Ovamboland:


Except you're on the wrong thread, the discussion here is about how appropriate is the heavy emphasis on infrastructure to the extent of taking loans to achieve it rather than education and SME.

Any other discussion outside the above is otiose and attempt to obfuscate.

Well, what i'm pointing out is that the noise is more than the work on ground and Femi should not use infrastructure to project an image of anti-corruption.

Ovamboland:


Nigeria has some benefits to derive from Niger rail projects in terms of adding to the level of utilization of the Lagos Kano rail.
The total project sum is $1.9bn not $3.9bn, and total length of 387km with only about 25km inside Niger republic territory. Meaning the cost of each kilometer is $5m, 5km of railway will cost additional $25m to a Lagos -ibadan -Kano -jibia rail that will cost about $10,000m.
But many of you are focused on this $25m extra investment that can potentially earn Nigeria $70-100m annually in Port and rail transport charges. That can only be because you focus too much on the ethnic and religious aspect than real economics.

Who do you think will be most eager to get this project completed so we can snatch the market from Cotonou port? And do you think extra $25m is too steep a price to pay for potential yearly earnings of $70-100m?

Now for the Cameroon bridge while I wholeheartedly support such venture, I only used it to highlight the bigotry not economics driving opposition to the Niger rail projects. I know of hundreds of Nigerian communities that would be eternally grateful to get the mere 1.5km bridge but lost out priority to the investment in Cameroon bridge. We could have told AFDB we're not interested in the loan for that bridge but only for any purely Nigerian community. I want to believe there are some strategic reasons, maybe not just economics for the Cameroon bridge that made it a priority.

I totally disagree with your premise. Check out the trade volume of Niger and compare with trade volume of East and tell me which is more desirable.
Besides, "snatching market" from Cotonou is not like snatching biscuit from a kid. First, there's no MoU between Nigeria and Niger that ensures the market is snatched when the rail is completed. Check out when Niger wanted to build a pipeline to export crude. They first chose Cameroon but later went back to Cotonou when shit hit the roof. So there's no guarantee Niger will use that route for their exports. The biggest trade Nigeria has is westwards towards Ghana not Niger or unstable Libya

That said, we can use that $25m to complete the East West road and boost trade along that corridor to the hinterland thereby enhancing our GDP instead of wasting it on a desert with the worst HDI per capita in the world. No economic ground justifies that rail to Niger!!

Agboriotejoye:

First of all, you lie!! Third mainland bridge, shiroro dam and port Harcourt 2 were all started and completed by IBB.
Secondly, Warri Itakpe was meant to service Ajokuta whose development Buhari truncated. You can ask yourself what benefit the rehabilitation has brought now. If ajaokuta is not working, that rail is as good as useless. So the reason why successive govts abandoned it was because it's a service rail not passenger rail as is being attempted now.
Thirdly, so many of the so-called "massive infrastructure" of your god were already planned or put in motion by previous admins too. So find something else to say.

You're just here arguing, you don't know facts. Shiroro dam is part of the Niger Dams project study conceived since 1960's study. The actual dam construction had been completed in 1983 even before Buhari military govt. Other works including installation of turbines for power generation was not completed until 1990.

It was not started by IBB as you lied or are ignorant of.

I need not rehash 3rf mainland bridge history all over again, I give you that assignment to find out yourself.

I laugh at your crass ignorance about Ajaokuta steel. There's no way the steel blast furnace can start without that rail link running reliably for some time to stockpile raw materials from Itakpe, coal maybe imported from warri port. You can't stop the blast furnace for 15 years otherwise you damage it if it stops abruptly. How can you run Ajaokuta without a rail link. I will give you another assignment to find out when the Russians abandoned Ajaokuta and who was in power. Hint they left after Berlin wall came down. Google is your friend

lexy2014:


Not sure u talking to me. I don't see d correlation with what u said and d comment I made: Nothing much I was only wondering how infrastructure can build and maintain itself if d people aren't developed in their minds. Money is good, but money will always continue to be a problem when what is available isn't well utilised

So for example Emirates cannot build, operate and maintain infrastructure by their own citizens, therefore they should not have invested in infrastructure where many of you travel to spend money, take pictures and abuse Nigeria.

