stepping out of this semi detached
i know its not solely the generator people's fault but you can appreciate the fact that its easier to put the clog in the smooth running of a process that ll put you out of business,im emphasising on them because no one actually talks about them but these guys are making a killing when you check out the rate people are buying generators and how much they go for, theres this gen in naij sold for i think 12 grand naira and they use it for like a couple of months before it packs up and they look for money to buy anuiva one i don't know if this is true but i read in one of the dailies last year femi otedola sayn (in private obviously)that he wouldnt mind spending millions of dollars to make sure we don't have a working refinery in nigeria, so i don't think its that far fetched saying these guys contribute a lot to the way the energy/power sector is the way it is , 16 billion is not chicken change to us but trust me it is to them by the time they finish sharing it amongst each other , check out the contractor's body language and their confidence especially the chinese/japanese ones, shows they know there r people behind them

Please @Lucabrasi, I am not of the mind that you need extremists to get the job done in Nigeria. I actually am more of an action now person than one who believes in waiting for a saviour to save us from the situation we are in, in that country.I don't believe we need the likes of Che guavara or fidel to do what we need. Infact, we do not need to get extreme people to get the job done. I can actually look around and count a couple of people who can get the job done but are brave enough to want to stand up strong even when their seems to be no one to back them, that is a whole nother question. We have all the people we need to get the job done. We do not need more leaders, but more people who will grow some SPINE and stand up for what is right on a daily basis. Simple!! I seriously do not buy into the mindset that Nigeria needs to be saved by leaders or whatever. I don't. The people to save that country are ordinary people like you and I and until we get off our asses and stop dreaming of a better Nigeria but start working towards a better Nigeria, we will remain whining for a saviour and watch our children and even their own children die in the same gutter we live in today.


I am not behind anyone who cannot stand 100% for what is right.Not even Gani or the likes makes my list of people I admire. Please understand that what is eating us up is our constant need to make excuses upon excuses so we can remain in mediocrity.

@kobojunkie

remember nigeria is a complex nation,140 million ppl all crammed together with diff cultures,way of doing stuffs religion will almost certainly play a part when push comes to shove and in a country as big as ours where do you start from? in as much as i agree the solution to nigeria's problem lies with us as individulas the most i can picture individulas doing is just on the fringe
been working on a charity for underpriviledged kids since last year and been tryn to get some government backing not even funding and its been so hard you ll think i was looking for contracts, so even tryn to help the nation building in that tiny little way isnt even easy for an individual so you can imagine tryn to do smthing more,

Complex? The only complexity that i can see is when tribal affiliations take precedence over common sense and hence we don't have a single voice against this common evil. I really am trying hard to see the complexity in building roads, power stations, providing water, etc. the most insulting part is that these people are called stake holder. What stake do they have in the nation? Do they experience NEPA, do political thieves experience lack of health facilities? The only stake they have is not in this country. If they knew that the roads they will be driving on everyday to work was broken down won't they fix it? If they knew they would not be allowed to fly abroad to treat headache won't they build hospitals? that whole "stake holders" thing is nothing short of insulting. All the armed robbers terrorising innocent citizens are targeting the wrong people, that is all i can say. If you look beyond what is right now and see what could be (even with not too huge an effort) then you will see that far from doing nothing, it is not hard to believe that past leaders might have actually gone out of their way to hinder progress out of greed.

lucabrasi:

@kobojunkie

remember nigeria is a complex nation,140 million people all crammed together with diff cultures,way of doing stuffs religion will almost certainly play a part when push comes to shove and in a country as big as ours where do you start from? in as much as i agree the solution to nigeria's problem lies with us as individulas the most i can picture individulas doing is just on the fringe
been working on a charity for underpriviledged kids since last year and been tryn to get some government backing not even funding and its been so hard you ll think i was looking for contracts, so even tryn to help the nation building in that tiny little way isnt even easy for an individual so you can imagine tryn to do smthing more,

Now you are going far into the zone where you piss me off with this. NIGERIA HAS NEVER, NOT NOW, OR IN THE NEAR FUTURE BEEN A COMPLEX NATION. THIS IS A NATION OF DIFFRENT PEOPLES, like ANY OTHER NATION OUT THERE and so not in any way new or impossible. If MILLIONS OF PEOPLE FROM different tribes and cultures and religions from around the world, can converge and live in a place like NY city, with over 25 Billion dollars going through that city every single day and transactions from around the world handled and maintained there, I am sorry, that blows your theory of nigeria as a complex nation away into the deep seas.

