₦airaland Forum

@Biafranqueen

You posted a picture of a road up there claiming that it is done by GEJ. Please when did we start using right hand cars in Nigeria. They drive in the opposite direction in countries only where right hand cars are used.

Good points the OP raised. The only issue that is a little mind boggling is the idea of the child being in the daycare till 7pm. Sorry to derail from the subject but the OP could get a nanny that does not live-in who is probably a middle aged woman or an elderly woman. The key to it is taking care of these nannies properly and they would do a great job, we have so many middle aged woman around now who will do the job well. I have a colleague who pays her nanny's child school fees, maintains the child properly in a boarding school so tell me why the nanny will not take care of her baby since she knows once she misbehaves and she is booted out, her child will also suffer. My baby is in daycare till 1pm and the nanny picks her up, the daycare runs till 7pm but i can't imagine leaving her there till then and she watches other kids being picked up leaving her there all alone. I still pay the nanny her full salary as if she works full-time and we have a gentlemanly agreement, she also cleans the house. I cook all my food weekends, so sometimes if i am running late, i give her a call to boil rice or make amala so all i have to do is defrost the stews when i get home and put my legs up . As my husband normally says we work hard all day, when will we have time to enjoy if we still have to combine housework and cleaning with it. BTW the nanny works only weekdays so i still have to clean the house and go to the market weekends.

Thanks for the good work.....

I had a baby in the US last year. During the interview, i was asked if i was pregnant but i replied no but i was. I lived with this guilt for this two years which made me so uncomfortable cos i always pride myself as a person of integrity. I paid all my bills after delivery without owing a cent.
My question is that if i apply for a renewal and tell the CO the truth and apologize that i am sorry, do i stand a chance of getting a visa renewal or i should just forget about ever reapplying.
I fell in love with US because i could engage in my favorite pastime which is shopping to my heart's content but i want to know if reapplying might invoke a permanent ban.
Thanks....

Members of the House of Representatives on Thursday approved a decision to purchase new operational vehicles for the House committees.

The decision to buy the new vehicles was endorsed at a closed-door session presided over by the Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal.

The committee vehicles are different from the N7m car loan each of the 360 lawmakers got at the beginning of the current tenure on June 6.

The Chairman of the House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Zakari Mohammed, confirmed the decision of the House when he spoke with journalists shortly after the meeting rose.

“Operational vehicles are coming; they have been approved. But, how many or brand of the vehicles, that has not been decided.

“When we decide on the number or brand of vehicles, we shall adequately inform the public,” he said.

Mohammed added that the initial N7m was a loan given to members to buy personal cars, “as different from operational vehicles.”

“The loan is already being deducted at source; the whole value will be paid,” he stated.

He claimed that the explanation was to guard against any speculation that might portray the House as embarking on a spending spree or wasting public funds.

Findings by our correspondent indicated that the total loan for all 360 lawmakers was about N2.5bn.

There are 89 standing committees in the House.

Incidentally, the sixth House headed by the immediate Speaker, Mr. Dimeji Bankole, also spent N2.3bn to procure 380 operational vehicles for lawmakers in 2008.

The Peugeot 407 cars were supplied by Peugeot Automobile Nigeria Limited for N6.1m each.

The House had explained that the vehicles were National Assembly property and would be left behind at the expiration of the tenure last June.

However, the departing legislators later paid about N800,000 for each car and took them away.

The contract for the cars became a sore point in the House as some lawmakers later alleged that the transaction was inflated.


http://www.punchontheweb.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art2011100711301964

The Lagos State Police Command has arrested two members of staff of the Nigeria Police Force Micro Finance Bank on allegation of stealing over N11m police salaries.

Our correspondent learnt at the bank located within the Ikeja Police College, Ikeja, on Tuesday morning, that the money was stolen from the vault.

A notice on the wall of the bank said, “All transactions should be done at Obalende branch till further notice.”

However, some members of staff in the adjacent office, declined comment on the issue.