We should have continued being ruled by those who didn't invest in infrastructure while hoping that one day Nigerians will figure out how to build infrastructure themselves?

shadeyinka:

If development is not automatic with provision of infrastructure, why the argument?

If you truly expect it to be automatic and usage and benefits will not follow a curved trajectory, it means you have little or no knowledge of development and all we've been saying is over the top of your head.

For example one of the request by the Russians to return to Ajaokuta is to have a functional rail link between mine and steel plant. Now as aspect of that rail is working, more will still be done via extension. But the Russians are not here yet due to COVID-19 and other unforseen issues. They have promised to start audit this year.

In your books, since Ajaokuta steel plant did not start producing steel the same day itakpe rail was commissioned then the funds used to complete the rail is waste?

This about sums up your logic?

Or Lagos Ibadan or Abuja Kaduna railway are parts of the Apapa port to Kano railway project, since 2010 that Abuja Kaduna started to 2016 it started operating, now Lagos Ibadan started 2017 commissioned 2021 is yet to send containers direct to Kano, then we have wasted our money and should not have invested in rail?

mrvitalis:

Speed rail ? Hope u know speed rails are almost as expensive as plains ?

High speed rails are 5-10 times more expensive than SGR depending on who is building and where. Likewise the ticket cost are equally expensive.

Ovamboland:


So for example Emirates cannot build, operate and maintain infrastructure by their own citizens, therefore they should not have invested in infrastructure where many of you travel to spend money, take pictures and abuse Nigeria.

We should have continued being ruled by those who didn't invest in infrastructure while hoping that one day Nigerians will figure out how to build infrastructure themselves?

Oga, u still aren't communicating. Maybe u should look for who u intended ur comment for

mrvitalis:

For a uk economy millions of people are Able to pay a high enough tickets for it to make profit

What's the price of train tickets in UK

How much is bus Lagos to Ibadan , how much is the train ,even at that low price which is still higher than bus ...how many people can afford the train

So the rail now would now be used to transport wheat and Petro products ?

We are not building high speed rail here but SGR more attuned to freight services with passenger service as an add on to increase utilization.
So it's now about ticket cost not the uselessness of the project?

Go and ask the passengers who find value in the services, and I don't think anyone has asked you not to take your rickety buses if you see no value in taking the trains.

Same people saying it can't be profitable in 1000 years are also hypocritically saying the ticket rate are too much so it can make more losses.

Just say you hate seeing the trains or Nigerians using it happily and strongly hope it fails.

Agboriotejoye:

Well, Buhari did not start any of those projects too.

So you can now take a big rest.

The fact remains whichever way you choose to look at it that IBB did far better than Buhari in terms of infrastructure

You have argued front and back now you have to contradict yourself

So Buhari emphasis is no longer too much on infrastructure because you want to show IBB did much better.

Why then are we having this argument that Buhari is spending too much on useless infrastructure? Why then are you eulogizing IBB for spending even more as you claim than Buhari on infrastructure?

Agboriotejoye:


Well, what i'm pointing out is that the noise is more than the work on ground and Femi should not use infrastructure to project an image of anti-corruption.

List on another thread your evidence of corruption on the infrastructure we're discussing whether they are useless or useful.

Agboriotejoye:


I totally disagree with your premise. Check out the trade volume of Niger and compare with trade volume of East and tell me which is more desirable.
Besides, "snatching market" from Cotonou is not like snatching biscuit from a kid. First, there's no MoU between Nigeria and Niger that ensures the market is snatched when the rail is completed. Check out when Niger wanted to build a pipeline to export crude. They first chose Cameroon but later went back to Cotonou when shit hit the roof. So there's no guarantee Niger will use that route for their exports. The biggest trade Nigeria has is westwards towards Ghana not Niger or unstable Libya

That said, we can use that $25m to complete the East West road and boost trade along that corridor to the hinterland thereby enhancing our GDP instead of wasting it on a desert with the worst HDI per capita in the world. No economic ground justifies that rail to Niger!!

Very laughable that you actually believe Nigeria will just enter Niger republic with contractors and start building 25km of railway without MOU, prior discussion and an agreement in place. I'm sure you can't believe you wrote this.

