http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/guest-articles/parasitic-north.html

Written by Nafata Bamaguje
Monday, 08 September 2008

It has become a fad for Southerners to insult and cast aspersions on Northerners as parasitic and lazy, obviously because the oil wealth that largely sustains this nation comes from the south specifically the Niger Delta. Hearing these ethnic chauvinists tell it, one might think that presence of crude oil in the Niger Delta was due to dint of hard work by our illustrious compatriots in the South-south, rather than serendipitous geological happenstance millions of years before humans even existed.

It's quite possible that some Niger Deltans think their venerated ancestors used the supernatural powers of Owuamapu, Ohworhu, Olokun and other riverine spirits of the Delta to magically impregnate their corner of mother earth with sumptuous hydrocarbon deposits, so that their modern day descendants can gloat and hold the rest of the nation to ransom. The truth of the matter is that thanks to the visionless misrule of by the unconscionable kleptocrats that have presided over our affairs since independence, we are all parasites – Niger Deltans included.

Hence some of our South-south compatriots sabotage oil installations to deliberately cause oil spillage in order to collect huge monetary compensations and other pay-outs from oil companies for the self-inflicted environmental degradation, which is much more lucrative than tilling the land like we lazy northerners who sweat to help feed the nation.

Shell, Mobil, Chevron and other multinational oil companies operating in the Niger Delta are responsible corporate citizens elsewhere around the world, but only in Nigeria do their activities regularly cause oil spillage. To be fair, this sordid state of affairs is not at all the fault our Niger Delta brothers & sisters, since government at all levels has repeatedly failed to deliver on development in spite of the stupendous oil wealth being pumped out daily from their ancestral land. Hence they are compelled to get a cut of the oil wealth by hook or crook.

But to derisively insult and castigate over 80 million (HOW DID THIS HAUSA GET TO THIS AS FACT) northern Nigerians as lazy parasites who diverted the oil wealth for their selfish development is erroneous, insolent and diverts attention from the real parasites who have ruined this blessed country - the thieving Nigerian ruling class, which include kleptocratic Niger Delta ex-governors viz James Ibori, Peter Odili, Dieprirye Alamiesigha all of whom have cases with EFCC. Even Goodluck Jonathan, our VP's hands are not clean, for it is on record that EFCC confiscated millions of Naira worth of foreign exchange from his wife while he was governor. Mrs Jonathan has no direct constitutional access to public coffers, and could only have looted Bayelsa funds with the connivance of her husband, the current VP. OBJ hushed up other scandals to facilitate his imposition of Jonathan as VP, ostensibly to assuage restive Niger Deltans.

Little wonder vice president Jonathan was very reluctant to emulate his boss and publicly declare his assets – he had skeletons to hide !! The only reason we haven't heard more about Jonathan's Bayelsa scandals as with other ex-governors, is that Timipere Sylva, the current governor dares not expose his powerful godfather in Aso Rock. Thankfully many Niger Deltans are now aware that corruption (not derivation) is the major obstacle to development of the Niger Delta as evident from a recent Daily Independent interview with, Joseph Amberkederim of the South-South Elements Progressives Union:"…The amount of money that has accrued to the South-South governors in the past nine years is enough, more than enough to transform the Niger Delta, If monies are being used judiciously and religiously, the monies that have come to the governors of the South-South today, we would not have the problems we are having in the Niger Delta, The corruption among the governors in the South-South is enormous, the stealing is enormous, and I have stood as a voice even I would be the lonely voice that would tell them, so be it…"

Living in the North with potholed roads, numerous beggars, high illiteracy, collapsed industries and massive unemployment amongst other obvious evidence of underdevelopment, one is at loss as to the "development" that supposedly accrued from diverted Niger Delta wealth.

The same North that the Southern-led CBN reports is poverty-stricken with Jigawa as the poorest state – while Bayelsa is the richest. A few mansions here and there in the North owned by the thieving Nigerian ruling class such as can be found elsewhere in the federation, does not constitute development.

