Rhino.5dm:

Who is a core-northerner?

Kano,Katsina, Zamfara, Jigawa, Yobe, Sokoto, North Bauchi, North Kaduna, North Gombe, north Kebbi

@Onlytruth

Na im me lol.

But my knowledge of military tells me that the bulk of northern military are not from "core-north" ,but from Plateau(General Gowon, Gen Dogon Yaro, Gen Dunkat Bali),Kebbi(Zuru, remember they produce General Ishaya Bamaiyi and Musa Bamaiyi, Gen kagoro, Gen sani sami), Taraba, Adamawa(Gen Marwa, Admiral Murtala Nyako), Niger(Gen IBB, Gen Abdulsalami), Benue, Gombe South(Kaltingo,Billiari,), Kogi, Borno(Abacha, though he claimed to be from Kano but his tribal marks and choice of Almustapha, sergent Rogers a.k.a Uwa Jubila betrays him as they are both from Yobe(Old part of Borno state))


so, why are these revisonist try to re-write history by claiming "core-northerners" are the majority in the army?

Nadanbata:

Kano,Katsina, Zamfara, Jigawa, Yobe, Sokoto, North Bauchi, North Kaduna, North Gombe, north Kebbi

Onlytruth:

Why am I not surprised by your broad brush answer. The problem is that the answer only fools gullible folks.

Let me ask you a question, why did Nzeogwu's revolution fail in 1966?
You do know that was a revolution, don't you?

How many Northerners have been killed in Eastern Nigeria in peace times, from 1945 to 2011?
Can you guess the proportion of deaths in Northern Nigerian riots against "foreigners", compared with similar deaths in Eastern Nigeria?

Onlytruth:

@Olodostein,

While you are at work answering my questions, your opinions are needed here https://www.nairaland.com/nigeria/topic-833571.32.html

One of the problems we Nigerians have is that we are always in denial even when the facts are crystal clear. I don't need to elaborate on Nzeogwu's so called "revolution" for you to understand where I am coming from. Our "founding fathers" were very shortsighted, hence the problems that ensued until this day. They weren't nationalistic enough and to an extent laid the foundation for this menace. That is why outside the shores of Nigeria, people hardly know them. Unlike the likes of Kwame Nkrumah, Gamal Abdul Nasser, Patrice Lumumba, Thomas Sankara, Kenyatta amongst other Nationalists Pan Africanists. If you have read the works of America's founding fathers and the history of USA at large, you would know why they have made such a huge impact despite being from different ancestral lands. In Nigeria, we are suppose to be a Nation of Laws, but the reverse seem to be the case.

You may have raised legitimate questions and have a genuine concern. There are a number of fundamental issues that have led to your cynicism. I will try to break them down in bits.

Philosophy: Since the inception of this country called Nigeria, we have lacked a collective and coherent philosophy in this country as Nigerians. We might as well term it "Nigerianism"- it doesn't matter- as long as we all fight for the common interest of this nation. We were not taught in school about the benefits of this. In absent of it, political ideologies have taken root; not that a healthy one is necessarily a bad thing but when taken too far, can lead to chaos. This is evident in the Tribalism we practice as tribes and recent Islamic fundamentalism breeding in the North. Do you think we are the only nation on earth with tribes and religions? Do you know that the Indians have more than us? Not to talk of the fact that they are more than a billion people. Do you know that there are Somalis and African Arabs amongst other tribes who are Kenyan citizens? Despite their own shortcomings, they are making headway and we are sliding backward because of selfish interest. When Al shebab caused an uproar in Kenya, the Kenya authorities took the fight to their home turf. Why weren't there outrage from their Somali brothers living in Kenya all these years? Because they know the true benefits of shared common interest and philosophy that have been ingrained in their minds. This is one of the reasons we are hated abroad especially by blacks in the diaspora; because we haven't put ourselves in order,yet, we desperately go there to try to show them how to do things or behave. We are supposed to be seen as idols, but we come across as utter disgrace. A new Nigerian immigrant abroad would even be the first to condemn and tell a Nigerian born overseas or blacks in general the ills of Nigeria not first understanding the environment he/she found himself/herself and the glass ceiling erected by his "adopted home" because of the fact that he is a Black man first and foremost.

Security: You don't need to look too far to see how security has always been compromised in this country. Endemic corruption is the order of the day. There was a recent report about embezzlement of funds to the tune of 13billion naira meant for installation of state of the art radars at our airports(both local and international); talk about jeopardizing innocent lives. Our officers are so unequipped and incompetent. They desperately lack the modern gadgets required for modern day security challenges like smart riffles, sensors,protection kits, communication tools and so on. They are so 1950's. Go to other countries and see how their internal security forces are equipped to the teeth. It is a common knowledge that for you to secure a place as an applicant in the force, you must have "connections". To be accepted by merits is out of the question 90% of the time. Educated and passionate young men shy away because of these reasons. Is that why you see mostly old peeps in uniform around you? Where did Mike Okri get the money to build a very big plaza in Abuja? Have you easily forgotten about Tafa Balogun and their predecessors before them?  Why is it that as big and large as we are, we don't have security agencies- put emphasize on the pluralised 's'- to monitor things and do more intelligence work? We only have the "SSS" to show off.  Cmon, the USA got NSA, FBI, CIA, US Marshall and not to talk of domestic ones from NYPD, LAPD to Sheriff. The UK got M16, Scotland Yard and other fringe ones. The Israelis got Mossad, Shin-bet and other fringe internal ones. The French, Germans, South Africans and even the Kenyans all got theirs. Not to talk of the sophisticated military intelligences these countries have and modern Technologies. Lack of these mentioned above create vacuums for radical groups and individuals to exploit and cause mayhem. Lack of electricity at night to monitor these groups activities is not helping matters either. How would one detect when an explosive is driven to its targeted location at night without lights on?

