ranlaen:

is this the most pressing matter nigeria has?

It is not the most pressing matter at all, but the Principles involved in this are the same across many other "pressing matters".

Accountability, vision, fairness, justice, the will to act, proactive leadership by example. E.t.c

The way you view an issue such as this one is a pointer to how you will approach other pressing matters of national importance.

okada_man:

That is the problem.  This idea that a particular concept has a universal application accross all scenarios simply because it seems liberal and fair on the surface is a lie.

Why should the burden of proof lie with government, this is a law that must assume that all men are selfish and prone to corruption, there is nothing unfair about the truth.

Even France and I believe Italy, two bastions of liberal European philosophy do not have innocent until proven guilty, in France and many countries, you are guilty until proven innocent!

This ideology -I suspect it's judeo-christian- that believes man is naturally good and fair and must be accorded that recognition is unnatural and silly. Even a regular business contract forces you to sign restrictive rules. And you are liable. It does not presume anything.

The proper starting position is to assume that all men are corrupt, selfish, self-seeking and irredeemable in the absence of strong laws. We need to approach laws and governance from that realistic perspective, then we can guard against the excesses of men.

When you start from the idea that men are good and all is nice, you put society at a disadvantage, even America and other western societies realize to a large extent despite their pretenses, and they make laws to show they do. Despite all their beautiful propaganda about fairness and all that good stuff.

Look at the jail population in America and survey ours, tell me which society is more restrictive. Any john that has ever stepped out of Africa to the western world will tell you we are living freely here compared with Americans and other westerners,

Unfortunately, when we enforce restrictions we enforce it for the lowly, poor and already subjected millions, we leave the rich, powerful and status-protected few off. I suspect this is due to our status dependent cultures. Caste this caste that, ranka-de de, oga sir, still we want to sing about democracy.

I know this law will not pass. But I like it already.

What a fcking brilliantly put post.

People just hear about concepts or ideologies and scream it without understanding it, questioning it, critiquing it or evaluating its sense or applicability.

So when the UK or US police arrest people planning to bomb innocent people and locking them up, why are the liberal crusaders, anti-logic brigade not asking for the potential terrorist "rights" because the person planning the terror is has not yet done it, hence is not yet guilty of any horrible act and could "possibly" have changed his mind at the last minute.

Utter tosh arguments all in the name of trying to show they are liberal!

Sagamite:

What a fcking brilliantly put post.

People just hear about concepts or ideologies and scream it without questioning it, critiquing it or evaluating its sense or applicability.

So when the UK or US police arrest people planning to bomb innocent people and locking them up, why are the liberal crusaders, anti-logic brigade not asking for the potential terrorist "rights" because the person planning the terror is has not yet done it, hence is not yet guilty of any horrible act and could "possibly" have changed his mind at the last minute.

Utter tosh arguments all in the name of trying to show they are liberal!

You are so right. Even in Yankee, where I stay, presidential candidates cannot accept more than $2,500 from any single donor. This is to prevent candidates from seeking out donors who have the finances to buy and influence an election.

There are restrictions on the benefits senators and congressmen can receive from private companies while in office.

Some of these Nairalanders just hear the word constitutional rights on movies, and do not know its applicability and that it is not an absolute right. When we talk about public officials, the state has a compelling interest in preventing corruption, so the state normally restricts the freedoms and rights of public officials.

As one poster suggested, you are to presume or anticipate that public officials are susceptible to being corrupt and the state should therefore tailor laws that will eliminate (or at least curtail) any possible corruption by these public officials. Nigeria is even worse, because precedent has suggest that corruption has now become the norm, so I support any  law that is aimed reducing corruption.

Princek12:

You are so right. Even in Yankee, where I stay, presidential candidates cannot accept more than $2,500 from any single donor. This is to prevent candidates from seeking out donors who have the finances to buy and influence an election.

There are restrictions on the benefits senators and congressmen can receive from private companies while in office.

No, that is a rubbish law. You are denying them their rights. They should be allowed to take any money offered and it should be burden of proof of the government to show if any money taken is criminal.

Princek12:

For example, if you attempt to pass a bill requiring incoming presidents to publicly declare their assets, will any aspiring president now claim that his constitutional rights are being infringed because he is required to declare his assets as a condition to becoming  president? If any aspiring president makes such a claim, voters should run away from that candidate.

No that is a daft law. It is infringing on the President's right to privacy. It is unconstitutional.

Princek12:

Once you start imposing all these restraints, aspiring public officials will now begin to realize that public office is a position that comes with the obligation to serve the people, not to enrich their pockets.

No, that is a stewpid concept. It is against their rights and illegal, we ended slavery 200 years ago. They are there to serve their own interests like any normal human being is allowed. It is just a job.

Princek12:

Some of these Nairalanders just hear the word constitutional rights on movies, and do not know its applicability and that it is not an absolute right. When we talk about public officials, the state has a compelling interest in preventing corruption, so the state normally restricts the freedoms and rights of public officials.

GBAM! GBOSA! GBIM!

They think some words make them funky intellectuals.