Ordinarily you know this your assertion of no agreement deserves no answer.

lexy2014:


Oga, u still aren't communicating. Maybe u should look for who u intended ur comment for

Are you also posing here as shadeyinka?

Ovamboland:


You're just here arguing, you don't know facts. Shiroro dam is part of the Niger Dams project study conceived since 1960's study. The actual dam construction had been completed in 1983 even before Buhari military govt. Other works including installation of turbines for power generation was not completed until 1990.

It was not started by IBB as you lied or are ignorant of.

I need not rehash 3rf mainland bridge history all over again, I give you that assignment to find out yourself.

I laugh at your crass ignorance about Ajaokuta steel. There's no way the steel blast furnace can start without that rail link running reliably for some time to stockpile raw materials from Itakpe, coal maybe imported from warri port. You can't stop the blast furnace for 15 years otherwise you damage it if it stops abruptly. How can you run Ajaokuta without a rail link. I will give you another assignment to find out when the Russians abandoned Ajaokuta and who was in power. Hint they left after Berlin wall came down. Google is your friend

Ok. The Lagos-Kano rail is part of Obasanjo's 25 year rail masterplan. You're actually helping my point which is that there's nothing Buhari is doing in the area of infrastructure which supersedes that of previous govts and all this noise is just to paper over the cracks of the abject failure his administration has become.

Seems you are low in understanding. You're still buttressing my point over Ajaokuta. The rail was meant to service the steel complex not for passenger traffic. So when you govt propagandists come with "it has been abandoned by successive govts for 30 years" line. what I ask them is what impact it is having now? This govt has not shown any serious commitment to getting Ajaokuta running, a project Buhari killed like the Lagos light rail as military head. Yet they went and cleared grasses and fixed bolts and nuts and claim the rail is up and running just to score cheap political points.
Only the uninitiated is impressed lad.

Ovamboland:


You have argued front and back now you have to contradict yourself

So Buhari emphasis is no longer too much on infrastructure because you want to show IBB did much better.

Why then are we having this argument that Buhari is spending too much on useless infrastructure? Why then are you eulogizing IBB for spending even more as you claim than Buhari on infrastructure?

Baba you shouldn't robe me in your games. I said the noise is more than the job on ground. I never said Buhari is spending too much on infrastructure.
That's why I quoted where Femi said IBB institutionalized corruption. My premise is if Femi thinks infrastructure is evidence of no corruption, then he is wrong because the same man he is referring to actually did better than his boss in terms of infrastructure!!

Ovamboland:


List on another thread your evidence of corruption on the infrastructure we're discussing whether they are useless or useful.

Why should I list? The former SGF used millions to clear invasive plant species. That's a good starting point don't you think?

Ovamboland:


If you truly expect it to be automatic and usage and benefits will not follow a curved trajectory, it means you have little or no knowledge of development and all we've been saying is over the top of your head.

For example one of the request by the Russians to return to Ajaokuta is to have a functional rail link between mine and steel plant. Now as aspect of that rail is working, more will still be done via extension. But the Russians are not here yet due to COVID-19 and other unforseen issues. They have promised to start audit this year.

In your books, since Ajaokuta steel plant did not start producing steel the same day itakpe rail was commissioned then the funds used to complete the rail is waste?

This about sums up your logic?

Or Lagos Ibadan or Abuja Kaduna railway are parts of the Apapa port to Kano railway project, since 2010 that Abuja Kaduna started to 2016 it started operating, now Lagos Ibadan started 2017 commissioned 2021 is yet to send containers direct to Kano, then we have wasted our money and should not have invested in rail?

I can truely see where you are missing it.

Development isnt the acquisition of high tech and other toys. Development is the ability to plan, design, build several sapects of technology.

Here you are saying that Ajaokuta is not functioning because the Russians refuse to come because of COVID-19.! SMH

Here is a country that cannot refine iron or into pig iron
A country that import needles, bicycles, buttons, pencils, erasers, papers in a country where they have the greatest asset to technological development (Professors, PhD holders, Engineers, etc). Why is it that we cant generate enough electrical power? Are we expecting the Chinese to do that for us? Why is it that with so much crude oil, all our dear leaders could think of is importation of petrol, diesel, kerosine etc.