A senior police officer, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak with the press, said the police were making headway in their investigations, adding the theft must have been carried out by insiders.

He said, “There was no robbery. In fact, there was no sign of forcible entry. All we were told by the security officials of the bank was that when they resumed work on Tuesday morning, the vault was found open and that money was missing. This implies that it was an inside job.

“The micro finance bank is on the premises of the Police College but not the property of the college. Our duty here is to provide adequate security and I think we have done that.”

Reacting to reports that policemen had during a protest asked for the removal of the Commandant of the college, Mr. Abdullai Magaji, due to the theft, our source said there was no such incident.

He said, “As I am speaking to you, policemen are receiving their salaries at other branches of the bank. Before the end of this week, everyone would have been paid. “Magaji has been doing a very good job as regards security on the premises as well as instilling discipline. Why then should they point the finger at him?”

http://www.punchontheweb.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20111006422093

In spite of the health hazards associated with the use of second-hand items, many Nigerians continue to patronise them, reports MAUREEN AZUH

A first-time visitor to the popular Katangowa Market in Abule Egba area of Lagos, on a typical market day, would marvel at the presence of the enormous crowd of both buyers and sellers alike. The popular slogan at the market is ‘Na mumu dey go boutique’, meaning only fools patronise boutiques. As one of the dumping grounds for second-hand clothing items, ranging from children’s wears and toys to adults’ undergarments, bags, shoes, jewellery and toiletries, the vibrancy of the market clearly describes the acceptance of these goods to the Nigerian populace.

In fact, in the universities, many of the campus ‘happening babes and guys’, as those very social are called, get most of their designer wears from this source. The traders, some of them students, pay a certain amount of money for the privilege of being the ones who make the first pick from freshly-opened bales which they resell.

The main source of clothing for many students is the expansive market, where everything wearable from head to toe is second-hand. One interesting discovery is that sanitary pads are also sold at cheap rates at these markets – although this correspondent cannot tell whether they are second-hand or new.

It has also become customary for some boutique owners to pick the clothes and first wash, in order to get rid of a distinctive smell the materials usually bear, before displaying them as designer labels. Interestingly, most of those who patronise them know the items are second-hand. But not everyone knows that the importation of these items is prohibited by the Nigerian government; and they may not know that some of them have negative health implications.

For a trader at the Aswani Market, Oshodi, where these goods are also sold, people buy second-hand materials because they are afraid of buying sub-standard goods from stall where new ones are sold. According to the young man who gave his name as Vincent Kalu, second-hand goods last longer than new ones.

He says, “You will find out that these new clothes are manufactured in mass. So, sometimes, apart from the fact that they may not last, you may dress up feeling like ‘a big girl’ - only to find out that your neighbour in secondary school has the same outfit as you. But when you buy second-hand clothe, you can hardly find an identical one anywhere else.”

Another trader, Anuli Okeke, says, “I sell okrika bags because I use them. They are more durable than most new bags. You can use them over and over again. In that way, you are getting maximum benefit of your money.” ‘Okrika’ and ‘tokunbo’ are two of the popular nomenclatures of second-hand materials.

But these items are not limited to clothing materials. Other household objects such as dinner sets, cell phones and their parts, automobiles, music system and other electronics are also in high demand in the second-hand market. And despite several warnings that Nigeria maybe turned into a dumping ground for toxic wastes, emanating from the importation of second-hand goods, the patronage of these goods seems to be on the increase. One of the reasons often given for the ever-increasing patronage is the low cost of such goods.

But it is surprising to note that some of these second-hand goods are sold at almost the same price as their new counterparts, especially if such carry designer labels in the case of clothing materials. This particularly applies to some vehicle spare parts.

According to Kalu, some skirts sell for as much as N3, 000 while Okeke’s bags are sold between N3, 500 and N5, 000. The reason Kalu gave for his high price is that his clothes were not substandard materials from China but rather from Europe and the US. Is it then a question of the affordability of the second-hand goods, ignorance on the part of the buyers or a lack of proper sensitisation on the part of the government?

