You are the one debating the issue. If the guy has been invited, so be it. Why do you people always know better than the coach? He must have a good reason for inviting him, and he doesn't need to explain to armchair-behind the screen critics. Osaze may have made mistakes but he paid his dues, so let him be, geez!

Nuzo':


Why do we have to debate about this?

Showing up for trainings and matches does not encompass full discipline in any professionl career.

Being discipline as a professional footballer comprises showing up for trainings and matches, team work on and off field and MOST importantly respecting your captain and coaches.

Nobody has doubted Osaze's skills but dude always has a way of being unduely agitated by any little misunderstanding. As simple as we might see his little rants, it can throw any team off balance and make them loose focus. Osaze is being paid to play and not to fight team captain, coach, reporters, fans, sport commentators and West-Bromwich.

Super Eagles won the AFCON because they were very disciplined and obeyed oders...not because they were the most skilled in the competition.

If it is true, I will say this is where Keshi buys my respect. Without Osaze in the national team, it wont make much of a difference, but you do not throw a baby away with the bath water. I strongly believe that Westbrom is treating Osaze badly because they feel he has no where to turn because of his problems with the eagles. If Keshi invites him and try to help him, he probably would have sown a good seed between him and Osaze. Its not about playing for Nigeria, he has been doing that for more than a decade (even when other would not come- how we forget so soon), its about caring, looking out for your own, when they need you. This is what Osaze has been saying all along (so is Emenike of recent). Having said that I think Osaze needs to learn to be quiet now. He has said all he needed to say, and I support him for speaking up, but its time to lay low and let the others do their bid. if not, so be it.

Symphony007: must everything be about politics. Some of you folks are so submerged in trivial politics and division that the slighest pin drop is 2015 to you. Rather than the "elected" chief executive of a state exchanging words and almost fistcuffing with a federal "appionted" minister, why did'nt his justce dept. just take the case to the supreme court and clearly the case will be reffered back to his state and the federal government told to bugger off..now how has this shambolic display helped both of their courses? Common sense is lacking!

What you are saying will make sense in a country where things are done normally. What Oshiomole is doing is keeping the case in the limelight lest it becomes a cold case very quickly. Besides, I don't know why you think he is the only one at fault here if he is. He only pointed out to the AGF the way things are supposed to be done. It is left for the AGF to have refuted his claims. Moreover, who is employing "shambolic" tactics if not the police and the AGF? Remember it was the AGF that walks up to Oshiomole as is reported. If the man senses that the AGF is colluding with the police to kill the case he has a right to let the world knows.

So you what the case fo who handles the file to go to the supreme court and then take years to determine. If that happens, the police will have an excuse to lay off the case and say they are waiting for the supreme court to decide on the jurisdiction of the case. That is exactly what the police that the AGF wants. Get it!

Confusion: I just dont get it, is Keshi suppose to be there for ever, its mentality like this that kills Africa, when people think that they should not be criticised, Let Keshi do his job and when we think somebody else is better we will tell him to go, simple and period, no sentiment,
this is why America will always be the best becos if you cant perform you are elected out and not becos of past glory
Keshi please do your job well and when its time for us to change you we will do it without sentiment as long as it not for selfish or personal interest but the collective good of the nation

This is not about change. Its about treating people with respect. How many times have you heard a coach resigning a day or two after winning a major trophy? Only in Nigeria. Keshi has given to Nigerian soccer than almost any else I know, when the time come for us to let him go, we can do so without making him a villain. That is what Osaze is saying!

ROSSIKE:

Dude what are you saying? Do you think Nigeria is Arsenal? Those ones are happy to keep a coach that's won nothing in 8 years. Based on their gratitude for what he did 8 years before that. Is that the type of slavish worship you're recommending we have for Keshi? Sorry, in Nigeria, if you fail to deliver, people WILL start looking to replace you. Afterall is it Keshi's birthright to be national team coach, or is there no one that can do the job except him? What are you saying? Of course he will get criticised if the Eagles suffer a spate of losses, and rightly so!!! As for Odemwingie, the least said about him the better.