You didn't notice that it isn't infrastructure that produce development but utilization of human assets.

My definition of development is not buying the latest air conditioners but lacking the capacity to service them when they spoil
My definition of development is not when you employ Chinese people to build the second Niger bridge (when we have or could develop human capacity to build 100 bridges)

FYI:
We are behind the steel industry of America when they were in the year 1800s
When myopic thinking leaders lead a country like ours, this is what you get.
Ours is a country where the government who cannot refine one liter of crude oil is banning and outlawing the so-called illegal refiners of crude oil
is this not deficiency of the greatest requirement of driving the economy?

shadeyinka:

Infrastructure isn't what drives the economy. What drives the economy is a sound socio-technological organisation. Roads, Railways, Electric Power etc just like money are simply tools in the hands of good planners and implementers for economic growth.

Poor leadership with no destination will borrow money and spend the monies with nothing to show for it

We complain of lack of job for our teeming population yet we provide millions of employment for Chinese people in the name of importation.
SMH

Buying things is not development: production is!

Ovamboland:


Very laughable that you actually believe Nigeria will just enter Niger republic with contractors and start building 25km of railway without MOU, prior discussion and an agreement in place. I'm sure you can't believe you wrote this.

Ordinarily you know this your assertion of no agreement deserves no answer.

Stop being half-smart. What I said is no particular MoU that says Niger will use our rail once completed and I even gave you a classical example of oil pipeline they had with Chad (not Cameroon) which they later rescinded.

If you're aware of such MoU that snatches the market from Cotonou pls feel free to share it

Agboriotejoye:


Ok. The Lagos-Kano rail is part of Obasanjo's 25 year rail masterplan. You're actually helping my point which is that there's nothing Buhari is doing in the area of infrastructure which supersedes that of previous govts and all this noise is just to paper over the cracks of the abject failure his administration has become.

Seems you are low in understanding. You're still buttressing my point over Ajaokuta. The rail was meant to service the steel complex not for passenger traffic. So when you govt propagandists come with "it has been abandoned by successive govts for 30 years" line. what I ask them is what impact it is having now? This govt has not shown any serious commitment to getting Ajaokuta running, a project Buhari killed like the Lagos light rail as military head. Yet they went and cleared grasses and fixed bolts and nuts and claim the rail is up and running just to score cheap political points.
Only the uninitiated is impressed lad.

You have not carried out the assignment I gave you to tell us the year the Russians departed from Ajaokuta, because you like to live in false bubble. Why not supply the answer with links so we can expose who is telling lies?

I have explained why Ajaokuta cannot be completed without a reliable railway, if you don't want to learn that's your business.
What is bad in incorporating passenger service to a railway conceived for cargo so that when cargo trains pass, passengers can also use the empty time slots? Is that not smart? Won't that increase the utilization of the rail tracks some past leaders feel should be left abandoned for 33 years because it's not their personal money tied down?
Who says new towns can't develop along that corridor?

Ask the frequent travelers on that route if they prefer the passenger service cancelled. You might not care but some Nigerians do.

Agboriotejoye:


Baba you shouldn't robe me in your games. I said the noise is more than the job on ground. I never said Buhari is spending too much on infrastructure.
That's why I quoted where Femi said IBB institutionalized corruption. My premise is if Femi thinks infrastructure is evidence of no corruption, then he is wrong because the same man he is referring to actually did better than his boss in terms of infrastructure!!

What's your own with the noise? Is it the noise what will change the economics of the project or make it useful if it's truly useless as you claim?

If it's useless no amount of noise will make it useful or add to economic growth.

If Nigeria and it's interest is your concern the noise won't bother you one bit. Let those who built it make noise for their politics of election, and let those who want to say it doesn't matter water it down as a strategy to win back power.

But what I won't have is pretending by doing intellectual gymnastics because you have different political interest. Infrastructure is of utmost importance no matter who or which group is in power.

Ovamboland:


You have not carried out the assignment I gave you to tell us the year the Russians departed from Ajaokuta, because you like to live in false bubble. Why not supply the answer with links so we can expose who is telling lies?

