*What will modern Africa present to the world?*

We have a situation

When the Egyptians were the highest civilization on earth, their culture, architecture and language spread and people seek to learn the hieroglyphs and mimic Egyptians clothing, architecture, and speak their language.

The same when the Greeks commanded the seas, their culture attracted the neighbors and beyond, and their philosophers and poets are still at the epitome until today.

When the Roman Empire conquered the ‘world’, Latin language become the universal language, and the rest of barbaric Europe was civilized by the romans, forcing French to bath, building canals, introduced writing to the Gauls, the saxons, the Scandinavian, etc.

When Napoleonic France was at the top of the world, French became the language of the global elite, and everyone else stopped washing themselves with water for French toilet.

When the English topped the world, English language became the universal language and the English with their Saxon cousins culture is now the reference in the world.

With the emerging China, Chinese language is sought out around the world, and the Confucius institutes are covering the world like 5G.

Chinese political system is slowly regarded as better than the alternatives, and parents start giving Chinese names to their kids like you see Africans wearing colonial English and French names nowadays.

Now here is a question? A hypothetical one.

When an a african country like Nigeria will be the preeminent country in the world, which language would Nigeria spread around the world like all above empires? Knowing that currently Nigeria has abandoned all African languages to use only English?

What architecture would the world imitate, knowing Nigeria has discarded all African architecture to adopt European architecture!?

Which religion or value system Nigeria would extend to the world, knowing Nigerians have rejected African belief systems and adopted the Arabic Islam and the European Christianity!?

A picture emerged in my mind after noticing the above.

Even if Africa would win tomorrow and become a prominent continent, it would win for European and Arabic culture, language, architecture, because she has abandoned all her own.

Africa would have nothing african to offer the world.

Nothing.

Are you happy about that?

If not what would you change in your personal life to avoid such a sad future?

*Beneficiaries of Gbenga Olawepo Hashim Foundation economic empowerment program in Abuja*

Gbenga Hashim Foundation(GHF) Empowers Over 200 Small Scale Businesses in Abuja with 10 Million Naira.

The Gbenga Hashim Foundation (GHF) has allocated a sum of 10 million Naira towards empowering more than 200 small-scale businesses located in Abuja. This initiative aims to provide support to entrepreneurs who are in need of financial assistance to scale their businesses. The GHF recognizes the importance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in driving economic growth and providing employment opportunities. With this in mind, the foundation has taken significant steps to provide a much-needed boost to the local business community in Abuja and this will be replicated across the states in Nigeria.

helinues:
Dust bin materials

TERROR ATTACK: OLAWEPO-HASHIM WRITES PRESIDENT PUTIN, STRESSES NEED TO STRENGHTEN PEACE GLOBALLY

Monday 25 March, 2024, Abuja, Nigeria:

In the wake of the terror attack in Russia, a former Presidential Candidate and a Chieftain of the All Progressive Congress, APC, Mr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim has written a letter “to convey his sympathy to President Vladimir Putin, the Great people of Russia, and the wounded and the families of those killed in the terrorist attack of the Music Hall in Moscow on Friday 22nd March 2024.”

In the letter dated Monday, 25 March, 2024 and sent through the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Abuja, Olawepo-Hashim maintained that the attack not only remained “a fiendish assault on live Culture and Civilization,” the “horrific act which reportedly claimed 137 lives (and still climbing) and .many injured, must be condemned by all peace loving people all over the world and people of good conscience.”

He added that “the attack further underscores the ubiquitous nature of terror which no nation is immuned against as long as there exist ample number of fertile minds for evil sometimes not always possible to completely track.

“Sad occurrences such as the 9/11 in the US, London Tube bombing, and many variants of terrorist actions such as this in powerful nations highlights the necessity of increased international cooperation and solidarity against terrorism and the need to strengthen Peace Globally across political divides.”

According to him, “though Nigeria feels the pains of terrorism daily Nigeria people must stand with Russia a friendly Nation that has demonstrated generous friendship and support to our Nation in times of war and peace in the past.”