Clement Apas, an automobile spare part dealer at the popular Ladipo Market, Mushin, says most people prefer buying tokunbo products since the infiltration of China products into the Nigerian market. But he also adds that Nigerians are responsible for the importation of such substandard goods.

He notes, “The problem is not with the government. It is not as if they are not doing their job, the problem is with our importers who tell the Chinese people to produce substandard goods. To them the lesser the quality, the cheaper the price and they are happy with the bargain. Although you can argue that the Chinese could have turned them down but on the other hand, you have to understand that business is business.”

Apas, however, adds that the fault of the Nigerian government is the inability to check the importation of these substandard goods. To him, it is as a result of the ineffectiveness of the Customs Service.

But while Apas and most people may be quick to point the accusing finger at the perceived inability of the men of the Nigerian Customs Service to check the importation of these items, by putting certain policies in place, the service has a different view on the issue. The Public Relations Officer, Nigerian Customs Service, Federal Operations Unit, Ikeja, Mr. Austin Nwobodo, notes that the onus is on the Federal Government to make policies on second-hand goods.

He says, “Customs Service does not make policies, rather we implement those made by the government. Specifically, on second-hand goods, there are guidelines to follow.”

Nwobodo explains that while some second-hand goods are prohibited, others are not. “Prohibited items are those the government has said should not be allowed into the country at all, and they include used fridges, compressors and clothes. But those that can be imported are automobiles with specifications and some electronics. Those that are prohibited are considered harmful to both the environment and human health,” he adds.

Threat to reproductive organs?

According to a 2008 report by the United Nations, on the possible effects on human health and the environment in Africa of some trade products, second-hand goods may contain mercury and lead. Mercury is said to damage brain tissues while lead destroys the reproductive system, with effects such as decreased sperm count in men and spontaneous abortions in women. They have also been associated with high lead exposure. The developing fetus is at particularly high risk from maternal lead exposure, with low birth weight and slowed post-natal neurobehavioural development likely.

The report also says that these items may contain cadmium, a chemical substance that causes damage to the kidneys.

In 2007, an American NGO, Basel Action Network, published a report that about 500 containers with over 400,000 second-hand computers were unloaded in Lagos every month. Also, the Director–General, National Environmental Standards and Regulatory Agency, Dr Ngeri Benebo, notes that the number of second-hand materials coming into the country is high. According to her, the increasing volume of imported electronic wastes should be a concern to all Nigerians.

Speaking on the ‘Global Perspective of E-waste”, Benebo posits that Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), also known as e-waste, poses a grave danger. “WEEE contains hazardous constituents that may negatively impart the environment and affect human health if not properly managed as it is the case in developing countries which lack adequate infrastructure to manage wastes safely,” she says.

However, despite these warnings, those involved in the illegal business of importing these goods have become more deviant than ever in their illicit trade, employing all means to succeed and beat any security check. According to Nwobodo, the punishment for defaulters is either prosecution or seizure of goods, which are destroyed or auctioned after court proceedings depending on the item. He adds that part of the problem is that many Nigerians easily get carried away by foreign products.

he Katsina State Police Command has arrested a 25-year-old man, Mannir Goma, for allegedly raping an 80-year-old woman in Matazu Local Government.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Alhaji Ibrahim Mohammed, confirmed the arrest in Katsina on Monday while parading 15 other suspected criminals, including armed robbery suspects arrested across the state.

He said the suspected rapist was arrested last week in Yelwa village shortly after raping the woman.

The police boss added that Goma had confessed that he committed the crime seriously injuring his victim in the process. Mohammed said the octogenarian had been receiving treatment at Matazu Health Centre.

Also, the police boss said the command had also arrested nine suspected armed robbers at different times in Kankara, Batagarawa, Katsina, Musawa and Malumfashi local government areas.