Not being able to get funding from the government has nothing to do with the situation there being complex but is a result of what we have allowed of our own spineless lifestyle for decades now.

Kobojunkie:


Now you are going far into the zone where you piss me off with this. NIGERIA HAS NEVER, NOT NOW, OR IN THE NEAR FUTURE BEEN A COMPLEX NATION. THIS IS A NATION OF DIFFRENT PEOPLES, like ANY OTHER NATION OUT THERE and so not in any way new or impossible. If MILLIONS OF PEOPLE FROM different tribes and cultures and religions from around the world, can converge and live in a place like NY city, with over 25 Billion dollars going through that city every single day and transactions from around the world handled and maintained there, I am sorry, that blows your theory of nigeria as a complex nation away into the deep seas.

Not being able to get funding from the government has nothing to do with the situation there being complex but is a result of what we have allowed of our own spineless lifestyle for decades now.

what i meant about nigeria being a complex nation is in the context of an individual or a group of individuals doing something about the country,true new york is running relatively smoothly with the diff cultures but in new york there's no tribal nepotism,there might be business men taking advantage of the system but not like in nigeria they dont have liabilities like the adedibus in new york,the ubas,babangidas,atikus and the bsuinessmen/women in that part of the world have concience no matter how bad they r which is not present in nigeria
you v not answered my question which is ,where in your opinion would one start tackling the rot in nigeria? just thinking of the level of political illiteracy in this day and age in nigeria is enought to piss one off when you see the stuffs going on now talking about a general overhaul.

Sky Blue:


Complex? The only complexity that i can see is when tribal affiliations take precedence over common sense and hence we don't have a single voice against this common evil. I really am trying hard to see the complexity in building roads, power stations, providing water, etc. the most insulting part is that these people are called stake holder. What stake do they have in the nation? Do they experience NEPA, do political thieves experience lack of health facilities? The only stake they have is not in this country. If they knew that the roads they will be driving on everyday to work was broken down won't they fix it? If they knew they would not be allowed to fly abroad to treat headache won't they build hospitals? that whole "stake holders" thing is nothing short of insulting. All the armed robbers terrorising innocent citizens are targeting the wrong people, that is all i can say. If you look beyond what is right now and see what could be (even with not too huge an effort) then you will see that far from doing nothing, it is not hard to believe that past leaders might have actually gone out of their way to hinder progress out of greed.

its simply the godfathers indulging their godsons/daughters, i v thought about what could actually be the reason they arnt doing anything even after stealing and the only conclusion i could come to is sheer wickedness check out the masses of professors and drs we have in government and still they dont do the right thing prof maurice iwu comes to mind,prof adenike grange comes to mind,dr egwu amongst others, i still believe leadership is the inherent problem but most important PATRIOTISM, how many nigerians actually are patriotic enough to do the right thing when in power

Patriotism might add to the solution but i don't believe it is the solution. When we collectively get angry (and rightly so) as a nation at the way things are, at the jokers past leaders and crooks have taken us for, at the gross level of corruption, and we get mad, then and only then things will change. With the way things are you would have thought this would have happened already but i am surprised that people are still satisfied. Change has been ours for the taking but we keep refusing it and refusing the things necessary to cause that change and instead keep choosing poverty. Someone robs a state blind and patches a road after 8 years in power and you get people come online and say "he tried", so i just don't know anymore. But this "change" we speak of is a choice, it is our choice if we are brave enough to go for it. When people were even scared to nullify a fraudlent election i don't even know when that level of bravery and vexation will reach.

Sky Blue:

Patriotism might add to the solution but i don't believe it is the solution. When we collectively get angry (and rightly so) as a nation at the way things are, at the jokers past leaders and crooks have taken us for, at the gross level of corruption, and we get mad, then and only then things will change. With the way things are you would have thought this would have happened already but i am surprised that people are still satisfied. Change has been ours for the taking but we keep refusing it and refusing the things necessary to cause that change and instead keep choosing poverty. Someone robs a state blind and patches a road after 8 years in power and you get people come online and say "he tried", so i just don't know anymore. But this "change" we speak of is a choice, it is our choice if we are brave enough to go for it. When people were even scared to nullify a fraudlent election i don't even know when that level of bravery and vexation will reach.