@ Sagamite


you no go kill me with laughter oooooooo

These are the kinds of people that hold society back because they make easy and effective decisions hard to make with some lame arguments, and democracy backs them because they are entitled to equal voice.

People destroy our local education and then send their own kids to University of Buckingham (which even most British people cannot afford) with the money they loot and some people are saying "rights".

Here is the spending on education in Nigeria, Egypt and SA.

http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SE.XPD.TOTL.GD.ZS/compare?country=ng#country=eg:ng:za

Nigeria after 1979 spent less percentage of their GDP than the other 2 did.

Taking it into further context, the other 2 have a higher GDP, so if they are spending a higher percentage of their higher GDP on education that means they are spending far higher than Nigeria in absolute value of money on education.

Now compound this with the fact that the other 2 have less population (Egypt with half, SA with one third of Nigeria's population) that means they are spending fcking far more on education per head of population.

Now add the killer: Corruption. Probably over half of the miniscule Nigeria spends on education is still stolen and not used for what it was budgeted for, while the other 2 countries are far less corrupt.

All these mean, these people are spending maybe 15-20 times more per person than Nigeria.

This is the result of that difference.

http://www.webometrics.info/top100_continent.asp?cont=africa
http://www.4icu.org/topAfrica/
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/2010-2011/africa.html
http://www.topuniversities.com/world-university-rankings/qs-top-500-%E2%80%93-shining-light-world-higher-education-scene

See the countries that have more universities in the top 20 and Nigeria not having any in the Top 40.

We have a generation of graduates employers say cannot think, read or write well and speak with poor grammar.

Go back above and look at the first link on spend on education. The spending on education started falling at the beginning of the 80s. It is no coincidence that graduates of Nigerian Unis of the 70s and early 80s are top notch by any global standard and hardly did people send their kids abroad for undergrad back then. But by the 90s to the 2000s the graduates are nothing to write home about and the criminals are the ones sending their kids to Buckingham.

Rights my fcking, freaking arse! People wonder why Sagamite is always boiling and exploding. This are the shyt facts I look at and gets on my goat!

This is the impact of the corruption and poor education on national progress:

http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/NY.GDP.PCAP.CD/compare#country=eg:ng:za

See how Egypt overtook Nigeria few years after the period when our spend on education was falling.


And this is what happens to the regular citizens when you give then shyt education:

http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS/compare#country=eg:ng:za
http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/SI.POV.2DAY/compare#country=eg:ng:za


Rights my fcking arse! What about the right of the people not to have their lives ruined by those that are suppose to run the country?

Nice compilation Sagamite!

I see no reason why some people should be walking the streets of Nigeria freely. Some of those leaders should have a guillotine specially designed for their ruinous fat necks.

The law should be enforced to the hilt - backed by congress, signed by the president and locked down by the people. In fact any pesron wanting/desiring to SERVE the public MUST as a matter of national revival and rebirth have their wards in public schools. If the school is not good enough for a serving minister's ward then he'd feel every pain suffered by parents whose wards also attend and are deprived requisite standards. No be FORCE to serve o! Let's test run and ammend as we go, we no go know wetin we fit acheive until we don try am

.

^^

I'm still on this too. Time to radically campaign for these kind of Laws. Politicians and top public officials are no gods, we need to keep demanding that they be forced to face the same type of pain we are facing.

Equality can be enforced faster in Nigeria than we think if we support laws like this.

okada_man:

^^

I'm still on this too. Time to radically campaign for these kind of Laws. Politicians and top public officials are no gods, we need to keep demanding that they be forced to face the same type of pain we are facing.

Equality can be enforced faster in Nigeria than we think if we support laws like this.

Philadelphia just put a weekend curfew of 9pm on anyone under 18 being in the city centre because some youths were organising on social networks to go out cause trouble (e.g. mob beat any individual they see for no reason).

The law is targeted at all those under 18, I wonder if this is an abuse of the rights of under 18s and unconstitutional in the land of the free.

^^

They want to turn Philadelphia to the city of brotherly brawl. 

While human rights is all good and nice, it should not be an excuse for mayhem and anarchy, your rights stop where other people's begin. Few days ago, David Cameron went on air to affirm that he will not allow "Phony Human Rights" concern stop them from bringing Looters to justice. That's is the PM of the so called bastion of western liberal democracy.

To paraphrase princek12, there is a "compelling public interest" to protect, so the rights of an 18 year old to Waka up and down the street is not important frankly.

I don't know what rights an 18 year old with a partially developed brain and a warped sense of responsibility has sef. Teenagers are too young and gullible to be accorded any rights beyond the rights to be disciplined by a responsible adult  j/k

As for Nigerian public officers, I don't know why anyone should give a bunch of thieves sitting on a pile of Billions of oil dollars any rights beyond 24 hours surveillance.

If Nigeria's public money was mine and I have these politicians in charge, they will have to get a permission from me before they pee.

Are going to be deprived of their fundermental human right? Abi which kain law be dat?

Elizadath:

Are going to be deprived of their fundermental human right? Abi which kain law be dat?

What do you understand by fundamental human rights?