According to him, a total of N490,000 was recovered from some of the suspects, while charms, an AK 47 rifle, five locally-made pistols, rounds of ammunition, broken safe and army uniforms, among other items, were recovered from them.

He noted that four suspected thieves were also arrested in Daura for allegedly breaking into shops and carting away four bags of cement and a bundle of roofing sheets.

Mohammed said among the suspects was a woman, who was arrested in Runka village of Safana Local Government in connection with the murder of a police constable.

He said the suspects would all be charged to court as soon as the police concluded their investigations.

He reiterated the command’s determination to flush out criminals in the state and appealed to the public to assist the police by giving them useful information.

http://www.punchontheweb.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art201110053111492


The kind of sick things that happen in this Nigeria could be frightening at times.

Hopes of scores of policemen in Lagos State, southwest Nigeria, to receive their September salaries were dashed this morning as the N11.7 million meant for their salaries has been stolen.

P.M.NEWS investigation this morning revealed that the money was stolen from the Nigerian Police Force Micro Finance Bank situated within Ikeja Police College at GRA.

The money was paid into the bank on Friday yet there was no sign of burglary when it was discovered missing this morning.

When P.M.NEWS visited the bank today at about 10.1 5 a.m., a large number of policemen who stormed the bank were disappointed as they could not collect their salary.

They were directed to go to another branch of the microfinance bank at Obalende for the payment of their salaries.

When P.M.NEWS attempted to speak with the manager at the Microfinance Bank, he declined to comment on the incident.

When contacted on phone, Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Samuel Jinadu said he was driving.

At the bank located at the back of the office of the Commandant of the Police College, P.M.NEWS correspondents saw police detectives attached to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, Panti, Yaba, investigating the incident.

Before the N11.7 million simply grew wings and disappeared between last Friday and yesterday, corruption cases had been reported and investigated at the Police College.

Police sources told P.M.NEWS that officers who attended promotion courses from the rank of Inspector to Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP, were compelled to pay N7,000 each.

The officers are said to be divided into three batches. A batch has up to 15,000 policemen and there could be three of such batches for the promotion course that lasts only three weeks.

Our source said Constables and Corporals are also compelled to pay at least N5,000 each before they are allowed to take part in promotion courses.

P.M.NEWS learnt that because of these alleged sharp practices, policemen now lobby to work at the Police College.

The corruption allegations at the college are being investigated by a panel headed by ACP Noah Adesanyin. Other members of the panel are CSP Emmanuel Ighodalo, a former Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, PPRO, and four high ranking police officers.

http://pmnewsnigeria.com/2011/10/04/police-salary-stolen-from-police-bank/

This is the height of it in Nigeria

Mrs. Ifeoma Egeonu, the pregnant mother of two, who was set ablaze by her husband, last Saturday, has recounted the sad experience even as she expressed her readiness to forgive the offending husband. Ifeoma and her two children were set ablaze by her hubby, Mr. Alexander Ndubuisi Egeonu, popularly called Sagay, inside his container-shop for undisclosed reason. The husband had been on the run since the incident happened.

Speaking to Daily Sun on her hospital bed at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, where she was transferred to from the Eastern Nigeria Medical Centre, Ifeoma expressed shock and surprise about the action of her husband.

Also on admission at the hospital were her first son, Emmanuel, who was crying continuously obviously because of the pain he was suffering and his brother, Udochukwu. Both children are within the ages of two and three.

With most of her body wrapped with bandage, Ifeoma, who is heavily pregnant, said she was surprised that she is still alive. She told Daily Sun that she could not tell what might have pushed her husband into the devilish act.

She said she was so confused even at the point when her husband was pouring fuel inside the shop; “I was asking him what he was doing but before I knew it there was fire everywhere inside the container which served as his shop.

“The other woman who sells provisions was the person who pushed open the door as he tried to close it and ran away.
Ifeoma, who hails from Amuri in Nkanu West Local Government area of Enugu State, said that she and her two kids were staying with her mother but decided to visit her husband and celebrate the Independence anniversary with him.