I have explained why Ajaokuta cannot be completed without a reliable railway, if you don't want to learn that's your business.
What is bad in incorporating passenger service to a railway conceived for cargo so that when cargo trains pass, passengers can also use the empty time slots? Is that not smart? Won't that increase the utilization of the rail tracks some past leaders feel should be left abandoned for 33 years because it's not their personal money tied down?
Who says new towns can't develop along that corridor?

Ask the frequent travelers on that route if they prefer the passenger service cancelled. You might not care but some Nigerians do.

Keep quiet. it's not about the year the Russians left. It's about the maladministration of successive govts for which your Buhari is a major part. Or you can furnish us with how far he went with the Steel complex in the two years he spent as a military ruler after he toppled the govt that started the building. Don't forget he was also a major player in the Abacha govt under whom the steel complex became fully abandoned. He was head of a lucrative agency that had so much funds to play with.

The rail is not the most critical aspect of getting Ajaokuta running. The most critical aspect is getting the Iron ore complex up. Nothing has been done in that regard so forget all this noise about abandonment of the rails because na wash. The rails are useless as long as the iron mines and the steel complex are not up.

Can you show us the utilization of the rail since passenger traffic was added to it. You people need to be realistic. What is the transport volume between Warri and Itakpe to warrant passenger traffic? If nothing, it will increase the turnaround time of the tracks. Steel load is big enough in the first place.

Ovamboland:


What's your own with the noise? Is it the noise what will change the economics of the project or make it useful if it's truly useless as you claim?

If it's useless no amount of noise will make it useful or add to economic growth.

If Nigeria and it's interest is your concern the noise won't bother you one bit. Let those who built it make noise for their politics of election, and let those who want to say it doesn't matter water it down as a strategy to win back power.

But what I won't have is pretending by doing intellectual gymnastics because you have different political interest. Infrastructure is of utmost importance no matter who or which group is in power.

Exactly. Infrastructure is important. The noise always end up leading to corruption because when little brains like you start buttlicking the govt over token improvements and saying " We have never seen this before. Thank God for Buhari". Then the looters get a field day because there is no one who can speak up anymore!!

That's why the noise is bad for the polity.

Another one is that the noise makes everyone forget the economy and security that has tanked miserably on this administration's watch.

The noise is meant to make it look like infrastructure is the most important which we know that it is not. Security is. And this govt has failed spectacularly in that regard.
The economy is next after security. This govt is an abject failure there too. So all this whitewashing with "Huge, massive, physical infrastructure" na wash!!"

Ovamboland:


It's not a Nigeria project but some funding from Nigeria with a bank loan, who and who is responsible for paying back the loan? Why should Nigeria commit to such project when many Nigerian community are languishing and yearning for dinner such a bridge? Is that not similar to your anger against Niger rail? See above for my comments on the Niger rail.

So you know so much about the history of Cameroon bridge that it's not about Buhari but you're not aware the Niger rail is part of a master plan of ECOWAS rail plan of almost 2 decades some take delight in talking about but lacked courage to execute?

But you also think Niger railway is about Buhari cousins in Niger republic and they are Fulani Hausa and Muslims? No?

Or what exactly is your reason for opposing it in 2021 and not in 2013 when Jonathan was talking about doing it?

You are ignorant and proud

Foolishly invoking ECOWAS when ECOWAS has absolutely nothing to do with it

The Simple matter here is that
1. Nigeria is not spending any money in Cameroon
there are so many international projects in ECOWAS for example the West Africa gas pipeline
None of them involves Nigeria gifting infrastructure to another country
The project is not Jonathan's project . Nigeria and Cameroun along with The European Union and Japan plus the African Development bank agreed this contract as a way of Settling the Bakassi impasse

Quite how you can see a parallel between this kind of funding arrangement and one in which Nigeria pays the whole cost illustrates the quality of your mind

You have chosen to project your own explanation on to me

Did I mention Buhari anywhere? or his cousins.? You are the one with that problem

Ovamboland:


In what currency is China, Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Russia, India, Thailand and other emerging countries borrow in? Only in their own currency?
Or I don't understand what all these emphasis on currency is about like we don't understand the world financial system as it exists today.