Economy and Infrastructure: The North is one of the easiest places to do business and have the lowest cost of living in Nigeria. Through out my stay and visit in the North, I have never been robbed or experienced well planned robbery neither do I know anyone who have.If it happens, it is very rare. Things are so cheap that you can literally get by with little amount of money. Apartments in good areas are one third of the price you pay at major southern/eastern cities. The landlords could give you a long grace of time to pay unlike what you can get in other parts of the country. The road networks in the states are well carved that you can travel 50km with a pittance. What are your Senators and Governors doing with the allocations they get for projects? Are the Bankole's, Ibori's, Ohakim's, Alameighsaya's and Chimaroke's all Northerners? Why is it that anytime there is some sort of crisis like riot, our transport business men from the all "South and East" increase their fare to ten fold instead of show solidarity with their brethren? I overheard an argument the other day between an okada passenger and driver(both are southerners) about how the driver overcharged her. When pressed by the driver, the woman said that,"when we opt for northern okada drivers, you people will complain that we don't patronise you". I wasn't surprise by her statement because a typical Hausa man doesn't care much about the things of this world. In terms of business, we are very successful in it in the north. In return: we employ some of them; ride their okada's; buy water and their farm produce from them. It is a win win situation and the level headed ones understand that. The East for now lack potential industries and infrastructure to absorb every Ndigbo. Our region is one of the densely populated areas and that includes the South South and to some extent the South West. We ought to start thinking on how to be creative architecturally and in landscaping. Instead what you see is every male in a family clearing agricultural lands and building "mansions" to park "Cars" to boost his/her Ego. It is not uncommon to see 4 boys in a family with 4 big houses. What happened to building solid block of flats of 4 storeys considering our huge population and limited land?  Do you know that our parents had a baby boom after the war? How are we going to cultivate our own food to feed everyone after we must have clear all the lands and build mansions all over the place? Oh no, you are going to import all your food from abroad including the North.
[b]
Crime, Our Youth and Education: [/b]The average northern youth is more socially and politically aware than other youths from other parts of the country, despite the fact that many of them lack basic education. If you might have noticed, you would see stark illiterate shoe shiny or mai shayi always with his radio listening to updated information in their language on radio stations. While youths from other parts are obsessed with the latest BB,uneducated reality shows, wannabe's black Americans listening to meaningless songs always talking about MONEY, SEX and looking for the Next escape out of the country. Are these the youth that will move your virtual nation forward? If these northerners were privileged to have the education that many of us have, I suppose they would be doing something much worthwhile with it. Have you come across an educated Muslim northerner to see how cultured and progressing they can be? That is one of the reasons the Yoruba Muslims have it good, because they are educated and exposed set of folks. Give a person an educated mind to Reason and they would think twice before going to blow off themselves and others. Let us encourage more northern youths and also call the Northern elites to spread education and you would not recognize that region again. Ask Governor Rochas, there was/is positive results in what he did there. Boko Haram is not less worse than high way robbers who kill innocent people as well. There was a robbery incident along Okene/Abuja road that killed 52 people at a spot. Are BH much worse than those who bring fake drugs into the country, thereby, endangering innocent lives including Me and You?  Murder is Murder and a Sin is a Sin no matter who commits it. I hate BH activities with every fiber of my being and would fight them if i had the chance. Someone is behind and they need to be apprehended. They seem to be winning the psychological and propaganda war by trying to creat panic at all cost. The worst thing is that we are falling for it by trying to take the frustrations on our selves while they watch from the sidelines. If you are very current on news, you would see that Muslim clerics,soldiers, policemen and ordinary Muslims have also been killed. There was even attacks during the Ramadan and Eid. Their strategy is: Create as much fear as you can and take advantage of the situation. Some important folks are benefiting from this strategy even though they may not be directly linked to the group.

Our politicians have all but failed us all.They are so skilled at pitting us against each other. GEJ may seem like a Good man with Great plans for us. At least there has been improvements in power generation. We have been getting like 16 straight hours of electricity since October. But he needs to understand quickly that this is National politics and not state politics and readjust Fast because of the way he won party Nomination backslapping party agreements . When you put what I have outlined into perspective, you would see why many are reluctant to relocate finally just like that unless there is a concrete alternative. There has been crisis over crisis and people still return. Sometimes in life, you just have to face Reality and tell yourself the Truth. The fact that people run away when there is crisis is a natural reaction every human exhibit. Many also traveled for Christmas and will be back before you know it.  I know of a family who relocated to Owerri with their everything during the election crisis and came back afterward. I asked why they couldn't stay, they said nothing much to do and very little opportunities. Good to know that Rochas is trying to change things. Do you know that you can still buy something tangible with 5naira in the north?

