₦airaland Forum

papiforreal:
@Laudry service, hope you are not expecting to wash people cloth with my own hands?

There's nothing bad starting that way too. You just have to start somewhere. You might not necessarily do the washing yourself but what matters is that you're in charge.

Ask4bigneyo:
What about 10 things to do as an Ex-Corper?

What do you think about that?

Kiinetic:
You can also start a small-scale prayer house.

Not bad! God's pleasure is our strength!

Doublyu:
Okk....but this thread shoulda bin out wen I ws stil serving...cos I squandered my allowee nd was almost broke!!

It's not too late to make something out of the ideas here.

heykims:
Which is suitable for corper medical doctors?

Depending on where your PPA is located, you could fit in anyway. If you've got some skills that could make you money, why not utilize them? You just have to manage your time.

An2elect2:
Some tips here are great! but that writing and editing can be done for free.

I won't do it for free if I were you. Some people even own editing outfits such that publishers and authors outsource their works to them.

aiye1988:
I don't think dose tips will work where I'm. Village without light, far from town,no bank,no communication with English .tell me How to make money,Pls.

Agriculture and Retail would work in the rural area!

Krisddon:
Nice one @ OP.
I love writing a lot, especially political and socio-economic related articles.
I post mainly on facebook. Please anyone with a good idea on how I can expand my horizon in this field?

Join elance or Freelancer.com and start getting paid as you write. Google search other mediums your ideas would be valuable too.

macuwon:
story for the gods.. no spare time from my ppa.. only looking forward to inec money.

I would have ignored this but let me just tell you that you should be laying the foundation for depending less on monthly stipends during your service year. I would be looking forward to getting the INEC money too. Hoity-toity

divalindiway:
Nice write up @op. But let me chip in something.
...
5. Time factor. There corpers who teach more than one subject in more than one class wit diff arms making it difficult to hv time for any oda activity.

I totally agree with all your points. Life doesn't come easy for everyone but we just have to figure out a solution/alternative to every adversity that stands on our way.

Before I reported at my PPA, I had made up my mind that there was no way I was going to teach more than a subject and I worked towards that. I was initially posted to a private school but made sure I got rejected because I sure can't bear the workload. I advice corpers to avoid heavy workload if they have other plans for their time. Despite teaching English Language, my lessons are over for each day before 10:30. May God see us through!

I'm also a serving corp member like you. I blog about youths seeing opportunities as they advance their careers irrespective of environment. I published these 11 ways to make money as a corper. Check it out: http://ibnamoo.com/make-money-as-a-corper/


Cc: Styca, Xfire, jarushub,Trenditee, Taye4christ, Noordean LogoDwhiz, Positivist, Parasitic, Rockmyworld, Goldpeas et al.

To an average corps member in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Scheme, the current living allowance paid by the Nigerian Government isn’t sufficient to cater for their daily needs. In an effort to cushion the effect of the money drought, some who still have their parent’s back depend on supplementary funding from home. If you are one, know that such support wouldn’t last forever. Start thinking of alternative means of survival on your own. The following tips should help.

 

Private Teaching

This is an age-long tradition that had kept many people going all through their university life. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to continue with the tradition. You indicate your interest in teaching children at home to everyone around you. It is always advantageous here for you if you got posted to a school. The teachers, the students, the members of your host community, not leaving out your fellow corps members could be helpful. It could involve you placing an advert of that through whatever means people can get it. Pupils and students in the terminal levels of their education need special lessons. Approach their parents and agree with them on some convenient price. Let me remind you that you can’t give what you don’t have. Update your knowledge to be able to teach others!


Laundry Service

Some folks require the service of persons to handle their laundry. This is a very lucrative venture you can engage in during your spare time. Have you ever attempted calculating how much those illiterate ‘any wash’ women made daily from students during your university days? I know your style of handling the trade would be much professional based on your level of education. Brand the service well. Start small and grow it into something worthwhile.

Agriculture

This, we were taught back in our elementary school, is the oldest occupation of man. Every individual, no matter how sophisticated, depends on agricultural products to survive. What are you waiting for? This becomes handy when you are serving in a rural/agrarian area. Your host community could be kind enough to lease you some land to grow crops. Those from the nomadic families could allow you milk their cattle too. A cordial relationship with members of your host community is all you need to keep you going. Think of a sector in agriculture you can invest in. Snail rearing, fish farming, poultry farming, bee farming and crop production are among areas to consider. Read further on various areas in agriculture on your own. Better still, your jottings during the SEAD lectures relating to agriculture would be very valuable here.

Retail

The distribution of products to their final consumers is going to be interesting to those with good marketing skills. Get some marketable product of interest to sell in your host community and get your profit out of that. Wouldn’t it be interesting that you make some people’s work easier by bring their basic needs closer to them?

Writing

The people around you need the service of a graduate like you to help them put their thoughts in print. Use this avenue to make some cash. It might not be appealing to some people that you charge to write for them. Let such people look for others that would do so for them for free. Today, writing is about the fastest growing lucrative venture. As long as people value your writing skill they would be ready to pay for your service. Writing is real business!