in as much as i agree with you,i dont see any practicable way any individual/group of ppl can achieve this because im sure a lot of us have gone through the emotions of being sngry and then gettn mad, speaking for myself the only thing i cud think of was a charity thing targeted at disadvantaged kids which im working on at the moment starting a pilot in lagos but if you have ideas do please share.
i dont agree that ppl are scared of making the right choice,i still think with capable and honest leadership not necessarily in the presidential level but an ordinary nigerian with vision you ll be suprised
look at the state of the federal house of assembly under olubunmi etteh and compare it to the new leadership under a younger person and check out what they v achieved?im not sayn he is a saint but im just sayn leadership and a good one at that is the key

lucabrasi:

what i meant about nigeria being a complex nation is in the context of an individual or a group of individuals doing something about the country,true new york is running relatively smoothly with the diff cultures but in new york there's no tribal nepotism,there might be business men taking advantage of the system but not like in nigeria they don't have liabilities like the adedibus in new york,the ubas,babangidas,atikus and the bsuinessmen/women in that part of the world have concience no matter how bad they r which is not present in nigeria



you v not answered my question which is ,where in your opinion would one start tackling the rot in nigeria? just thinking of the level of political illiteracy in this day and age in nigeria is enought to piss one off when you see the stuffs going on now talking about a general overhaul.its simply the godfathers indulging their godsons/daughters, i v thought about what could actually be the reason they arnt doing anything even after stealing and the only conclusion i could come to is sheer wickedness check out the masses of professors and drs we have in government and still they don't do the right thing prof maurice iwu comes to mind,prof adenike grange comes to mind,dr egwu amongst others, i still believe leadership is the inherent problem but most important PATRIOTISM, how many nigerians actually are patriotic enough to do the right thing when in power

I strongly disagree with your analysis of the situation in Nigeria. The only reason these men are not able to walk around freely and go around committing unlawful acts in NY as they do in Nigeria is again cause we the people are so deep in our SPINELESS way of life that we can not even demand that the law be enforced in our country, half the way it is in a city like New york. Nepotism exists in NY as well but the very reason that it is not flaunted in the public is cause people do not allow it to happen. People cry foul and demand justice and make sure that they get it in NY. Unlike in Nigeria. That is about the only problem. You tell me that if half a million Nigerians ( PATRIOTIC NIGERIANS ), just .5 million decided tommorow that they would not accept this nonsense anymore, and demand justice and see to it that they pursue justice against all odds, you think things will remain as they are in that country?? You think people like Babangida and Obasanjo and the rest will still walk free?? I doubt it but the very that we do not have enough people only makes the course of those who try, a sort of joke to them, yet the rest of us continue living SPINELESS and content to WHINE daily about it while watching the lives of our youths go to waste daily.

The thing about the getting angry collectively is not really about the anger, but what is done as a result of it. The anger will be a sign of actually waking up and will hopefully spell an end to the numbness that the political elites have been exploiting. When we get to that enough is enough phase then i won't have to even bring suggestions, people will take it from there and there will be very little tolerance for all the rubbish we have been seeing for the past how many decades now? And yes you are right, politics isn't the only way to make a difference, but that might be more pronounced in an environement were you can actually get electricity, water, security and good roads. Then with the natural creativity of Nigerians things can take off. Read up on the french revolution and see what injustice can drive people to, it is in these people's best interest to stop this cycle of babarism, greed and inhumane behaviour beause when people really get mad it won't be pretty for them. As i have said earlier, all the armed robbers going after innocent Nigerians, don't they know where these people live?

Sky Blue:

The thing about the getting angry collectively is not really about the anger, but what is done as a result of it. The anger will be a sign of actually waking up and will hopefully spell an end to the numbness that the political elites have been exploiting. When we get to that enough is enough phase then i won't have to even bring suggestions, people will take it from there and there will be very little tolerance for all the rubbish we have been seeing for the past how many decades now? And yes you are right, politics isn't the only way to make a difference, but that might be more pronounced in an environement were you can actually get electricity, water, security and good roads. Then with the natural creativity of Nigerians things can take off. Read up on the french revolution and see what injustice can drive people to, it is in these people's best interest to stop this cycle of babarism, greed and inhumane behaviour beause when people really get mad it won't be pretty for them. As i have said earlier, all the armed robbers going after innocent Nigerians, don't they know where these people live?