Let us stop being simpletons and start thinking out of the box. It is easy to be reactionary and start pointing fingers than to be proactive and take the bull by the horn.

I have tried to be objective the best I can be. You can as well copy this and paste it on the link you sent.

Thanks Olodostein!
I quite enjoyed your post, and you were on point on many issues in Nigeria.
HOWEVER, I have some more questions.

You seem to suggest that Northerners are better behaved Nigerians than Southerners.  The premise of my argument would be in form of a foundational question:

WHY HAVE THERE BEEN CONSTANT RIOTS IN THE NORTH since 1945?

Frankly speaking, I would want ONE Nigeria with all the POSITIVE possibilities and dreams; the problem is that Nigeria has NEVER shown a REAL chance of success, even BEFORE Independence. I hope you know, for instance, that the policy of "North for Northerners" started even before independence. As of then, Ahmadu Bello led a policy that basically says that every job in the North must be filled by Northerners, and were a Northerner not available, a foreign expatriate would be hired; and if there are no expatriates, then a southerner would be hired ON CONTRACT, pending when a Northerner could assume that position. This was the case also after independence.
For a nation with shared aspirations and dreams, how do you think that Nigeria could have surmounted such hurdle?

Honestly, I share in your views that our founding fathers, (mainly Azikiwe), were irresponsible in the art of designing a new nation. A  handshake requires TWO parties. I cannot shake my own hands. So, when I talk about Nigeria's founding father, I really mean Azikiwe, because Bello and Awolowo clearly wanted separate countries for the West and the North respectively. Some accuse the British of playing an invidious game against Nigeria prior to independence, but I beg to differ. We could have delayed independence (heck we should have delayed it ) until we could figure out if and how we should design Nigeria. Our major problems started with the shoddy independence constitution.

Having said these, it is my honest opinion that the long years of Northern military rule presented Nigeria with another GOLDEN opportunity to design a new nation based on REALITIES. Some countries of the world started their march to greatness through military rule. However, instead of designing a new Nigeria, the Northern military dictators only saw opportunity to loot the state and corner oil blocks, and basically swept Nigeria's problems under the carpet. When they wanted to leave power, they couldn't even serve Nigeria's interest by enthroning a credible leader for Nigeria; instead they rigged in a known failure. The man they rigged in then went ahead to design Nigeria around his selfish interests, and everything in Nigeria since 1999 have ever since revolved around him, one way or another. The current crisis ties back to him, but he had Northern support initially.

I, as a child of Eastern Nigeria, a region long kept away from the corridors of federal power, I cannot accept any fault for Nigeria's current problems. My region attempted to solve the problem glossed over by the failed independence constitution in 1967. We lost a war, and millions died. We remain the only region in Nigeria that has EVER boldly challenged the failing foundations of Nigeria. I should therefore be allowed some room to feel vindicated.

For almost 30 years now, there has been a CONSTANT clamour for a soveriegn national conference where Nigerians can sit together and design a solid nation. The North has opposed each and every one of them. The crisis in the Niger delta was only visited to some extend after a limited armed struggle in that part. Was it necessary? A simple conference could have saved lives and millions of dollar that could have been used to improve lives of average Nigerians. The North only bugged after a violent uprising. That again ties to the current Boko Haram crisis. When the leader of that Islamic sect was arrested, instead of him facing the courts, he was summarily executed.
Today, his followers are up in arms! Why are Northern Nigerian leaders afraid of a National Conference?

Lastly, it is my principle and belief, that the greatest internal security any country can EVER have, is JUSTICE AT HOME. There is no amount of security agencies that can defend a country against unemployed youths for instance. It is cheaper to create jobs! There is no amount of security that can replace FAIRNESS. Any nation hoping on these, instead of justice and love and fairness, WILL FAIL.  So, drop your beliefs about some intelligence silver bullet that stops the poor and oppressed.  I am a strong follower of Jaweh the Great God that rules the universe. If you oppress the poor, you will pay for it. 

A nation of shared destiny can emerge in Nigeria, but these MUST STOP before that:
QUOTA SYSTEM,
INDIGENE/SETTLER DICHOTOMY
RESOURCE CONTROL

A Nigerian must be able to live and work in ANY part of Nigeria without fear of being killed or discriminated.
A Nigerian must not lose an employment position for which he is dully qualified.
Local owners of resources should control much of it, because they bear the environmental impacts of extractions.

Here I stand. 
Signing off, Ndu di n'eziokwu 1 of Igboland, Eze Igbo Nairaland.

Olodostein:

One of the problems we Nigerians have is that we are always in denial even when the facts are crystal clear. I don't need to elaborate on Nzeogwu's so called "revolution" for you to understand where I am coming from. Our "founding fathers" were very shortsighted, hence the problems that ensued until this day. They weren't nationalistic enough and to an extent laid the foundation for this menace. That is why outside the shores of Nigeria, people hardly know them. Unlike the likes of Kwame Nkrumah, Gamal Abdul Nasser, Patrice Lumumba, Thomas Sankara, Kenyatta amongst other Nationalists Pan Africanists. If you have read the works of America's founding fathers and the history of USA at large, you would know why they have made such a huge impact despite being from different ancestral lands. In Nigeria, we are suppose to be a Nation of Laws, but the reverse seem to be the case.