Editing and Proofreading

Some people are good writers but would still need others to proofread their works. Such people don’t want to patronise professional editors because those ones charge more. You are a likely alternative to get such assignments done. Be prudent enough to charge them well. Your knowledge of grammar isn’t a waste. Use it to make some money!

Mobile Workforce

What about making some money from your mobile phone? Wouldn’t it be a good idea to use your phone for purposes other than connecting with friends and families? I had once written about some productive things you can do with your phone. With your phone, tablet or laptop, you can connect with clients and business associates to get things going. Physical presence to carryout business transaction is now becoming de-emphasised with technological advancement. You can serve others to make money anytime, anywhere.

Educational Research

These days, tertiary education students are lazy about doing educational research. If you know how to choose suitable researchable topics, prepare a review of related literature, compile and analyse data, this is where you can make some dough. The aspect of data compilation and analysis is the bomb. Let such students know of your service and charge them good. This becomes useful if you got posted to a locale where tertiary institution students live. You know that educational research is not beans. So, be prepared to take up the challenge and see yourself well off.

Online Assignments

Just like the mobile workforce, handling online assignments can be very interesting. Using your contacts and friends across the social media, your email and freelancing sites, you can get some extra cash into your bank account. Think of services such as writing, editing, proof reading, social media account management, web designing, blogging and programming as likely sources of income online. All you require is a laptop, a stable internet access and the will to work. Mind you, trust is a major factor here. You must first earn the trust of people online before they can keep faith in you to handle their assignments. There is money online!

 

Hospitality

This would be an interesting sector for guys who have understanding of it. As you are now in a new environment, utilise that moment to initiate or support some programmes/projects that would make people enjoy their stay in such places. Simplest of all is to work out ways of supplying beverages and snacks to people and organisations. What about handling restaurants and food service, tourism destinations and attractions identification, hotel bookings, meeting and event planning? The hospitality sector is a very lucrative business area that could set you up as an entrepreneur during and after the service year. Think hospitality!

 

Physical Fitness Expert

For those with sufficient background in physical fitness, this is moneyland! To stay healthy, people need to engage in physical exercises in addition to good nutrition habits. Being well skilled in physical activity instruction, your service would be needed in companies, schools, places of worship, government agencies and especially the ministry of sports. You would be able to educate people on their health, save their lives and make some money from that. They say health is wealth. Make some wealth with your knowledge of health!

Which other ways do think corpers can make money? Your comments would be appreciated.

Source: http://ibnamoo.com/make-money-as-a-corper/

As a Muslim corp member, you're enjoined to associate yourself with MCAN for a synergy in your spiritual uplift as it relates to activities as you commence your service year.

These are the official lines of all Muslim
Corpers Association of Nigeria (MCAN) State And Zonal Ameers across the nation:

A] North-west: 08135368595

Kaduna 07038929825

Jigawa 08033821239

Zamfara 08136820777

Katsina 07061159079

Kebbi 08036096796

Sokoto 07061591974

Kano 07034436144

B] SOUTH-East: 07068523091

Abia 08035610264

Ebonyi 08138527820

Enugu 07063502627

Imo 07030418815

Anambra 07036900988

C] SOUTH-WEST: 08104802445

Ekiti 07065587265

Lagos 08061359996

Ogun 07032970663

Ondo 08062359302

Osun 08137017657

Oyo 07038478473

D] SOUTH-SOUTH: 08168281705

Akwa-Ibom 07032306943

Bayelsa 07066766061

Cross-River 08050420431

Delta 08077484332

Edo 07068889853

Rivers 08039316335

E] NORTH-EAST: 08103331236

Bauchi 07032879532

Borno 07086878898

Adamawa 08130075289

Taraba 09035083791

Yobe 08060816661

Gombe 08069409534

F] NORTH-CENTRAL: 08156263339

Plateau 07031163522

Benue 08037764661

Niger 08133784034

Kwara 07030111789

Kogi 08032908789

Nasarawa 08067948174

We at MCAN would be glad to assist you have a pleasant service year as you serve Allah through the nation.

MCAN...Serving Islam through the nation

atobzz:
Hey paikoites!!! Has anyone here arrived at the camp yet

YES

ciccerouno:
Who told u, lot of beer joint in tunga area, or inside barracks mammy market, very very much, just caution him to reduce drinking but i tell u you beer joints much

Tunga, a section of Minna doesnt represent the whole Niger State now. What if he gets posted to an area without beer palour, does it mean he wouldn't survive?

Ibnsultan:
That's not FRsc but our frnds in Black

fixed

See this police man diligently doing his duty. What best describes his action here in one word?

Olamidekaka:
Ope o, Sabi person

maje ke gbomo gbomo gbe e lo nitorii aye ti o fe jo o

Olamidekaka:
The only thing am concerned about is the social life in Niger, hope they have enough beer parlour, hangout spots..