It doesn't seem that you are reading between the lines. I don't think Osaze is necessarily against firing a coach that is underperforming, he talking about the way people who have served Nigeria well are often treated. All over the world, you will be replaced if you are not doing well as you used to, but in many places, they will treat you with respect. Nigeria has no heroes!

Sadly, I think Osaze's story is very typical of the Nigerian story in many cases. Just a thought.

Some people here are very funny. Even when they acknowledge that he is right in what he is saying, they just don't want him to talk. You people are here analyzing the poor boy right, left, and center, but you don't want him to express his God given right to make his opinion on issues. How hypocritical!
If any of you here can comment on this issue, I am sure Osaze, after what he has done for the country, has the right to speak his mind. You don't have to agree with him or even listen to him.

Sometimes I don't understand the way some of us reason. When it is expedient, we say we base everything we do on the bible, but when its not we say well, just follow what you are told.
What is wrong with a woman crossing her legs in church? As some very sensible people have noted, is it not better if she crosses a her leg than to 'expose' herself?
I think the important question is where did this tradition come from and who started it? Just because some church leader (perhaps hundreds of years ago), who had little or no respect for women, found it offensive for a woman to sit and cross her leg before him does not mean we should continue to condone such nonsense. I agree that it is a tradition handed down from generation to some churches, but I think its high time we let it go. Remember women standing in the alter used to be a big sin? so was women wearing trousers (before you take an issue with this, ask yourself how a trouser that covers properly is worse than a skirt that can easily expose you). If you want to cross your leg, please go ahead and do so, it takes nothing away from your salvation, which is by the way, personal. Sometimes its okay to question absurd customs and traditions, so that people can start to reflect on it and then likely see the absurdity it it. I don't think we (Christians) in Nigeria that disfavor leg crossing in churches are more "righteous" than other churches in the west that do not care if you cross your leg in church.

Perhaps it would do us (Nigerians and perhaps all Africans) a little good if this generation start asking questions about the way our fathers/mothers come to this present, in the words of Patrick Obahiagbon, political, social, and religious quagmire. Just a thought!

ak47sk: Point of correction.The average ,nigerian does not ridicule the geographical entity.The leadership of the entity called Nigeria is their or rather our focal point of anger.When the leaders over the years have been ridiculous in their ways of governace,one would not expect anything but ridicule of all that comes with their mess.

Nigeria is not the product of just its leaders, but of all its people. If you want to ridicule the leaders please by all means go head! But do not throw the baby away with the bath water- it will be your loss!

Ki-Katanga:


It's also the only place the Nigerians from across the country and the diaspora can sit together and talk about how we can make it better. And if we claim all is well, then what can we do?

You see that's my point- that is what we should do: talk about how to make it better. But you and I know from reading the treads that that is not what is happening! Ridiculing yourselves before the world is not the same as discussing contsructively how to make it better. Not that we can control what people say online, but if people realize that these kinds of forum is the only window through which many people see Nigeria, maybe they would be more constructive in their opinions. when the only thing that outsiders learn about your country is curruption and violence, why should they come here and invest in your country? Don't gloss over our problems, but dont forget to also mention the nice things about Nigeria. Sometimes the way the treads read it sound as if nothing is working in Nigeria- and that not true at all. In this day and age the imgage of a country is very well tied to its economy. That my point!

I think the problem is that of perception: what people really perceive to constitute the country Nigeria. People who ridicule Nigeria see Nigeria as the result of the failings of the leadership. When they imagine Nigeria, they see Abacha and his handiwork, they see obj and power failure,they see our legislooters and and the various ineffective Governors. If that is what you think Nigeria is then you are right to curse the "f" out of it.

But that is not only what Nigeria is.