“When he brought the fuel, I felt he wanted to use it for his generator but he was telling me that, ‘people are wicked; that the woman who sells provisions opposite owed him and had refused to pay up; somehow he managed to attract the same woman to the shop, telling her to talk to me.

“It was all confusing, but the next thing he started pouring petrol inside the shop and afterwards lit a match but the woman forced her way out as he tried to close the door on all of us. It was people around that came to our rescue but I and my children were already burnt. I thank God that we are still alive.”

Ifeoma said that her husband, who hails from Mbaitolu in Imo State, was fond of beating her.
“Most of the time, I will run to my parents’ house but he will always come begging,” she said.
Asked if she can forgive her husband over the incident, she replied; “If God can forgive us our sins why can’t I forgive other people. I believe in God and that is all I can say for now. She, however, ruled out the possibility of retuning to the man’s house again, asking; “if it is you that somebody tried to kill, will you go back to that same person again?”

She called for assistance from both government and other public-spirited individuals to come to their aid.
“There is nobody to help us now; it is only my brother who has been trying his best but he can’t shoulder this alone. He has already paid the bills at Eastern Nigeria Medical Centre from where we were referred to this place; but we are yet to pay for the deposit in this particular hospital. Of course, there will be other bills but we have faith in God,” she added.

Reacting to the incident, her brother, Mr. Sunday Ede, lamented the ill-luck of his younger sister as regards her marriage, saying he had severally discouraged her from marrying Egeonu.
“This is my immediate younger sister; she was with me during her secondary school days. But at a time this guy impregnated her and decided to marry her.

“As time went on, I started seeing the character of the man and I made up my mind that he was not good for her. Sometimes, she will return to my house and stay with us but whenever he comes begging, she will follow him again.
“The last time she retuned was a week before this incident; she had stayed with me for about a week until the man came and my sister said she was following him. I could not stop her but I warned her that she was on her own.”

He recalled how a friend called him on phone on the day of the incident to inform him of what happened, which he initially ignored.
“Few minutes later somebody came on a bike and told me that my attention was needed at the Eastern Medical Centre that my sister was on admission; that her husband poured fuel on her and her children and set them on fire .
“Out of anger I said I was not going that they should bury her if they have finally killed her; but the messenger urged me to go that they had been referred to the National Orthopaedic Hospital.”

Mr. Ede said he had never seen something of this nature in his life and expressed shock that somebody could set his own children on fire.
Meanwhile, the police in Enugu are still searching for Egeonu, who had disappeared after setting his wife and children ablaze.
Before the incident, Egeonu was said to be dealing in musical equipment and at the same time using a part of the container-shop, located at No 61 Mount Street, Idaw River area of Awkunanaw Enugu, as barbing salon.


http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2011/oct/04/national-04-10-2011-001.html

Hi everyone,

This thread seems to be working wonders for people, i want to log my own activities here too. i am 5" 7. i currently weigh 83kg. My target is to lose 15kg before the end of the year.

Yesterday activities

Morning: jogging (20mins)

Breakfast: Golden Morn and Milk

Lunch: Plantain and Fish

Dinner: Rice

Evening: long walk (1:45mins)

@werepeLeri

The issue here is not about the state of public schools like 10yrs or more ago but the deplorable state of these schools now.

The public schools have been left to rot and to be frank it is quite difficult now to see public school kids making outstanding grades in examinations because really they are being left on their own to really learn and the mindset of these present generation is different from a mindset of 10yrs or more ago.

I am Yoruba

From Oyo State and i work in Lagos.

BB all the Way.

Some of us might say that Buhari has no concrete plans for Nigeria,
Even if he has no plans except getting rid of corruption that is okay for now.

Remember that nothing can ever work in this country unless corruption is eradicated. So support the man that is bent on making it happen.

BB let's go there.