The people of Niger are cultured people. You can't easily get a beer parlour around. You would still live peacefully without alcohol. Quit drinking please!

MCAN LODGES AND SECRETARIATS NATIONWIDE

Muslim Corpers Association of Nigeria at a Glance

MCAN is an acronym for the "Muslim Corpers' Association of Nigeria" and has for more than three (3) decades achieved a very close relationship with Muslim gradates that have successfully qualified for the one year National Youth Service in the various states of the Federation.

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme brought to limelight by the Decree No 24 of 1973, made possible in Nigeria the deployment of eligible graduates from universities and other relevant institutions of higher learning within the country and abroad to undertake a National Service in states/areas other than their state of origin. This then made it possible for fresh Muslim graduates to gather under a platform which the Muslim Corps Members could organise and coordinate themselves for the purposes of collectively carrying out Islamic responsibilities; hence, the formation of Muslim Corpers Association of Nigeria (MCAN).

The Association was inaugurate during 1978/1979 service year. MCAN has its National Headquarters in Mabushi, Abuja and branches all over the 36 states of the Federation including the FCT.

The Association was registered under the Corporate Affairs Commission of Nigeria in 1994. The membership of the Association is open to all serving Muslim corps members in the Federation and the FCT. All serving Muslim corps members constitute MCAN upon registration with MCAN at their arrival on the various NYSC Orientation Camps.

Mission: ADHERENCE TO THE PRISTINE TEACHINGS OF ISLAM IN ALL AFFAIRS OF LIFE.

Vision: TOWARDS ACHIEVING AN IDEAL (MORALLY BOUNDED) ISLAMIC SOCIETY.

Slogan: SERVING ISLAM (ALLAH) THROUGH THE NATION.

AIMS OF OBJECTIVES OF MCAN

Muslim Corpers’ Association of Nigeria (MCAN) members has the following aims and objectives:

1. To serve as coordinating body and a forum in the exchange of ideas between Muslim corps members in all parts of the federation.

2. To fight and protect the legitimate interest and rights of all Muslim Youth Corps members in the country.

3. To promote better understanding of Islam among Muslim corps members, students and rest of the populace with a view to having a more dedicated and unified ummah.

4. To coordinate the efforts of various Islamic organizations in the propagation of Islam in Nigeria and throughout the world.

The association works towards achieving the set aims and objectives through the various programmes at the various levels of organisation.

PROGRAMMES
The programmes of the association have been scheduled in-line with those of the NYSC to allow members participate fully in the National Youth Service without hindrance and at the same time contribute in no small measure to personal and community development activities. Thus, we have the pre-orientation camp programmes, the orientation programmes, and the post-orientation programmes.

The Pre-Orientation Programme

The programme is aimed at raising the consciousness of potential corps members in institutions within the country. Here, MCAN liaises with Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN) by jointly organising seminars to familiarise prospective corps members with the programmes of MCAN and NYSC.

Pamphlets are also distributed to increase outreach. These programmes start at about 2-3 months to the announced date of commencement of orientation.

The Orientation Programme

This programme commences as the orientation camp opens for each service year across the country. Here, the objectives are; to identify and mobilise Muslim corps members, to provide an atmosphere for the pursuit of Islamic personal development and closer interaction between Muslim corps members of various backgrounds. It also provides an opportunity to reach out to non-Muslims.

These objectives are achieved by:-



Having representatives of MCAN present lectures on orientation camps
Use of posters, welcome banners, and notice boards to publicise mosque activities
Regular Da’wah programmes in the Mosque over the period of orientation with syllabus covering different aspects of the religion, such as ‘Aqeedah, ‘ibaadah, and mu’amalaat.
Islamic video show
Memorisation of short verses of the Qur'an during Mosque activities
Minor humanitarian works on camp by the corps members to improve interaction e.g. improving a drainage outlet, construction of small bridge etc.
The Post-Orientation Activities

The post-orientation activities runs from when corps members leave orientation camps to the very last day before their passing out parade. These activities are generally divided into educational/Da’wah programmes, visitation programmes and community development programmes.



Educational/Da’wah Programmesincludes

· Weekly Al-Usrah programme

· Arabic and Qur’anic classes for MCAN members

· Village weekend Da’wah programmes

· Radio and television programmes in more than 16 states of the federation

· Publishing of monthly bulletin

· Classes for reverts

· Free tutorial classes in secondary schools in more than 12 states of the federation

· National seminars and leadership training programmes e.g. seminar on nikkah etc.



Visitation Programme involves

· Regular visits to prisons across the country. Here, the visitation holds every Friday where corps members conduct Jum’ah services together with the inmates or on monthly basis which involves lectures and distribution of gifts

· Visiting motherless babies homes. This usually takes place bi-annually

· Other visits are also organised based on the circumstances


Community Development Programmes involves

· Renovating and construction of Mosques and Arabic schools in communities. Some of the projects are completed over years.