You may have raised legitimate questions and have a genuine concern. There are a number of fundamental issues that have led to your cynicism. I will try to break them down in bits.

Philosophy: Since the inception of this country called Nigeria, we have lacked a collective and coherent philosophy in this country as Nigerians. We might as well term it "Nigerianism"- it doesn't matter- as long as we all fight for the common interest of this nation. We were not taught in school about the benefits of this. In absent of it, political ideologies have taken root; not that a healthy one is necessarily a bad thing but when taken too far, can lead to chaos. This is evident in the Tribalism we practice as tribes and recent Islamic fundamentalism breeding in the North. Do you think we are the only nation on earth with tribes and religions? Do you know that the Indians have more than us? Not to talk of the fact that they are more than a billion people. Do you know that there are Somalis and African Arabs amongst other tribes who are Kenyan citizens? Despite their own shortcomings, they are making headway and we are sliding backward because of selfish interest. When Al shebab caused an uproar in Kenya, the Kenya authorities took the fight to their home turf. Why weren't there outrage from their Somali brothers living in Kenya all these years? Because they know the true benefits of shared common interest and philosophy that have been ingrained in their minds. This is one of the reasons we are hated abroad especially by blacks in the diaspora; because we haven't put ourselves in order,yet, we desperately go there to try to show them how to do things or behave. We are supposed to be seen as idols, but we come across as utter disgrace. A new Nigerian immigrant abroad would even be the first to condemn and tell a Nigerian born overseas or blacks in general the ills of Nigeria not first understanding the environment he/she found himself/herself and the glass ceiling erected by his "adopted home" because of the fact that he is a Black man first and foremost.

Security: You don't need to look too far to see how security has always been compromised in this country. Endemic corruption is the order of the day. There was a recent report about embezzlement of funds to the tune of 13billion naira meant for installation of state of the art radars at our airports(both local and international); talk about jeopardizing innocent lives. Our officers are so unequipped and incompetent. They desperately lack the modern gadgets required for modern day security challenges like smart riffles, sensors,protection kits, communication tools and so on. They are so 1950's. Go to other countries and see how their internal security forces are equipped to the teeth. It is a common knowledge that for you to secure a place as an applicant in the force, you must have "connections". To be accepted by merits is out of the question 90% of the time. Educated and passionate young men shy away because of these reasons. Is that why you see mostly old peeps in uniform around you? Where did Mike Okri get the money to build a very big plaza in Abuja? Have you easily forgotten about Tafa Balogun and their predecessors before them?  Why is it that as big and large as we are, we don't have security agencies- put emphasize on the pluralised 's'- to monitor things and do more intelligence work? We only have the "SSS" to show off.  Cmon, the USA got NSA, FBI, CIA, US Marshall and not to talk of domestic ones from NYPD, LAPD to Sheriff. The UK got M16, Scotland Yard and other fringe ones. The Israelis got Mossad, Shin-bet and other fringe internal ones. The French, Germans, South Africans and even the Kenyans all got theirs. Not to talk of the sophisticated military intelligences these countries have and modern Technologies. Lack of these mentioned above create vacuums for radical groups and individuals to exploit and cause mayhem. Lack of electricity at night to monitor these groups activities is not helping matters either. How would one detect when an explosive is driven to its targeted location at night without lights on?

Economy and Infrastructure: [b]The North is one of the easiest places to do business and have the lowest cost of living in Nigeria. Through out my stay and visit in the North, I have never been robbed or experienced well planned robbery neither do I know anyone who have.If it happens, it is very rare. Things are so cheap that you can literally get by with little amount of money. Apartments in good areas are one third of the price you pay at major southern/eastern cities. The landlords could give you a long grace of time to pay unlike what you can get in other parts of the country. The road networks in the states are well carved that you can travel 50km with a pittance. What are your Senators and Governors doing with the allocations they get for projects? Are the Bankole's, Ibori's, Ohakim's, Alameighsaya's and Chimaroke's all Northerners? [/b]Why is it that anytime there is some sort of crisis like riot, our transport business men from the all "South and East" increase their fare to ten fold instead of show solidarity with their brethren? I overheard an argument the other day between an okada passenger and driver(both are southerners) about how the driver overcharged her. When pressed by the driver, the woman said that,"when we opt for northern okada drivers, you people will complain that we don't patronise you". I wasn't surprise by her statement because a typical Hausa man doesn't care much about the things of this world. In terms of business, we are very successful in it in the north. In return: we employ some of them; ride their okada's; buy water and their farm produce from them. It is a win win situation and the level headed ones understand that. The East for now lack potential industries and infrastructure to absorb every Ndigbo. Our region is one of the densely populated areas and that includes the South South and to some extent the South West. We ought to start thinking on how to be creative architecturally and in landscaping. Instead what you see is every male in a family clearing agricultural lands and building "mansions" to park "Cars" to boost his/her Ego. It is not uncommon to see 4 boys in a family with 4 big houses. What happened to building solid block of flats of 4 storeys considering our huge population and limited land?  Do you know that our parents had a baby boom after the war? How are we going to cultivate our own food to feed everyone after we must have clear all the lands and build mansions all over the place? Oh no, you are going to import all your food from abroad including the North.
[b]
Crime, Our Youth and Education: [/b]The average northern youth is more socially and politically aware than other youths from other parts of the country, despite the fact that many of them lack basic education. If you might have noticed, you would see stark illiterate shoe shiny or mai shayi always with his radio listening to updated information in their language on radio stations. While youths from other parts are obsessed with the latest BB,uneducated reality shows, wannabe's black Americans listening to meaningless songs always talking about MONEY, SEX and looking for the Next escape out of the country. Are these the youth that will move your virtual nation forward? If these northerners were privileged to have the education that many of us have, I suppose they would be doing something much worthwhile with it. Have you come across an educated Muslim northerner to see how cultured and progressing they can be? That is one of the reasons the Yoruba Muslims have it good, because they are educated and exposed set of folks. Give a person an educated mind to Reason and they would think twice before going to blow off themselves and others. Let us encourage more northern youths and also call the Northern elites to spread education and you would not recognize that region again. Ask Governor Rochas, there was/is positive results in what he did there. Boko Haram is not less worse than high way robbers who kill innocent people as well. There was a robbery incident along Okene/Abuja road that killed 52 people at a spot. Are BH much worse than those who bring fake drugs into the country, thereby, endangering innocent lives including Me and You?  Murder is Murder and a Sin is a Sin no matter who commits it. I hate BH activities with every fiber of my being and would fight them if i had the chance. Someone is behind and they need to be apprehended. They seem to be winning the psychological and propaganda war by trying to creat panic at all cost. The worst thing is that we are falling for it by trying to take the frustrations on our selves while they watch from the sidelines. If you are very current on news, you would see that Muslim clerics,soldiers, policemen and ordinary Muslims have also been killed. There was even attacks during the Ramadan and Eid. Their strategy is: Create as much fear as you can and take advantage of the situation. Some important folks are benefiting from this strategy even though they may not be directly linked to the group.