Are we investing even at the Buhari rate causing you so much distress up to those countries in infrastructure every year?

You obviously fancy yourself as intellectuak. The earlier you embrace reality the better

China is a net creditor to the US and many countries in the world
Nigeria has almost 100% reliance on oil as its source of dollars and at the moment is using over 70% of revenue to service debt

This means if the price of oil should crash we are at risk of insolvency
That is irresponsible
We are already seeing signs of distress.
The government is borrowing from the IMF which is a lender of last resort and has imposed conditions on the government
Devalue the Naira
Remove oil subsidy

In short loss of sovereign control and you are here mouthing off ignorantly

Ovamboland:


Are you also posing here as shadeyinka?

once again, u just arent communicating

shadeyinka:

I can truely see where you are missing it.

Development isnt the acquisition of high tech and other toys. Development is the ability to plan, design, build several sapects of technology.

Here you are saying that Ajaokuta is not functioning because the Russians refuse to come because of COVID-19.! SMH

Here is a country that cannot refine iron or into pig iron
A country that import needles, bicycles, buttons, pencils, erasers, papers in a country where they have the greatest asset to technological development (Professors, PhD holders, Engineers, etc). Why is it that we cant generate enough electrical power? Are we expecting the Chinese to do that for us? Why is it that with so much crude oil, all our dear leaders could think of is importation of petrol, diesel, kerosine etc.

You didn't notice that it isn't infrastructure that produce development but utilization of human assets.

My definition of development is not buying the latest air conditioners but lacking the capacity to service them when they spoil
My definition of development is not when you employ Chinese people to build the second Niger bridge (when we have or could develop human capacity to build 100 bridges)

FYI:
We are behind the steel industry of America when they were in the year 1800s
When myopic thinking leaders lead a country like ours, this is what you get.
Ours is a country where the government who cannot refine one liter of crude oil is banning and outlawing the so-called illegal refiners of crude oil
is this not deficiency of the greatest requirement of driving the economy?


We complain of lack of job for our teeming population yet we provide millions of employment for Chinese people in the name of importation.
SMH

Buying things is not development: production is!

I will address just 2 of your points.

Ajaokuta is touted as a panacea to increase our ability to acquire steel processing technology and gradually develop competence. Those things are difficult to achieve in a vacuum of zero steel production from ore.

Whatever needs to be done should be to commence liquid steel production.

There's no way you will avoid creating jobs for workers in countries ahead when you want to buy their products you can't make yourself. When you buy passenger aircraft, you create jobs in USA or EU. But we must fly and I'm sure you're not insisting we must not take flights until we can make our own planes

Agboriotejoye:


Stop being half-smart. What I said is no particular MoU that says Niger will use our rail once completed and I even gave you a classical example of oil pipeline they had with Chad (not Cameroon) which they later rescinded.

If you're aware of such MoU that snatches the market from Cotonou pls feel free to share it

Apart from an agreement that must be in place to allow Nigeria build anything 25km into Niger territory, the most important thing is for Niger to see value in the rail access. I can hazard a guess that rail trip from Lagos to Maradi will be far cheaper than truck from Cotonou to Niamey.

$25m is not big money for Nigeria to explore this opportunity. It cannot even pay for the yatch Jide Omokore bought from oil deals while fronting for the then minister of petroleum. It was $200m Nigeria deposited at the court to quash P&ID attempt to fleece us of $10bn. And total project cost of the rail from Apapa to Kano-Jibia is over $10bn. We shouldn't be scared of staking $25m

Agboriotejoye:


Keep quiet. it's not about the year the Russians left. It's about the maladministration of successive govts for which your Buhari is a major part. Or you can furnish us with how far he went with the Steel complex in the two years he spent as a military ruler after he toppled the govt that started the building. Don't forget he was also a major player in the Abacha govt under whom the steel complex became fully abandoned. He was head of a lucrative agency that had so much funds to play with.

The rail is not the most critical aspect of getting Ajaokuta running. The most critical aspect is getting the Iron ore complex up. Nothing has been done in that regard so forget all this noise about abandonment of the rails because na wash. The rails are useless as long as the iron mines and the steel complex are not up.