· Islamic video clubs/book centres in more than 20 states of the federation with the biggest at the National (Mosque) Headquarters, Abuja.

Assalamu alaykum warahmatullah Sir,

Ramadan Mubaraq. May Allah accept it from us as an act of Ibaadat. Given the present political situation in Nigeria and your urge to rescue the nation from the shackles of oppressors who parade themselves as saviour, its unfortunate that you will not be able to to anything with Democracy as the system of Governance in Nigeria. Pls Sir, i want to advise you in the name of Allah to QUIT DEMOCRATIC POLITICS NOW.

The reason is not far fetched. Sir, whether you like it or not i dont think you can be President of Nigeria under a Democratic System and if you be, you can never achieve 50 percent of what you are capable of achieving or achieved during your 20 months of Military rule between January 1984- August 1985.

Sir, my assertion was not based on your lack of quality and requirements to be a President. I campaigned for you in 2011 (May Allah forgives me) when the reality of filthiness and Kufr of Democracy has not dawn on me. However, You possess all the quality required of a leader BUT Nigeria and Nigerians cannot afford and do not deserve to have somebody like you as their President. This was evident in 2011 when they "voted for Jonathan not PDP" with the religious sentiment put to the fore despite you picking a Pastor as running mate.

Democracy is one of the 3 Greatest LIES of the 20th Century. Apart frrom it being a system that do not recognized the sovereignty of Almighty Allah (God) as the ONLY one capable of regulating, managing and disposing the affairs of man, Man's greatest AFFRONT against his creator, it is also a system designed, developed and promoted to subjugate people, giving the elite the power to exploit and manipulate their fellow men to follow, fight and die for a cause that seeks to enslave them.

It is also a system that doesn't recognized competence, honesty, integrity, altruism, discipline, intellectualism and fore-sightedness. This was clear during the 2011 election campaign where you clearly and public declared that " i have served Nigeria in different capacities as Minister, Governor, Head of State and Chairman of PTF, but i have NEVER taken a kobo from the Govt money". This was a challenged that even your adversaries cannot challenged or disputed up till today. One would expect a sane, sound and unprejudiced people to vote enmasse for this kind of person, but they didn't, WHY? It is because democracy is a system by the bourgeois to enslave people's thinking and programme them to always respond to their will even when the Truth stare them in the face.

Sir, someone like you, who epitomize what a true leader could be can never be allowed to be a President of Nigeria because the very FEW elite who has been milking this country dry and blindly looting the treasury will do everything to ensure that you never get elected. Also, the Nigerian populace who have been subjected to decades of intellectual impoverishment, moral bankruptcy, socio-economic degradation,spiritual enslavement and political manipulations are the unsolicited Army of ignoramuses that are the willing tools for the political bourgeois to campaign against their willing saviour. This was evident in 2011 election.

Another card which these very few democratic manipulators have been using is tribal and religious sentiment. Sir, you have been projected to the masses as religious extremist and tribal jingoist despite the fact that you are not such a bigot. This card is being played in order to denigrate you because they do not have any other blemishes they could attach to your good names. Nigerian, who have been divided across religious and tribal line orchestrated by the politicians swallow these sentiment hook, line and sinker because they have been deprived of what goo governance is all about, so their thinking cannot comprehend being a devout believer of his faith and strong lover of his people from being a religious extremist and tribal jingoist.

So, my advice sir is to LEAVE their FILTHY system for them and come and work for Allah. Your integrity, honesty and discipline will be best appreciated by the Muslim community in Nigeria in the area of ZAKAT administration. I cannot imagine you handling the Zakat administration for muslims in Nigeria given your precedent as PTF chairman. PLEASE SIR, YOU ARE TOO GOOD TO BE A DEMOCRAT. Come and work for Allah. People cannot appreciate you bu Allah will. Democracy is a system that can never salvage peoples from the shackles of oppression and savagery. IT IS ONLY IN ISLAM THAT ONE CAN GET HONOUR.

I pray Allah make you see the truth as truth and the ability to follow it nand make you see the evil as evil and grant you the ability to stay away from it. May He continue to guide you in all your affairs.

Yours in Islam,
Abu Haneefah

Babatunde Nurudeen

Engr. Sirwhite:
U r very right sir. bt my problem is just dat i have always had dis passion of working in de oil nd gas sector. However most of dem require some yrs of experience wic I don't have, nd I don't really know how to tailor down my CV to meet their requirements. plz sir can I forward my CV to u so u can help me repackage it to suit oil nd gas requirements. Tanks

That sector majorly considers first-class products above others. It is believed that these products are easily trainable and adaptive to changes irrespective of their fields of study. In terms of tailoring your CV, know and understand the requirements of your prospective employer well. Consider visiting their website, doing a background check on what they do. Use your CV to show that you have something that could transform the present state of things.

Majority of employers aren't looking out to reducing unemployment but great minds that can turn their businesses around. Shell has the Shell Graduate Programme, for example. All that is required of you is that you should enjoy being challenged and your ability to absorb information, analyse problems and come up with novel ideas. All these are usually assessed in the application process. Are you ready?