Even after the North made the mistake of bending over backwards to accommodate the outrageous offshore greed of Niger Delta agitators that short-changed the rest of the nation, the pea-brained ethnic jingoists continue their campaign of calumny against Arewa. Then there is the lame excuse of difficult terrain that makes road and other development projects in the Niger Delta expensive, which holds no water as even in the North there are peculiar development challenges. Territorially, Adamawa, Niger or Borno states are each as large as all the South-south states combined.

So when Rivers government budgets for 1km of road, Adamawa budgets for 6km, not to mention the additional cost of providing social amenities and infrastructure to widely dispersed population over much larger territory – more transformers, wires & electric poles for rural electrification, more health centres etc - all without the help of oil companies, NDDC or derivation.
Consequently, the intelligence of Nigerians should no longer be insulted with the "difficult terrain" tissue of lies, particularly as Rivers state collects more federal allocation than the entire North East zone – seven times that of Adamawa !! (see Fed min of finance state allocations - www.fmf.gov.ng, http://www.fmf.gov.ng/ downloads/FAAC/ CurrentFaacDetail/State_ goverment_detail.pdf)And Akwa Ibom which doesn't produce one drop of crude oil follows Rivers closely collecting more than all 5 South Eastern states together - thanks to the undue offshore allocation from our distal territorial waters. Unlike the over-remunerated Akwa Ibom, some of the shortchanged South Eastern states (Abia, Imo) actually have crude oil, not to mention being further shortchanged by unjustly allotting oil-producing Igbo areas from Imo/Abia to Rivers state…just to economically undermine secession-prone Biafrans - Igbos. SO, HAUSA PERSON CAN EASILY ADMIT THIS? WONDERS SHALL NEVER END.

[b]If South-southerners persist in their unreasonable demand for 50% derivation, then we will have to re-open the Pandora box of such vexed issues as boundary demarcation and revenue from offshore drilling. International maritime law bestows the 200 mile territorial waters on the Nigerian nation not on any federating unit. So the offshore oil belongs to all Nigerians not any littoral state.[/b]Of course corruption is not unique to Niger Delta, but a national ailment that has underdeveloped the entire nation, not just Niger Delta. It is only more poignant in the Niger Delta because the wealth that largely sustains this nation emanates from there. Hardly a week goes by without our sensibilities being assailed by media reports of billion naira / dollar corruption scandals at all levels of government – 16 billion dollars wasted on phantom power projects, missing 1.5 trillion naira NNPC funds, National Judicial Council 1.2 billion naira scandal etc. Thus instead of this divisive ethnic-sectarian bickering and North-south dichotomy, we the Nigerian masses regardless of ethnicity or creed should unite to dethrone the corrupt ruling elite that has ruined our nation in order to establish a new political order – the much talked about, but yet to be realized Nigerian revolution. Until corruption is eradicated and the present cabal of kleptocrats is deposed, even 100% derivation wouldn't make much of difference to the average Niger Deltan.

VISIT THE WEB SITE BELOW AND READ THE RESPONSES.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare.com/articles/guest-articles/parasitic-north.html

NOW READ ONE OF THE RESPONSES TO THIS DEMENTED ARTICLE.

"Thank god indices have showed Northern Nigeria to be the most backward region of the country although they have ruled the country more than other regions and allocated more cash to the north than have been given to any other part of Nigeria. It shows mismanagement, ineptitude, corruption, illiteracy and mediocre in government. Nigeria was doomed from day one when the north became a part of the entity. The south is the way it is today, mainly because of the trauma we have suffered (and still suffer) sharing a country with Islamists. For every year of trauma suffered it might take 2 to remedy, Southern Nigeria will face that fact when they finally get rid of Muslim northern Nigeria. Not long now, not long!

“It has become a fad for Southerners to insult and cast aspersions on Northerners as parasitic and lazy”
hmmm, if only it were insults and abuse that thousands of southerners received in Northern Nigeria while they were simply sojourning in a part of the federal republic of Nigerian. Indeed thousands of southerners did not get called names; they were MURDERRED IN COLD BLOOD BY PEOPLE WHO CLAIM TO BE MORE ISLAMIC-JIHADISTS THAN NIGERIANS. What is the life expectancy of a southern person in Jigawa or Zamfara state?