Our politicians have all but failed us all.They are so skilled at pitting us against each other. GEJ may seem like a Good man with Great plans for us. At least there has been improvements in power generation. We have been getting like 16 straight hours of electricity since October. But he needs to understand quickly that this is National politics and not state politics and readjust Fast because of the way he won party Nomination backslapping party agreements . When you put what I have outlined into perspective, you would see why many are reluctant to relocate finally just like that unless there is a concrete alternative. There has been crisis over crisis and people still return. Sometimes in life, you just have to face Reality and tell yourself the Truth. The fact that people run away when there is crisis is a natural reaction every human exhibit. Many also traveled for Christmas and will be back before you know it.  I know of a family who relocated to Owerri with their everything during the election crisis and came back afterward. I asked why they couldn't stay, they said nothing much to do and very little opportunities. Good to know that Rochas is trying to change things. Do you know that you can still buy something tangible with 5naira in the north?

Let us stop being simpletons and start thinking out of the box. It is easy to be reactionary and start pointing fingers than to be proactive and take the bull by the horn.

I have tried to be objective the best I can be. You can as well copy this and paste it on the link you sent.

Excellent analysis one which all should read.

These people cussing Hausa/Fulani have never been North. They are either based in Lag or Yankee/Jand. What makes me laugh is we have had 10 years of Southern Govt what development have we seen? Nothing dey but still its Hausa/Fulani muslim  . Your enemy is there sitting in Aso Rock aka GEJ and the rest of PDP

Nadanbata:

Excellent analysis one which all should read.

These people cussing Hausa/Fulani have never been North. They are either based in Lag or Yankee/Jand. What makes me laugh is we have had 10 years of Southern Govt what development have we seen? Nothing dey but still its Hausa/Fulani muslim  . Your enemy is there sitting in Aso Rock aka GEJ and the rest of PDP

You get the point bro. The politicians are the root of all the problems. Their kids are abroad and they always want us to go out there and kill each other. They use us as toys and our lives are very worthless to them. Instead of them putting the country in order, they give flimsy excuses.  You are right that many of those who have pre-conceived notion always feed on stereotypes. They judge from afar and put everyone from a region in one basket. 

The PDP are our enemy. They have done more harm than good in the past decade.

Olodostein:

You get the point bro. The politicians are the root of all the problems. Their kids are abroad and they always want us to go out there and kill each other. They use us as toys and our lives are very worthless to them. Instead of them putting the country in order, they give flimsy excuses.  You are right that many of those who have pre-conceived notion always feed on stereotypes. They judge from afar and put everyone from a region in one basket. 

The PDP are our enemy. They have done more harm than good in the past decade.

Until people get the bolded there is no fixing Nigeria. These ploticians have killed Far far far more than Boko Haram has an ever will through lack of security, terible road, bribe, corruption etc

GEJ was rigged in blatently and then becuase the West benefits they say 'Free and Fair' but when you look at the numbers none of it adds. This aint about religion/ethnicity its about the unfainess in Naija as of now. Aboki is ready for revolution though. Everyone needs to come on board otherwise PDP will steer any revolution ethnic/religous. Im sure 2015 PDP will try to rig again but 2011 gave me hope we may be able to topple them becuase given the lack of preperation, Public bribe money used by pdp to buy elections and Soldiers to intimdate the opposition did relatively well.

I mean GEJ has budgeted $15000 a day on food. When in a country like Nigeria highest $50 you can eat like a king. Nigerians where do you think the other $14950 is going? Thats right try to steal the next elections. . You think your Southern brother cares about Southeners killed in the bombing? See his response?