If your graduate status is still fresh (<2years) and you're not too old (<25years old), you have higher chances of getting employed. Meanwhile, as you await that top-notch Oil and Gas job, it is advisable you're doing something productive elsewhere. Meanwhile, always spell-check your writings.

My email address is abdussalam@ibnamoo.com

IdleMind: It is not uncommon to find announcements of job openings requiring applicants to have a number of years of work experience. This is a towering stumbling block for most job seekers, especially fresh graduates in Nigeria who often enter the labour market too ill prepared in terms of critical skills acquisition and workplace know-how. Hence, they grow despondent and join the growing league of unemployed or out rightly unemployable Nigerians. How do you expect a 22 year old graduate to have three years working experience in the first place is a question that easily comes to mind?

Never mind! Experience can be got even while you are still a student. Generally, employers look out for your employability – demonstrated by your knowledge, skills, experiences and work habits. Employers aren’t asking for experience simply to intimidate the newbies, they ask for it because that’s what demonstrate your understanding of the work in context, your good judgment, responsibility and track record of excellence.

Internship, volunteerism, industrial training, chamber attachment, placement with a multinational company, long-term projects, students’ extracurricular activities, etc. are all veritable ways of gathering valuable experiences before ever getting a job. Your experiences in managing people, planning, executing and evaluating an event, presiding over meetings, raising funds, etc. as a president or financial secretary of a students’ association or a committee member should all be leveraged in proving to employers that you have work experiences.

Source: http://ibnamoo.com/job-without-work-experience/

Thank you for sharing!

It is a practice to see some parents hit their children on the head when angry. Although, such a blow on the head may not in themselves cause a disease, experts say that after a certain number of hits to the head, such could affect brain, memory and thinking abilities, reports Sade Oguntola.

Granted, your child might have done something bad. It is also possible that the child’s behaviour demands that he or she be spanked or scolded. Even though what might qualify as appropriate punishment for a badly behaved child is wide-ranging, from a light slap on the hand to an all-out whipping with a belt or a paddle, but it should not included beating on the head or hitting the child’s head against the wall or floor.

Small hits to the head or repeated blows to the head are never a good idea. Over time, it could affect brain, memory and thinking. New research suggests that even when they do not cause mild brain injury, what is medically called concussion; this may, over time, affect the brain’s white matter and impact cognition, memory and thinking abilities. No doubt, more talks are usually about head injuries in athletes on the playing field, in car and bicycle accidents, in fights, and even minor falls. Not much consideration is given to parents or carers that punish children by slapping or hitting their heads.

Although, such an act may not make the child lose consciousness, medical experts warn that repeated blows to the head may lead to worrying consequences, including increased susceptibility to concussion, long-term cognitive decline and chronic traumatic encephalopathy - a degenerative disease associated with people who have suffered multiple head injuries. Although, for a brain injury to occur as a result of hitting a child on the head, its force must really be much, Dr Achiaka Irabor, a Consultant Family physician, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, said beating a child on the head is not really necessary when the child could be spanked on other parts of the body such as the hands, thigh and buttocks, if need be.

According to Dr Irabor, “if someone is hit on the head and the person becomes confused or dazed, then that force is strong and this may cause concussion or mild brain damage.”

She declared: “You should not hit a child on the head with a stick, pestle or even a ruler. If you use your hand at least, the pain that you feel on the hand will limit the amount of force that you put on the child’s head.”

Moreover, Dr Irabor pointed out that “even a knock can be very painful and people can have headache after receiving a knock on their head.”

For this study, published in the journal, Neurology, researchers compared 80 concussion-free Division 1 NCAA Dartmouth College varsity football and ice hockey players, all of whom wore helmets that recorded the acceleration time of the head following impact, with 79 athletes competing in non-contact activities, such as track, crew and Nordic skiing. Participants were assessed with learning and memory tests, and they had brain scans before and shortly after the season finished.

The researchers found differences in the white matter of the brain in these college contact sport athletes compared to non-contact sport varsity athletes. White matter plays an important role in the speed of nerve signals in the brain tissue and allows different parts of the brain to communicate with each other.

The degree of white matter change in the contact sport athletes was greater in those who performed more poorly than expected on tests of memory and learning, suggesting a possible link in some athletes between how hard/often they are hit, white matter changes, and cognition, or memory and thinking abilities. Some brain regions in some athletes were also altered by repetitive impacts over the course of a season, and these changes may be related to verbal learning and memory.

The study also identified a subgroup of athletes who performed worse than expected on verbal learning and memory tests at the end of the season.

These athletes came from both the contact and non-contact groups – 20 per cent of the contact players and 11 per cent of the non-contact players.

Paradoxically, little blows to the head can add up to big risks, even a continuous habit of hitting a child on the head. A growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head trauma may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

A study by the Purdue Neurotrauma Group at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind, which also corroborated this, suggested that the effects of blows to the head, while playing football, for example, may last longer than previously thought. During this time, players’ brains are vulnerable because the blows that result in the field of play could result in a mild brain injury.