Kobojunkie:


I strongly disagree with your analysis of the situation in Nigeria. The only reason these men are not able to walk around freely and go around committing unlawful acts in NY as they do in Nigeria is again cause we the people are so deep in our SPINELESS way of life that we can not even demand that the law be enforced in our country, half the way it is in a city like New york. Nepotism exists in NY as well but the very reason that it is not flaunted in the public is cause people do not allow it to happen. People cry foul and demand justice and make sure that they get it in NY. Unlike in Nigeria. That is about the only problem. You tell me that if half a million Nigerians ( PATRIOTIC NIGERIANS ), just .5 million decided tommorow that they would not accept this nonsense anymore, and demand justice and see to it that they pursue justice against all odds, you think things will remain as they are in that country?? You think people like Babangida and Obasanjo and the rest will still walk free?? I doubt it but the very that we do not have enough people only makes the course of those who try, a sort of joke to them, yet the rest of us continue living SPINELESS and content to WHINE daily about it while watching the lives of our youths go to waste daily.

i quite agree with you but i still maintain that its still an issue of leadership,it ll take an individual willing to suffer and if possible lay down his/her life to tap into our consciousness and conscience.look at the june 12 abiola riots, people came out and protested and were shot at and that but at the end of the day abiola said he did not send anyone to fight or riot and later left the country, remember his famous proverb, about not standing in the path of a moving train, the point im making is that be it a politician or an ordinary individual ,i still maintain that it ll take an individual willing to go all the way to gather nigerians and lead by example that its a fight to finish and thats what we lack,bhutto died for a cause she believed in and as a result topp;ed a military dictatorship after the people followed her,same thing in zimbabwe e.t.c it ll take that kind of leader to gather .5million ppl anywhere in the world

lucabrasi:


i quite agree with you but i still maintain that its still an issue of leadership,it ll take an individual willing to suffer and if possible lay down his/her life to tap into our consciousness and conscience.look at the june 12 abiola riots, people came out and protested and were shot at and that but at the end of the day abiola said he did not send anyone to fight or riot and later left the country, remember his famous proverb, about not standing in the path of a moving train, the point im making is that be it a politician or an ordinary individual ,i still maintain that it ll take an individual willing to go all the way to gather nigerians and lead by example that its a fight to finish and thats what we lack,bhutto died for a cause she believed in and as a result topp;ed a military dictatorship after the people followed her,same thing in zimbabwe e.t.c it ll take that kind of leader to gather .5million people anywhere in the world

I don't think you get it. This is not calling for people to take up guns and head to the streets. This is calling for people to realize their place in the whole democratic picture and play their part. YOu can not tell me that if .5 million people stand up, not for one person but for a cause they all believe in and stand strong, that even the UN will not demand that the country grant them a voice and even consider their call for change.

In the example you gave of people going out in the street for ABIOLA. These people made a mistake trying to believe they had a saviour in ABIOLA and that was part of the problem. He had his hands dirtier than people were willing to believe and so the very fact that he denied them is not to be a suprise. This is what happens when people continually believe they have and need a saviour and so willingly fall for any thing they are told without sensibly making sure to research and understand who these are and what they truly stand for.

As I have stated over and over, we do not need a saviour, we need people to understand their rights as human beings and to work to make sure that their government respects their right on all levels. We have SPINELESS human beings living today that daily make the decision to remain SPINELESS and watch what happens continue to happen. If people stood up and said enough; demanded justice in all of these corruption cases alone; people willing to work to collect all the data needed to bring these idiots to book, people who made sure that if the government refused to listen, they would go above the government to get justice; people who are no longer willing to accept less than what they deserve. No guns needed in a democracy to get this working. Just people who are brave enough to decide to allow their SPINES to grow back in.

Kobojunkie:


I don't think you get it. This is not calling for people to take up guns and head to the streets. This is calling for people to realize their place in the whole democratic picture and play their part. YOu can not tell me that if .5 million people stand up, not for one person but for a cause they all believe in and stand strong, that even the UN will not demand that the country grant them a voice and even consider their call for change.

In the example you gave of people going out in the street for ABIOLA. These people made a mistake trying to believe they had a saviour in ABIOLA and that was part of the problem. He had his hands dirtier than people were willing to believe and so the very fact that he denied them is not to be a suprise. This is what happens when people continually believe they have and need a saviour and so willingly fall for any thing they are told without sensibly making sure to research and understand who these are and what they truly stand for.