@ Olodostein, excellent post. The points stated are ones I've been harping about in a number of threads I.e. Corruption and mismanagement by our politicians. Well done sir.

^How about the followers who instead of holding the leaders accountable will instead shield and defend them because of being from the same tribe or religion. Both leaders and followers are culpable.

Onlytruth:

Thanks Olodostein!
I quite enjoyed your post, and you were on point on many issues in Nigeria.
HOWEVER, I have some more questions.

You seem to suggest that Northerners are better behaved Nigerians than Southerners.  The premise of my argument would be in form of a foundational question:

WHY HAVE THERE BEEN CONSTANT RIOTS IN THE NORTH since 1945?

Frankly speaking, I would want ONE Nigeria with all the POSITIVE possibilities and dreams; the problem is that Nigeria has NEVER shown a REAL chance of success, even BEFORE Independence. I hope you know, for instance, that the policy of "North for Northerners" started even before independence. As of then, Ahmadu Bello led a policy that basically says that every job in the North must be filled by Northerners, and were a Northerner not available, a foreign expatriate would be hired; and if there are no expatriates, then a southerner would be hired ON CONTRACT, pending when a Northerner could assume that position. This was the case also after independence.
For a nation with shared aspirations and dreams, how do you think that Nigeria could have surmounted such hurdle?

Honestly, I share in your views that our founding fathers, (mainly Azikiwe), were irresponsible in the art of designing a new nation. A  handshake requires TWO parties. I cannot shake my own hands. So, when I talk about Nigeria's founding father, I really mean Azikiwe, because Bello and Awolowo clearly wanted separate countries for the West and the North respectively. Some accuse the British of playing an invidious game against Nigeria prior to independence, but I beg to differ. We could have delayed independence (heck we should have delayed it ) until we could figure out if and how we should design Nigeria. Our major problems started with the shoddy independence constitution.

Having said these, it is my honest opinion that the long years of Northern military rule presented Nigeria with another GOLDEN opportunity to design a new nation based on REALITIES. Some countries of the world started their march to greatness through military rule. However, instead of designing a new Nigeria, the Northern military dictators only saw opportunity to loot the state and corner oil blocks, and basically swept Nigeria's problems under the carpet. When they wanted to leave power, they couldn't even serve Nigeria's interest by enthroning a credible leader for Nigeria; instead they rigged in a known failure. The man they rigged in then went ahead to design Nigeria around his selfish interests, and everything in Nigeria since 1999 have ever since revolved around him, one way or another. The current crisis ties back to him, but he had Northern support initially.

I, as a child of Eastern Nigeria, a region long kept away from the corridors of federal power, I cannot accept any fault for Nigeria's current problems. My region attempted to solve the problem glossed over by the failed independence constitution in 1967. We lost a war, and millions died. We remain the only region in Nigeria that has EVER boldly challenged the failing foundations of Nigeria. I should therefore be allowed some room to feel vindicated.

For almost 30 years now, there has been a CONSTANT clamour for a soveriegn national conference where Nigerians can sit together and design a solid nation. The North has opposed each and every one of them. The crisis in the Niger delta was only visited to some extend after a limited armed struggle in that part. Was it necessary? A simple conference could have saved lives and millions of dollar that could have been used to improve lives of average Nigerians. The North only bugged after a violent uprising. That again ties to the current Boko Haram crisis. When the leader of that Islamic sect was arrested, instead of him facing the courts, he was summarily executed.
Today, his followers are up in arms! Why are Northern Nigerian leaders afraid of a National Conference?

Lastly, it is my principle and belief, that the greatest internal security any country can EVER have, is JUSTICE AT HOME. There is no amount of security agencies that can defend a country against unemployed youths for instance. It is cheaper to create jobs! There is no amount of security that can replace FAIRNESS. Any nation hoping on these, instead of justice and love and fairness, WILL FAIL.  So, drop your beliefs about some intelligence silver bullet that stops the poor and oppressed.  I am a strong follower of Jaweh the Great God that rules the universe. If you oppress the poor, you will pay for it. 

A nation of shared destiny can emerge in Nigeria, but these MUST STOP before that:
QUOTA SYSTEM,
INDIGENE/SETTLER DICHOTOMY
RESOURCE CONTROL

A Nigerian must be able to live and work in ANY part of Nigeria without fear of being killed or discriminated.
A Nigerian must not lose an employment position for which he is dully qualified.
Local owners of resources should control much of it, because they bear the environmental impacts of extractions.

Here I stand. 
Signing off, Ndu di n'eziokwu 1 of Igboland, Eze Igbo Nairaland.

I am not trying to insinuate that Northerners are well behaved than Southerners. What I am saying is they seem to be more collected and organised than us. Also, when it comes to integrity and being contented with what they have, they score better than us. It is common knowledge in Nigeria.