The researchers studied a group of high school players over two seasons. They calculated that the players received 200 to 1,900 head blows each season.
They got these numbers from the special helmets that each participating player wore.

Sensors inside the helmet catalogued the hits taken, the force of the impact, and the region of the head that was struck. The players also underwent brain scans so that the researchers could compare the data from the helmets with the effect that each blow had on the players’ brains.

This study, which was the first to look at the accumulation of sub-concussive blows and their effect on the brain, reported that over the course of the two seasons, six of the players suffered concussions, while the scans of 17 of the players showed changes in brain function that the researchers could tie to the hits on their heads.

No doubt, more research is required to determine the long term impact of blow to the head, given that changes to the brain are not necessarily indicative of damage, but the fact remains that different children are likely to have different injury thresholds. Some may be able to withstand more hits than others.

But a growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head injury may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

- Tribune
It is a practice to see some parents hit their children on the head when angry. Although, such a blow on the head may not in themselves cause a disease, experts say that after a certain number of hits to the head, such could affect brain, memory and thinking abilities, reports Sade Oguntola.

Granted, your child might have done something bad. It is also possible that the child’s behaviour demands that he or she be spanked or scolded. Even though what might qualify as appropriate punishment for a badly behaved child is wide-ranging, from a light slap on the hand to an all-out whipping with a belt or a paddle, but it should not included beating on the head or hitting the child’s head against the wall or floor.

Small hits to the head or repeated blows to the head are never a good idea. Over time, it could affect brain, memory and thinking. New research suggests that even when they do not cause mild brain injury, what is medically called concussion; this may, over time, affect the brain’s white matter and impact cognition, memory and thinking abilities. No doubt, more talks are usually about head injuries in athletes on the playing field, in car and bicycle accidents, in fights, and even minor falls. Not much consideration is given to parents or carers that punish children by slapping or hitting their heads.

Although, such an act may not make the child lose consciousness, medical experts warn that repeated blows to the head may lead to worrying consequences, including increased susceptibility to concussion, long-term cognitive decline and chronic traumatic encephalopathy - a degenerative disease associated with people who have suffered multiple head injuries. Although, for a brain injury to occur as a result of hitting a child on the head, its force must really be much, Dr Achiaka Irabor, a Consultant Family physician, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, said beating a child on the head is not really necessary when the child could be spanked on other parts of the body such as the hands, thigh and buttocks, if need be.

According to Dr Irabor, “if someone is hit on the head and the person becomes confused or dazed, then that force is strong and this may cause concussion or mild brain damage.”

She declared: “You should not hit a child on the head with a stick, pestle or even a ruler. If you use your hand at least, the pain that you feel on the hand will limit the amount of force that you put on the child’s head.”

Moreover, Dr Irabor pointed out that “even a knock can be very painful and people can have headache after receiving a knock on their head.”

For this study, published in the journal, Neurology, researchers compared 80 concussion-free Division 1 NCAA Dartmouth College varsity football and ice hockey players, all of whom wore helmets that recorded the acceleration time of the head following impact, with 79 athletes competing in non-contact activities, such as track, crew and Nordic skiing. Participants were assessed with learning and memory tests, and they had brain scans before and shortly after the season finished.

The researchers found differences in the white matter of the brain in these college contact sport athletes compared to non-contact sport varsity athletes. White matter plays an important role in the speed of nerve signals in the brain tissue and allows different parts of the brain to communicate with each other.

The degree of white matter change in the contact sport athletes was greater in those who performed more poorly than expected on tests of memory and learning, suggesting a possible link in some athletes between how hard/often they are hit, white matter changes, and cognition, or memory and thinking abilities. Some brain regions in some athletes were also altered by repetitive impacts over the course of a season, and these changes may be related to verbal learning and memory.

The study also identified a subgroup of athletes who performed worse than expected on verbal learning and memory tests at the end of the season.

These athletes came from both the contact and non-contact groups – 20 per cent of the contact players and 11 per cent of the non-contact players.

Paradoxically, little blows to the head can add up to big risks, even a continuous habit of hitting a child on the head. A growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head trauma may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

A study by the Purdue Neurotrauma Group at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind, which also corroborated this, suggested that the effects of blows to the head, while playing football, for example, may last longer than previously thought. During this time, players’ brains are vulnerable because the blows that result in the field of play could result in a mild brain injury.

The researchers studied a group of high school players over two seasons. They calculated that the players received 200 to 1,900 head blows each season.
They got these numbers from the special helmets that each participating player wore.

Sensors inside the helmet catalogued the hits taken, the force of the impact, and the region of the head that was struck. The players also underwent brain scans so that the researchers could compare the data from the helmets with the effect that each blow had on the players’ brains.