Nigeria is your small neighborhood where you grew up with friends; and remember playing in the sands innocently.
Nigeria is the platform for great musicians like Sunny Okosuns, Ayefele, Prince Nico Mbaga, including all the new generations artistes like P Square and 2 face et al.
Nigeria is a place that allows you to freely walk and scream the top of your voice without feeling inferior to anyone.
Nigeria is the place you can look at and say wholeheartedly: this is my own no matter what
Nigeria is the mamaput that you can order about to serve you amala and ewedu
Nigeria is your mother, your father and all your extended family.

Tell me how can you ridicule this second Nigeria? This country is not working well right now, but the coutry is not its leaders. The country is us - YOU AND I. Stop cursing and ridiculing yourselves online. That is where the Ghanaians and the south africans find all they know about you.

I don't mean to insult anyone, but I have to say that there are very many daft comments being made regarding this issue. Do people even read before making comments? They asked him a question and he responded. Which one is talk too much. Besides how is what he is saying not registering. He said it is not about just winning the election. That it should be about the process of the election, and that perhaps he may have had a wider margin if INEC did their job properly. He was looking at from broader perspective of the way elections are conducted in Nigeria. As he rightly said, this about the future of democracy in Nigeria. He said being a governor is not big of a deal as having true democracy in the country.

Come to think of, how is it possible that Benin city will not have election materials when villages 2 to 3 hours from Benin will have election materials. And you are supposed to pass through Benin before you get those villages. Could it be that it is because Oshiomoles base is stronger in bein with over 55% of to voters? How What excuse does INEC have not being able to properly conduct election in just one state? If you read the comments properly, you probably will make more sense when you repsond.

I don't understand why some people think those who are opposed to the renaming are against MKO. Most Lagosians love MKO, the issue is why the presisdent who ( mind you I have consistently supported on other issues) will make this kind of blunder. I doubt this was his intention, but he has been able to divide Nigerians with the name of an individual that is very dear to ours hearts. How stupid can a president be? This is what you get for not consulting others. And who says the institution belongs to him? For pete's sake this a premier Nigerian university. The FG is not the only stakeholder. Don't students pay school fees in the school? A univeristy is different from other institutions - the name can make a difference in how successful graduants become in the job market. In a country where things are done RIGHT, pollS will be taken to see what people think about the name change before any attempt is made. No, not in Nigeria. We dey pass through democracy, but democracy no dey pass through us.

And @ Beaf, I am very disappointed on your take in this (sorry I singled you out). I have always followed your comment and thought you are different from the crowd of pessimists here. But this is taking it too far. The president is wrong on this one!

Now they want the insult to stop. What about the ones they've been given to Nigeria and Nigerians since?

The oba of Benin is more than a herbalist, he is the custodian of the bini ancestral gods. Many binis respect him for that.

How are we sure that it is bini person that did this to the outgoing bursar? because it happened at the university of benin? what twisted logic?

The western tradition brought assisination, kidnapping, and other forms of intimidation. I will take this kind of intimidation at the school than of the the western ones I just mentioned. The reason being I am not worried about its potency.

Just to add: Check out the christian tradition, you will see a lot of intimidation tactics that is even worse than this. My only regret is that this is happening in a university, a place were only ideas and qualification should be the metric for success. Sad, sad day for University of Benin, and Nigeria.

Prof JYK:

Try see if from this angle. The lower fares for Ghana and could b because they want to get more passengers (possibly Nigerians looking for better bargain) so as to run optimum utility. Maybe Accra-London flights fly empty like Arik's ABV-LHR and in economic wisdom, BA decided that lower fares will b a good incentive to attract london bound passengers in d west african sub-region. The NG-UK BASA allows 21 flights for each country and d UK has used all, if not they coulda created one more frequency to absorb d rising demand.