The foundation of Nigeria was built under the premise of US vs THEM mentality. What you have to put into context is that illteracy + religious fanaticsm = Destruction and Death. Whenever there is slight misunderstanding, they initiate riots by acting on instinct and killing innocent people indiscrimately. I don't know if it is a deliberate policy by Northern Elites to keep their lower class brothers uneducated. So that they can be able to use them as voilent Robots to push their selfish political agendas. I find it shocking that many of them do not understand and cannot even read the language their holy book is written in( Arabic). Mind you that even the Arabs that these people idolize consider them to be inferior,blind followers and refer to them as "abeed",meaning slave in Arabic. They only memorise the words being sang to them in their religious schools and act without REASON what they are told by their superiors; which may include that the christians or southerners including southern muslims -whom the northerners consider and refer to as fake muslims ;meaning barebe in local Hausa dialect - are our sworn enemy. Do we have to act the way they do? No. Because on average, we are more educated and tolerant. We understand the language of our holy book, can speak it and Reason it, because we have a mind of our own. We don't go out and start killing innocent people indiscrimately becuase our clergyman says so; we question their ulterior motive. But when pushed to the bitter edge, we act by going after the very root of the problem,hence, what ushered in the Biafran war. We are calculative and patient, but we are not cowards. During those riots, we do challenge them back in self defence in their home turf.

You made a very good points. Nigeria was a fraud to begin with and it shouldn't surprise anyone that it has been this way for decades. It is my understanding that Nnamdi Azikiwe was the dullest man albeit educated amongst them three. He was very short sighted and bambozled by the British promising him a utopian world. What Ahmadu Bello did was copying from the playbook of his colonial master; of which the most effective was Divide and Rule tactics. I won't squarely lay the blames on the British. But we have to accept the fact that they played a prominent role in sowing the seed of distrust amongst us. Since they are the author of the Divide and Rule tactic, they masterfully played it well and it has worked perfectly for them. They knew the potential of newly discovered oil in Southern Nigeria. This is the game they played for their own INTEREST. Creat division amongst Southerners. Give support to the Northerners to accumulate power to do their bidding for them. Because if Southerners were at the helm of affairs, they would demand more equitable share;since the resources is on their land.

Consequently, the chickens have come home to roost. The political fat cats are fighting among themselves. The Northerners are slowing loosing power and their elites are seen as very corrupt by their lower class brothers. That is why Gen Buhari enjoys considerable support and following in that region. I was in Kano during the presidential election. The Northern elites were attacked and some of their houses burnt. They have failed their own people. If northern lower class is sympathetic to BH, it is as a result of years of neglect just like the MEND sprung up. But BH has taken it TOO far by trying to create panic at all cost and initiate a religious conflict. BH will practically fail.

There is a huge political infighting going on. We Eastern Nigeria that have been long kept away from the corridors of federal power as you put it should just be neutral in this case and keep watching closely like Dokita's. If we try to take the lead at this juncture, we could be ganged up against like in 1966. Who knows, we might emerge as the most capable by our neutrality and Rochas could suffice. On average, we are doing fine individually because we work hard. If the Nigeria quagmire reach the point of no return; then we can act swiftly and this time, there will be no going back. 

Yes, internal security is intertwined with Justice at home. But come to think of it, if we had strong and competent internal security agencies, many lives would have been saved. Do you know how many terrorist plots have been unconvered by these foreign security agencies? Why hasn't there been a major terrorist attack against them for years now? But in Nigeria , the army have literally taken over internal security and doing the work of the police and others. Their main duty is to protect and safeguard the national soverighty of the nation. In fact, they are the most credible institution in Nigeria. They are called in at any slight disturbance. The day there is a Huge crack in the military; Anarchy will rain in and then you can kiss the Nigeria you know a very painful bye bye because there will be a lot of bloodshed before everything settles down.

Regarding umemployed youths, anaylsing the chronic aspects of the Nigerian economy- and those that control bulk of it- that negatively affects 90% of us is a different ball game altogether. we will leave that for another thread.

You have tabled issues concretely and passionately. It is refreshing to engage with Nigerians who think of "We" instead of "I".  For the most part, I am not an obstructionist. Just being pragmatic about things in general. I adhere to the school of thought known as Pragmatism which states that "what works is true" and that "the validity of an action is as a result of its consequences".

Udo diri gi Eze Ndigbo Nairaland.

@olodo [b]wise[/b]stein  noting do you.   

Olodostein:

I am not trying to insinuate that Northerners are well behaved than Southerners. What I am saying is they seem to be more collected and organised than us. Also, when it comes to integrity and being contented with what they have, they score better than us. It is common knowledge in Nigeria.

The foundation of Nigeria was built under the premise of US vs THEM mentality. What you have to put into context is that illteracy + religious fanaticsm = Destruction and Death. Whenever there is slight misunderstanding, they initiate riots by acting on instinct and killing innocent people indiscrimately. I don't know if it is a deliberate policy by Northern Elites to keep their lower class brothers uneducated. So that they can be able to use them as voilent Robots to push their selfish political agendas. I find it shocking that many of them do not understand and cannot even read the language their holy book is written in( Arabic). Mind you that even the Arabs that these people idolize consider them to be inferior,blind followers and refer to them as "abeed",meaning slave in Arabic. They only memorise the words being sang to them in their religious schools and act without REASON what they are told by their superiors; which may include that the christians or southerners including southern muslims -whom the northerners consider and refer to as fake muslims ;meaning barebe in local Hausa dialect - are our sworn enemy. Do we have to act the way they do? No. Because on average, we are more educated and tolerant. We understand the language of our holy book, can speak it and Reason it, because we have a mind of our own. We don't go out and start killing innocent people indiscrimately becuase our clergyman says so; we question their ulterior motive. But when pushed to the bitter edge, we act by going after the very root of the problem,hence, what ushered in the Biafran war. We are calculative and patient, but we are not cowards. During those riots, we do challenge them back in self defence in their home turf.