As I have stated over and over, we do not need a saviour, we need people to understand their rights as human beings and to work to make sure that their government respects their right on all levels. We have SPINELESS human beings living today that daily make the decision to remain SPINELESS and watch what happens continue to happen. If people stood up and said enough; demanded justice in all of these corruption cases alone; people willing to work to collect all the data needed to bring these idiots to book, people who made sure that if the government refused to listen, they would go above the government to get justice; people who are no longer willing to accept less than what they deserve. No guns needed in a democracy to get this working. Just people who are brave enough to decide to allow their SPINES to grow back in.

well then,i guess we r talking about a generational shift because i dont realli see the generation that has failed us suddenly waking up to the fact

lucabrasi:

well then,i guess we r talking about a generational shift because i don't realli see the generation that has failed us suddenly waking up to the fact

I completely understand that but what has the new generation to do then if all they know is what they have learnt from the generation that has continued to fail?? Do you really expect the children who are born into slavery and have grown to know nothing but slavery to be better than their parents who at least have some idea of what it means to be free??

Kobojunkie:

I completely understand that but what has the new generation to do then if all they know is what they have learnt from the generation that has continued to fail?? Do you really expect the children who are born into slavery and have grown to know nothing but slavery to be better than their parents who at least have some idea of what it means to be free??

ill beg to differ because the next generation has seen the way things are done in the western worl,many have schooled abroad and soo many people are moving back to nigeria after their education,in addittion so many of this generation are involved in a lot of charities for the less priviledged even some of the politician's children(prob consience)
globalisation and also seeing what can be obtained plus the younger generation being more educated both academically and politically will do a lot to bring the required changes about, the change is already happening but i believe because of the rot n the system it lltake a while to be realli manifest
personally i think we nigerians in the diaspora are not doing enough but only pay lip service to the nigerian situation

Here is the thing, if you look way back in the 1960's to those who helped Nigeria gain independence and are now some of those tormenting the nation,each and all the following statements below applied to them as well ,

lucabrasi:


the next generation has seen the way things are done in the western worl,

many have schooled abroad and soo many people are moving back to nigeria after their education,

in addittion so many of this generation are involved in a lot of charities for the less priviledged even some of the politician's children(prob consience)

globalisation and also seeing what can be obtained

plus the younger generation being more educated both academically

and politically will do a lot to bring the required changes about, the change is already happening

but i believe because of the rot n the system it lltake a while to be realli manifest

Kobojunkie:

Here is the thing, if you look way back in the 1960's to those who helped Nigeria gain independence and are now some of those tormenting the nation,each and all the following statements below applied to them as well ,

my brother,im just tryna profer a solution to this crisi we are in as a nation but if you have a better idea,please do share it, bearing in mind the checks and balances we have now was not in place then so many of the things these people did and got away with ,leaders cant get away with it now adays, also dont forget the colonoal master then played them like a game of chess and were sort of doing the choosing of leaders and stuffs behind the scene, we are properly independent now as a nation and take all our decisions, we can probably thank obj for the anti corruption initiatives which actually woke nigerians up from their slumber in spite of his many faults

lucabrasi:

my brother,im just trying to profer a solution to this crisi we are in as a nation but if you have a better idea,please do share it, bearing in mind the checks and balances we have now was not in place then so many of the things these people did and got away with ,leaders can't get away with it now adays, also don't forget the colonoal master then played them like a game of chess and were sort of doing the choosing of leaders and stuffs behind the scene, we are properly independent now as a nation and take all our decisions, we can probably thank obj for the anti corruption initiatives which actually woke nigerians up from their slumber in spite of his many faults

What checks and balances do you mean by that ?? The same checks and balances that allows OBJ, IBB, Ibori, Iwu and the many others walking tall and large in that same country The same checks and balances that has the north rotting away and now trying to cripple the south so the north can get a larger share of an industry it has NOT worked to grow at all?? Which world do you live in please


What colonial masters?? You mean the same colonial masters that at one time played America like a game of chess and were sort of doing choosing of leaders and stuff behind the scene but then america, broke away and in less than 50 years made a huge name for itself?? You mean Nigeria is the only former colonist of this colonial masters you speak of ?? Cause last I heard, even india was on their list and that country seems to be blazing ahead of Nigeria like no man's business?? What line will you follow this with next??