I respect your take on this. It is still a hypothetical situation described above, because they definitely dont lack first class travlerss from ghana, for example. And even if they do cheap promotional fares to encourage people to use first class, it should be temporary. The Government is complaining because of the permanent price disparity which is potential trade agreement violation. Moreover, But why should their lack of competitiveness in other western african countries be the problem of Nigerian flyers. Its obvious, they have been taking us for granted for 75 years, and they dont believe anybody can do anything about it. Now that the government is standing up to them, I will expect Nigerians (whether you take first class or not) to support them. Its all about image. Next time other companies will think twice before they take us for a "ride" in the future. One step at a time my brother.

What is with Nigerians self. Why all this self loath and pity. When will all this inferiority complex stop. In fact this is the main problem. The Govt is trying to correct a trade imbalance, and people are saying they shouldnt just because there is no power or good road in nigeria. How does that relate to air travellers exploitation by people who still see us as their colonial wards? The economics is simple: Nugeria is the biggest market in Africa, based on economics of scale principle, we should be paying less. The risk of flying to and from nigeria is lower for any airline whether is in the economy or more premium class.

Some people dont like that the government is doing this because they feel they dont take first class, or that it is only corrupt politicians that take first class. First, pray that one day you will be able to take first class. Second, there are many hardworking Nigerians business people who need to take first class or buy first class tickets for business associates because business strive first on impression. Its the same reason westerners do it.

All these economist wannabes that keep relating the high cost of flight to nigeria to demand and supply, have your heard of economies of scale? The price in nigeria is supposed to be cheaper because of the size of the market. The risk of flying empty seats to and from Nigeria is lower than any other West African country.

I think is about how they us Nigerians. Its a good thing the Government is stepping up. They have been taking us for granted for 75 years, so is high time someone put a stop to it.

I wonder the average age of the people calling for a coup here on NL. We tried that before, and we all know how they turned out. As for El Rufai, he is simply disgruntled because he is out of favor with the current Governmnent.
Look, if a coup occurs, there may or may not be unsual response, but what is certain is that, Nigeria would have taked a step backward. People the would over are moving forward, Nigeria would be moving backward if a coup were to occur. El Rufai would like that because that is how his kind thrive in Nigeria.

I think people are missing the point. It doesn't matter whether she gets the position or not (ofcourse it will be great if she gets it), the most important thing is that with all the bad publicity Nigeria gets, we have someone as credible as Ms Iweala. We should all be proud of her. Jubilate if you want. At least for once the story is not about Boko Haram or corruption. Celebrate little victories and big once will come.

I don't think the act in itself is a sin, but what do you think about when you self-service? If lusting is a sin, then the image you have in your head when you self serve might constitute a sin. For the record, I am not  a pastor. Just an opinion.

I don't think ojukwu conducted the war very well (perhaps because he lacked the needed resources), but I do not doubt for one second that he had a choice given the humiliation his people were receiving in the hands of the northerners. Someone has rightly said the he should have tried to carry the other southern leaders along. But again, this was a different Nigeria at the time were ethnic sentiments was at its zenith.

And by the way, Ojukwu is not the first warlord to escape. Go through history, many great warroirs have done the same this.

The true question is how many of this lily-livered southerners can be bold enough to stand against such oppression.

And I am not Ibo. Just a Nigerian who hates all these NL bickering between yorubas and Ibos. Stop it guys, its getting really lame.

I don't agree with op's comparison. But the responses to his post seem to be based on the fact that people in uk make more money. You have to remmeber that it is not just fuel price, people in th western world pay more for everything else: housing, water, heat, car/house/health insurance, etc. Both countries should not be compared. Lets use the social, political, and economic factors in Nigeria to analyze the problem.

We all know that removing fuel subsidy is supposed to provide stimulus for development and all that, but what people are worried about is that this government is not capable of delivering on those development. This more of an issue of distrust of the government.
Having said that, I will say lets give them a chance. It would have been noce if the government can provide other forms of credit for the people in place of the fuel subsidy.