Can you show us the utilization of the rail since passenger traffic was added to it. You people need to be realistic. What is the transport volume between Warri and Itakpe to warrant passenger traffic? If nothing, it will increase the turnaround time of the tracks. Steel load is big enough in the first place.

So whatever you claim without evidence that Buhari did to delay the construction of Ajaokuta in 20 months could not be reversed in 8 years of Babangida, 5 years of Abacha, a year of Abulsalam and 16 years of PDP. Please clap for yourself for your super story.

Yeah right, the rail line was started in 1987 and abandoned, tied down national resources, ignored by 5 leaders and the leader who unlocked that value in 2020 and as we speak Nigerians not goats or foreigners now have train option in that axis is the bad guy? Fine logic.

I know good things distress some people, I never imagined it would get to this extent. I would only expect this from enemies intent on total destruction and annihilation of our country.

We see foreigners, Ghanaians, Egyptian, Moroccans say thumbs up and congratulations for these same projects hoping they get such, but just read silly things so called Nigerians are saying. Something that their fellow citizens are benefitting from.

Agboriotejoye:


Exactly. Infrastructure is important. The noise always end up leading to corruption because when little brains like you start buttlicking the govt over token improvements and saying " We have never seen this before. Thank God for Buhari". Then the looters get a field day because there is no one who can speak up anymore!!

That's why the noise is bad for the polity.

Another one is that the noise makes everyone forget the economy and security that has tanked miserably on this administration's watch.

The noise is meant to make it look like infrastructure is the most important which we know that it is not. Security is. And this govt has failed spectacularly in that regard.
The economy is next after security. This govt is an abject failure there too. So all this whitewashing with "Huge, massive, physical infrastructure" na wash!!"

What hilarious statements won't you make while trying to defend your weak position?
So the govt blowing it's own trumpet by reporting what projects it has done will automatically change what has been spent on a project commissioned?

I see your hope lies in Nigerians not knowing or being aware that such projects had be executed. That's the only reason their noise could cause you so much distress.

You keep shouting the projects are corrupt but unable to show any evidence. I've told you the project cost about $5m/km.
You are yet to demonstrate what the real cost should be. You can't even show were similar projects all over Africa have been proven to be substantially far away from the the Nigeria projects.

You're shouting corruption, corruption as if that's the only evidence that proves it.

aribisala0:


You are ignorant and proud

Foolishly invoking ECOWAS when ECOWAS has absolutely nothing to do with it

The Simple matter here is that
1. Nigeria is not spending any money in Cameroon
there are so many international projects in ECOWAS for example the West Africa gas pipeline
None of them involves Nigeria gifting infrastructure to another country
The project is not Jonathan's project . Nigeria and Cameroun along with The European Union and Japan plus the African Development bank agreed this contract as a way of Settling the Bakassi impasse

Quite how you can see a parallel between this kind of funding arrangement and one in which Nigeria pays the whole cost illustrates the quality of your mind

You have chosen to project your own explanation on to me

Did I mention Buhari anywhere? or his cousins.? You are the one with that problem

So Japan and EU is spending money in Nigeria and Cameroon are we part of their territory or we share border with them? Are you saying we are helpless in the matter and duty bound to accept their offer? Is this not another example of useless infrastructure that funds should have been directed to education and SME? Now because Japan and EU is funding it then it must be useful? Is that not inferiority complex.

You didn't tell us who is taking the loans from AFDB and who is responsible for repayment.

If they have interest to protect here, who says we can't spend money to protect whatever interest we have in Niger republic and their cargo?

Where were you when the Niger republic rail was proposed over 10 years ago and show me where and when you opposed it.

The same Nigeria that spent billions of Dollars fighting in Liberia and Sierra Leone can't have strategic interest in Niger republic with $25m investment because you don't like the people living there? You're on your own.
Good there's nothing you can do about it than fuming in your closet. The rail will be completed and we will get our $25m back in less than 6 months. That might even add more to your bigoted pained body. You are incapable of transcending your religious and ethnic bias.

Ovamboland:


I will address just 2 of your points.

Ajaokuta is touted as a panacea to increase our ability to acquire steel processing technology and gradually develop competence. Those things are difficult to achieve in a vacuum of zero steel production from ore.