This study, which was the first to look at the accumulation of sub-concussive blows and their effect on the brain, reported that over the course of the two seasons, six of the players suffered concussions, while the scans of 17 of the players showed changes in brain function that the researchers could tie to the hits on their heads.

No doubt, more research is required to determine the long term impact of blow to the head, given that changes to the brain are not necessarily indicative of damage, but the fact remains that different children are likely to have different injury thresholds. Some may be able to withstand more hits than others.

But a growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head injury may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

- Tribune
It is a practice to see some parents hit their children on the head when angry. Although, such a blow on the head may not in themselves cause a disease, experts say that after a certain number of hits to the head, such could affect brain, memory and thinking abilities, reports Sade Oguntola.

Granted, your child might have done something bad. It is also possible that the child’s behaviour demands that he or she be spanked or scolded. Even though what might qualify as appropriate punishment for a badly behaved child is wide-ranging, from a light slap on the hand to an all-out whipping with a belt or a paddle, but it should not included beating on the head or hitting the child’s head against the wall or floor.

Small hits to the head or repeated blows to the head are never a good idea. Over time, it could affect brain, memory and thinking. New research suggests that even when they do not cause mild brain injury, what is medically called concussion; this may, over time, affect the brain’s white matter and impact cognition, memory and thinking abilities. No doubt, more talks are usually about head injuries in athletes on the playing field, in car and bicycle accidents, in fights, and even minor falls. Not much consideration is given to parents or carers that punish children by slapping or hitting their heads.

Although, such an act may not make the child lose consciousness, medical experts warn that repeated blows to the head may lead to worrying consequences, including increased susceptibility to concussion, long-term cognitive decline and chronic traumatic encephalopathy - a degenerative disease associated with people who have suffered multiple head injuries. Although, for a brain injury to occur as a result of hitting a child on the head, its force must really be much, Dr Achiaka Irabor, a Consultant Family physician, University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, Oyo State, said beating a child on the head is not really necessary when the child could be spanked on other parts of the body such as the hands, thigh and buttocks, if need be.

According to Dr Irabor, “if someone is hit on the head and the person becomes confused or dazed, then that force is strong and this may cause concussion or mild brain damage.”

She declared: “You should not hit a child on the head with a stick, pestle or even a ruler. If you use your hand at least, the pain that you feel on the hand will limit the amount of force that you put on the child’s head.”

Moreover, Dr Irabor pointed out that “even a knock can be very painful and people can have headache after receiving a knock on their head.”

For this study, published in the journal, Neurology, researchers compared 80 concussion-free Division 1 NCAA Dartmouth College varsity football and ice hockey players, all of whom wore helmets that recorded the acceleration time of the head following impact, with 79 athletes competing in non-contact activities, such as track, crew and Nordic skiing. Participants were assessed with learning and memory tests, and they had brain scans before and shortly after the season finished.

The researchers found differences in the white matter of the brain in these college contact sport athletes compared to non-contact sport varsity athletes. White matter plays an important role in the speed of nerve signals in the brain tissue and allows different parts of the brain to communicate with each other.

The degree of white matter change in the contact sport athletes was greater in those who performed more poorly than expected on tests of memory and learning, suggesting a possible link in some athletes between how hard/often they are hit, white matter changes, and cognition, or memory and thinking abilities. Some brain regions in some athletes were also altered by repetitive impacts over the course of a season, and these changes may be related to verbal learning and memory.

The study also identified a subgroup of athletes who performed worse than expected on verbal learning and memory tests at the end of the season.

These athletes came from both the contact and non-contact groups – 20 per cent of the contact players and 11 per cent of the non-contact players.

Paradoxically, little blows to the head can add up to big risks, even a continuous habit of hitting a child on the head. A growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head trauma may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

A study by the Purdue Neurotrauma Group at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind, which also corroborated this, suggested that the effects of blows to the head, while playing football, for example, may last longer than previously thought. During this time, players’ brains are vulnerable because the blows that result in the field of play could result in a mild brain injury.

The researchers studied a group of high school players over two seasons. They calculated that the players received 200 to 1,900 head blows each season.
They got these numbers from the special helmets that each participating player wore.

Sensors inside the helmet catalogued the hits taken, the force of the impact, and the region of the head that was struck. The players also underwent brain scans so that the researchers could compare the data from the helmets with the effect that each blow had on the players’ brains.

This study, which was the first to look at the accumulation of sub-concussive blows and their effect on the brain, reported that over the course of the two seasons, six of the players suffered concussions, while the scans of 17 of the players showed changes in brain function that the researchers could tie to the hits on their heads.

No doubt, more research is required to determine the long term impact of blow to the head, given that changes to the brain are not necessarily indicative of damage, but the fact remains that different children are likely to have different injury thresholds. Some may be able to withstand more hits than others.