As a southerner raised in Northern Nigeria, I rebuke you and curse your backward Islamic mentality masquerading as nationalism; the stewardship of many a northern rulers as has ruled this country produced nothing more than discrimination and segregation of the southerners who produce the oil that you use to fund yearly pilgrimages, build outrageous mosques, provide scholarships to Northern ONLY candidates to study abroad…I dare mention the bursary award available only in Northern Nigeria that comes out of the federation account, should I talk about REAL free education in Northern Nigeria, allowances and the available CASH for your Northern Nigerian Governors meetings

No Sir, we are NOT all parasites – Northern Nigeria is the ONLY parasite here.
Its behavior is reminiscent of the jihadists who went from land to land conquering and milking all in its sight. I have read the history of northern Nigerian as told it to me because I was assumed to be a Northerner; until you found a safe economic haven in a balkanized arrangement with oil producing Southern Nigeria did you stay PUT for good? If this is not a clear case of parasitic behavior then I owned the Roman Empire.

Thieving in Nigeria started because Northern Nigerians saw the south as a land to exploit jihad-style, your leaders as the early custodians of this nation saw to it that corruption and decay reigned rankadede-style. You practice your religion with such passion as to send a message of devotion and respect while all of you are actually day-light robbers. I am yet to find a handful of Northern Nigerians who held political appointments without resorting to kickbacks, favoritism, nepotism, fraud and graft. Your Honda accord-for-girlfriend days are still fresh in my mind. You destroyed this country while all the time you allegiance lay with Islamic countries like Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.

It becomes even more interesting when you mentioned those thieving southern governors, who were actually brought to destroy us by power brokers in the North. The Babangida boys’ are not over, they are in civilian clothes and never served in the military. The biggest thieves who started graft in this country were Northerners and today although attention is being diverted from them they remain the biggest looters of Nigeria’s treasury. They never liked Nigeria as a country and never will.

Long after the days of Hassan Usman Katsina, the kids of thieving northern leaders of this country are still living large in London’s Mayfair and places like it,
The Emir of Kano’s son owns 2 oil wells and a formula one racing business ( I dare not ask what his father creamed from Nigeria) I wonder how many Southerners own hectares of carrot farms and cattle in Bauchi!

The Abacha family documented internationally and nationally as the biggest looters of any known state treasury on the earth is still fresh in our minds, oh, and they are from Northern Nigeria and said to be “good Muslims” The man (Abacha) is being nominated for the Guinness book for highest amount stolen from a country. If Northerners are not greedy bunch, try the Abacha family who are ready to lose Nigeria’s wealth to the Swiss Government rather than return it to the talakawas and almajaris of Kano. Even an offer of 100 Million Dollars of Nigeria’s money is not enough for them in return of our foreign reserve.

Now and again I run into children of Northern Nigerian former governors and ministers, some of whom were only in appointments for 1 year but ensured they stole enough for their future Arabic-style generations to live lives of extravagance, it was one of such kids that bid 1 million dollars to sleep with an ugly British actress.

I talk about Abachas Guinness book nomination; how about the fact that Babangida (a northerner) almost single-handedly installed CORRUTION on the republic of Nigeria? This man is responsible for the James Ibori and Jonathan Goodluck's of today, he created a rotten climate of thievery and graft. In the 70’s and 80’s we did not have so much corruption until A northerner called Shagari became the first Nigerian head of state to be sacked and his entire cabinet detained for years.

It is evidently clear that these northern Muslims who visit mosques are actually the biggest looters and criminals Nigeria has experienced. On top of which they murder Southerners for residing in their lands"

wow!!!

All my sentiments EXACTLY.

Where are my Ijaw neighbors abeg? One son of their masters is giving them true love and care here. At the count of 55 hits so far on this thread and none of my neighbors have anything to comment. Still sleeping?

73 hits and no northerner (master) nor Ijaw person (slave) to comment on this love and care thread.

You know the criminal north hates truth and the truth will always continue tormenting them. I will say it for even the high heavens to hear. NORTHERN NIGERIA IS THE PARASITE OF NIGERIA. THEY HAVE NOTHING TO OFFER OTHER THAN BLOOD SHEDS, CORRUPTION AND PERPETUALLY DRAGING EVERYONE BACK WITH THEIR USELESS SELVES.

We don't need to argue or defend, show us that you are not parasite by dividing Nigeria