They all terrorists. Even though I hate that Innocent nortehrners were the target of ths Egbesu cult, I think Northern leaders should be reminded that they dont have monopoly to violence. The only people that can stop boko haram are the Northern leaders, not even GEJ.

@NemekGee,
you took the words out of my mouth. This is classic Nigerian thinking: Ours is bad and theirs is good. we have serious insecurity. I am sure f Okocha has the money he would have buit an aircraft company or refinery.

I really dont understand why people are so worked up on a simple smile. Any sane person would prefer a commander in chief that does not betray his emotions. Agreed that the smile may be a little over the top in the picture. But this is a single frame of an image. How do you judge someone based on a single frame still image. Sometimes I wonder who these people making these comments really are.

Some people even start comparing the situation room photo of Obama during the Osama Bin Ladden raid. Are people that daft to not know the difference between these occasions: A private situation room where the president and his security team were watching live as the united states army go into another sovereign country without authorization. A million things could have gone wrong. Obama's presidency depended on the outcome. How do you compare that to a visit by the president , meant to show solidarity and to reduce tension at a critical time in the country.

Just so people people, after obama ordered the raid, he went to play golf. He even went to event that could be deemd comedic in nature. In fact he is being accused of being too calm in the way he handles such issues!

I dont get Nigerians sometimes, especially those of us in diaspora. I am not sure if its insecurity or just lack of ground knowledge about Nigeria. Or is it that because we are far away we view make comments without really thinking about these issues. Jonathan, a minority president, is facing an insurgency and guerilla warfare  by  a sect within a majority. Lets wait for Obama and Sarkozy to face the same problem and see how they will handle it before we can compare them to GEJ.

Its just  a single frame of picture. You wont get much from analysing. Geez!

Army establishes special squad to combat Boko Haram





Written by Fidelis Soriwei and Jude Owuamanam




The Nigerian Army has established a special squad to combat the menace of Boko Haram.





Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika



advertisement






The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, who spoke at a two-day security awareness workshop organised by the Nigerian army on Wednesday, said the suicide attacks carried out by Boko Haram had only indicated that the group did not have respect for human lives.




Ihejirika said the Special Response Group would complement the efforts of the Joint Task Force and other security operatives in the battle to restore sanity in the society.






Ihejirika, said the decision was informed by the need to boost the capacity of his men to handle the challenge of Boko Haram.




Ihejirika noted that security operatives had encountered difficulty in protecting potential victims of terror attacks because of the nature of the operations of those behind such attacks.




He said, “The unpredictable and random nature of terrorist acts makes it difficult for security forces to protect all potential victims and targets, since they are faceless and have an unlimited number of potential targets.”

I am just as surprised in the seemingly insensitivity of the remark. I am not sure he meant to be that insensitive. It just goes to show that GEJ is not a politician. But lets be frank, we seem to be equating GEJ speech with what we would expect from western countries. But he is not Obama or Sarkozy. I dont think anyone of you here sincerely think GEJ is not as hurtful as all other Nigerians seeing this horrible act.

Having said that, I think boko haram is winning. Their intention is to make GEJ look bad. And that is exactly what we are doing here: taking one line from his entire statement and making it seem as if he appluads the killings is sensless and counter productive. The people we should be mad at are the Boko haram for spoiling a festive mood for Nigerians. GEJ is right (just should not have said it), we are going to have to live within the bombings for a while. Just look at Iraq with all the money and expertise poured into solving the problem and tell me it has worked. The man is just being realistic and trying prepare our minds for the carnage that uis about to follow. But that is not what the people want to hear. They want to hear that Boko haram will be destroyed before the end of the day and that there will never be a single bombing again.

@22Martints,
Stop being so dismissive, there is nothing wrong with putting forward an idea and asking others to debate its merit. Unfortunately, I also think its not going to work based on the financial and environmental implications that have been raised. I am not an expert in this, but I do think that some form of medium scale "refineries" can be viable with proper monitoring system.

enough pitures of the dead. Lets show some respect to them and their families.