But a growing body of evidence suggests that repetitive head injury may increase the risk of a variety of progressive brain disorders, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and the muscle-wasting condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, otherwise known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

- Tribune

Sunday penultimate week, this writer had gone to bed with loads of plans for the new week as it was imminent the ASUU Strike was to be called off. Alas! Monday morning and the entire week's plans hit a brickwall as the person who slept hale and hearty woke up feverish and could barely eat food for two days to follow. I had always heard of people having food but not being able to eat. (We learnt 'Some have food...' in primary school, I can remember) but it had never happened to me before. Thanks to Allah by weekend, everything became stable.

I might have been 'lucky' that it didn't get worse. Many others in some parts of the world might just had suffered from a mere headache and died. Some, with no sign of illness, had been reported dead. Some would just walk out their abodes, never to return as a result of some accidents. Some sleep deep and straight it is to death. Such is life!

During the 5-month ASUU Strike, I can vividly recall that I got the news of up to six students of the University of Lagos alone who died following various circumstances, most being final year students (the most recent surprise was on last Wednesday). This makes me recall that anybody can die at anytime and everyone would die at some time. No one wishes to die soon but when we'll die is only known by our Creator. Since we can't determine that time, let's keep in mind that the passing of each day reduces the number of days remaining in our lives. That today is the beginning of the last day of the rest of our lives, should key into our minds.

Let's keep enjoining + practising virtues, discouraging evils and be hopeful that Allah would accept our deeds as acts of worship. Like some always say, 'Only God knows who is worshipping Him' but those striving to worship Him could know themselves by strictly abiding by His commandments. I pray that death doesn't overtake us except at the best time for us!

- Abdussalam Amoo

Read over these questions and ask yourself how well do you live Islam everyday in your own life, and ask Allāh ('azza wa jal) to help you answer them better on a daily basis.

Dear Self,

Do you pray fajr in the mosque in Jamaa`ah(for males) every day?

Do you keep all prayers in the masjid in Jamaa`ah?(for males)

Did you read any portion of Allāh's Book , Quran today?

Are you consistent in saying your thikr and praise of Allāh (T) and wird (regular daily dhikr) after every prayer?

Do you pray all the regular sunnah prayers before and after the fard prayers?

Were you humble and sincere in your prayers today, conscious of what you were reciting?

Did you reflect upon death and the grave?

Did you reflect upon the Last Day, its horrors and its perils?

Did you ask Allāh (three times) to let you into the Jannah?

Did you ask Allāh (three times) to protect you from the Hellfire?

Did you read any of the hadeeth of the Prophet, sallallahu `alayhi wa sallam?

Did you consider keeping away from evil companions?

Did you try to avoid excessive laughing and joking?

Did you cry today for fear of Allāh?

Did you say the morning and evening thikr?

Did you seek forgiveness for your sins from Allāh for today?

Did you sincerely ask Allāh (ta`ala) for the Shahaadah (martyrdom) today?

Did you supplicate to Allāh to keep your heart firm upon His Deen?

Did you take advantage of the time which duas are most accepted to ask of Allāh?

-----------------
Culled from
http://muslimmatters.org/2008/01/22/question-yourself/
Question Yourself
muslimmatters.org

These days we are deceived into watching porn with the following headlines:

"Man catches wife having sex with another... see video."

Does that mean he caught them and they said, "Oga, abeg video us small"?

"Mother catches daughter masturbating in front of pc..."

It would be a 30th century mum that will catch her daughter, make a video and post online.

"What are girls of nowadays turning to? See this one exposing her **** for money..."

How should that concern us? Do we need seeing all these to be fulfilled in life? Of what value are these to our morality? Please and please, when you see headlines like these, it is no news, just a trick for you to start loving porn...

*run* *run* *run* *run* *run*

May the Almighty save us from these evils!

Youngstars Foundation with support from the National Endowment for Democracy NED – USA, presents the 9th edition of DESPLAY Africa, 2014. DESPLAY Africa is the most consistent and longest running annual youth democracy training program in Nigeria/West Africa designed to widen young people’s democracy education and foster active youth participation in good governance processes. Several reports continue to attest to Africa’s potentials, what is left to be seen is performance because we remain the most impoverished and underdeveloped region of the world duly to bad governance. According to the Africa Union, about 65% of African population are young people, thus, Africa is the most youthful continent on earth, by implication, the population that is most affected by Africa’s bad governance are mostly the youth, which is why our generation of youth must rise to the challenge to understand, demand and participate in enthroning quality democracy and good governance for growth and prosperity in Africa.

On a positive note, there is a rising civic consciousness among our teeming youth that Africa can be better and must be better, the prevailing opportunity is in empowering these teeming youth with the requisite 21st century skills and knowledge that can make our engagement and activism effective and impactful. This is what this DESPLAY Africa is about, it’s a robust civic and leadership program for young people passionate about an African where democracy, good governance and prosperity thrives.  Since inception, DESPLAY Africa enjoyed patronage from youth in Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Cameroon and South Africa. This is your turn to join a robust and growing community of young African democrats.

Application Deadline: December 31st, 2013.

Read more » http://youngstarsfoundation.org/2013/12/09/call-for-applications-desplay-season-9/