Whatever needs to be done should be to commence liquid steel production.

In those days in my village, they know how to smelt and forge iron from its ore. Unfortunately, the technology has disappeared as no one is doing the smelting now. Everyone who read some basic physical science and engineering know about iron refining. Several of our metallurgical engineers, professors and PhD holders know the theory of steel production unfortunately, what is deficiency is leadership in harnessing the skilled human resources in favour of spending money to acquire needs. I personally have built furnaces for melting aluminum, copper and its alloys and cast iron. I am in the process of building both induction furnace and carbon arc furnace AND I wonder why my dear country cannot harness the knowledge of the several hundred people in Nigeria who are more knowledgeable than me in the art of alloying and casting metals. You can see why I blame our mumu leaders for not thinking beyond their nose.

Ovamboland:

There's no way you will avoid creating jobs for workers in countries ahead when you want to buy their products you can't make yourself. When you buy passenger aircraft, you create jobs in USA or EU. But we must fly and I'm sure you're not insisting we must not take flights until we can make our own planes

I can understand if a country like Nigeria imports their Airplanes, Ships and Integrated circuits. But I cant understand it when the leadership of Nigeria think that it make sense that Nigerians import needles, pins, papers, rulers, pens, pencils, threads, clothings, etc. We practivally import everything and yet we blame the illusive INFRASTRUCTURE.

What we should blame is our clueless leadership!

shadeyinka:

In those days in my village, they know how to smelt and forge iron from its ore. Unfortunately, the technology has disappeared as no one is doing the smelting now. Everyone who read some basic physical science and engineering know about iron refining. Several of our metallurgical engineers, professors and PhD holders know the theory of steel production unfortunately, what is deficiency is leadership in harnessing the skilled human resources in favour of spending money to acquire needs. I personally have built furnaces for melting aluminum, copper and its alloys and cast iron. I am in the process of building both induction furnace and carbon arc furnace AND I wonder why my dear country cannot harness the knowledge of the several hundred people in Nigeria who are more knowledgeable than me in the art of alloying and casting metals. You can see why I blame our mumu leaders for not thinking beyond their nose.


I can understand if a country like Nigeria imports their Airplanes, Ships and Integrated circuits. But I cant understand it when the leadership of Nigeria think that it make sense that Nigerians import needles, pins, papers, rulers, pens, pencils, threads, clothings, etc. We practivally import everything and yet we blame the illusive INFRASTRUCTURE.

What we should blame is our clueless leadership!

Is anything in the world stopping you from banding together as was done in America to build huge steel plants in Nigeria?
Since you have not done it and govt is taking up the challenge to build, did you submit your proposal to build one instead of the Russians and govt threw it away in favor of theirs?

Why have you not built your own in the 40 years the govt plant has failed to start?

It's easy to make highfalutin statements Knowing the reality on ground.

Why are you not making pencil, pins, spoons, razor blades etc like citizens of many other countries? Govt must still come and spoon feed you and empower you?

Okay, you couldn't start because we don't have infrastructure? But here you are fighting tooth and nail to convince us the infrastructure provided is useless and unnecessary.

Ovamboland:


So Japan and EU is spending money in Nigeria and Cameroon are we part of their territory or we share border with them? Are you saying we are helpless in the matter and duty bound to accept their offer? Is this not another example of useless infrastructure that funds should have been directed to education and SME? Now because Japan and EU is funding it then it must be useful? Is that not inferiority complex.

You didn't tell us who is taking the loans from AFDB and who is responsible for repayment.

If they have interest to protect here, who says we can't spend money to protect whatever interest we have in Niger republic and their cargo?

Where were you when the Niger republic rail was proposed over 10 years ago and show me where and when you opposed it.

The same Nigeria that spent billions of Dollars fighting in Liberia and Sierra Leone can't have strategic interest in Niger republic with $25m investment because you don't like the people living there? You're on your own.
Good there's nothing you can do about it than fuming in your closet. The rail will be completed and we will get our $25m back in less than 6 months. That might even add more to your bigoted pained body. You are incapable of transcending your religious and ethnic bias.

Empty ignorant rubbish