You made a very good points. Nigeria was a fraud to begin with and it shouldn't surprise anyone that it has been this way for decades. It is my understanding that Nnamdi Azikiwe was the dullest man albeit educated amongst them three. He was very short sighted and bambozled by the British promising him a utopian world. What Ahmadu Bello did was copying from the playbook of his colonial master; of which the most effective was Divide and Rule tactics. I won't squarely lay the blames on the British. But we have to accept the fact that they played a prominent role in sowing the seed of distrust amongst us. Since they are the author of the Divide and Rule tactic, they masterfully played it well and it has worked perfectly for them. They knew the potential of newly discovered oil in Southern Nigeria. This is the game they played for their own INTEREST. Creat division amongst Southerners. Give support to the Northerners to accumulate power to do their bidding for them. Because if Southerners were at the helm of affairs, they would demand more equitable share;since the resources is on their land.

Consequently, the chickens have come home to roost. The political fat cats are fighting among themselves. The Northerners are slowing loosing power and their elites are seen as very corrupt by their lower class brothers. That is why Gen Buhari enjoys considerable support and following in that region. I was in Kano during the presidential election. The Northern elites were attacked and some of their houses burnt. They have failed their own people. If northern lower class is sympathetic to BH, it is as a result of years of neglect just like the MEND sprung up. But BH has taken it TOO far by trying to create panic at all cost and initiate a religious conflict. BH will practically fail.

There is a huge political infighting going on. We Eastern Nigeria that have been long kept away from the corridors of federal power as you put it should just be neutral in this case and keep watching closely like Dokita's. If we try to take the lead at this juncture, we could be ganged up against like in 1966. Who knows, we might emerge as the most capable by our neutrality and Rochas could suffice. On average, we are doing fine individually because we work hard. If the Nigeria quagmire reach the point of no return; then we can act swiftly and this time, there will be no going back. 

Yes, internal security is intertwined with Justice at home. But come to think of it, if we had strong and competent internal security agencies, many lives would have been saved. Do you know how many terrorist plots have been unconvered by these foreign security agencies? Why hasn't there been a major terrorist attack against them for years now? But in Nigeria , the army have literally taken over internal security and doing the work of the police and others. Their main duty is to protect and safeguard the national soverighty of the nation. In fact, they are the most credible institution in Nigeria. They are called in at any slight disturbance. The day there is a Huge crack in the military; Anarchy will rain in and then you can kiss the Nigeria you know a very painful bye bye because there will be a lot of bloodshed before everything settles down.

Regarding umemployed youths, anaylsing the chronic aspects of the Nigerian economy- and those that control bulk of it- that negatively affects 90% of us is a different ball game altogether. we will leave that for another thread.

You have tabled issues concretely and passionately. It is refreshing to engage with Nigerians who think of "We" instead of "I".  For the most part, I am not an obstructionist. Just being pragmatic about things in general. I adhere to the school of thought known as Pragmatism which states that "what works is true" and that "the validity of an action is as a result of its consequences".

Udo diri gi Eze Ndigbo Nairaland.

Powerfully endorsed!

You're very welcome, ezigbo nwa Igbo.

ndu_chucks:

@olodo wise[/b]stein  noting do you.   

[b]ndu_chucks, I like your new mutation! 

Beaf's agenda on this thread = epic fail.

ocelot2006:

@ Olodostein, excellent post. The points stated are ones I've been harping about in a number of threads I.e. Corruption and mismanagement by our politicians. Well done sir.

We have to keep harping bro. More grease to your elbow .

Nadanbata:

Until people get the bolded there is no fixing Nigeria. These ploticians have killed Far far far more than Boko Haram has an ever will through lack of security, terible road, bribe, corruption etc

GEJ was rigged in blatently and then becuase the West benefits they say 'Free and Fair' but when you look at the numbers none of it adds. This aint about religion/ethnicity its about the unfainess in Naija as of now. Aboki is ready for revolution though. Everyone needs to come on board otherwise PDP will steer any revolution ethnic/religous. Im sure 2015 PDP will try to rig again but 2011 gave me hope we may be able to topple them becuase given the lack of preperation,  Public bribe money used by pdp to buy elections and Soldiers to intimdate the opposition did relatively well.

I mean GEJ has budgeted $15000 a day on food. When in a country like Nigeria highest $50 you can eat like a king. Nigerians where do you think the other $14950 is going? Thats right try to steal the next elections.  . You think your Southern brother cares about Southeners killed in the bombing? See his response?

Which kind food be that? Na Argentine Criollo horse dem dey use cook am? I dey always wonder in wonderland. 

Maybe it goes to Oga beaf to buy Beaf for his Beaf boys. ( No hard feelings Beaf).

ndu_chucks:

@olodo [b]wise[/b]stein  noting do you.   

You are one funny dude. I am humbled.

Onlytruth:

Powerfully endorsed! 

You're very welcome, ezigbo nwa Igbo. 

Echi di ime.  Eze, ka chi fo.