He stressed that “not only did Russia support efforts to keep Nigeria one during the Nation's Civil War, Russia extended economic support for the building of important economic infrastructures and provided scholarships and technical training for the Nation's key professionals. Russia was a key ally of our founding fathers in the struggle for independence from colonial rule.”

Olawepo=Hashim emphasized that “the bond of friendship between Nigeria and the Russian people has been traditionally reciprocal as demonstrated during the incident of the Chernobyl nuclear tragedy when Nigeria announced substantial financial donation in Solidarity with Russia.

“Let me add my voice as a friend of Russia at a time like this to comfort those who were wounded in last Friday attack and to stand in Solidarity with Russia.”

- Ends -
https://tribuneonlineng.com/terror-attack-olawepo-hashim-writes-putin-stresses-need-to-strengthen-global-peace/

PeacePro urges AU, ECOWAS to support Niger's ejection of foreign military

Following Niger Republic termination of agreement and notice to United States of America for the immediate evacuation of its military base in the West African country, a peacebuilding think tank, Foundation for Peace Professionals also known as PeacePro has called on the leadership of Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and African Union (AU) to assist Niger Republic facilitate peaceful ejection of foreign military bases in its country without escalating tension.

PeacePro said that the desire of the people of Niger is to see its country free of foreign military presence and the regional body should be seen aiding the process in a brotherly and professional manner.

In a statement by the Executive Director of PeacePro, Amb Abdulrazaq Hamzat, the group said that, AU and ECOWAS's duty is to aid its member state in their independent quest for economic and security stability, while leveraging on their shared objective to advance regional solidarity.

According to Hamzat, AU and ECOWAS cannot standby and watch while Niger Republic goes through the process of negotiating an end to foreign military presence in its country alone and then expect member states to see the regional body as a shield that is worthy of being regarded in charting a future for themselves.

It should be noted that Niger Republic had earlier ejected another western military base (France ) in the country.

Recall that PeacePro in its October 2023 report titled "Africa Peace Insight" called on AU and other regional bodies in the continent to facilitate an end to foreign military presence in Africa within the next 24 months.

PeacePro had stated that, the African continent will experience lasting peace when the African Union and other regional bodies make a firm decision to demilitarise the continent by putting an end to the presence of foreign military bases and state-connected mercenaries on the continent.

As part of the recommendations contained in its maiden edition of the Africa Peace Insight (API) report in Nigeria, the organisation stated that the demilitarisation of the continent would reduce the availability of small arms and light weapons in the hands of non-state actors, thereby giving state forces fewer challenges in dealing with insecurity.

PeacePro maintained that, ECOWAS and AU must be seen leading efforts to demilitarize Africa to gain confidence of the people of the continent.

End

Tochi360:


Shameless tribalist, check the voting pattern since 1999 Igbo doesn't vote nonsense,so is sensible Human beings in other Regions,na rigging this evil APC take dey package, normal, human enter the streets of Nija,Nigerians hustling on the streets agree that Apc is the greatest disaster to befall this Country,this is not a Tribe thing,na only Apc zombie oo zombies disagree with this reality

[size=8pt][/size]

AustineE1:
Igbos this Igbos that....this APC-Tinubu induced tribalising of everything in Nigeria is getting out of hand.

Are you alright?

*Kwara Must Change caution igbo traders about weaponizing ethnicity in business*

_Says group solidarity can't erase individual tax liability_

A leading Pro-Democracy group, Kwara Must Change has cautioned igbo traders in ilorin, against weaponizing ethnicity in their dispute with state authorities over enforcement of tax laws in the state.

The group said that, turning dispute over tax liability into ethnic protest is the height of insensitivity by the igbo traders association and an attempt to blackmail the Kwara State government.

In a statement by the Convener of Kwara Must Change, Abdulrazaq Hamzat, the group said that tax laws in Kwara State are enforced on all businesses in the state, not on the basis of tribe, sex or religion, but on the basis of business and volume of transactions and turning tax related dispute into ethnic protest is the height of insensitivity.

According to Hamzat, businesses making money in the state should pay their fair share of taxes, so that they can hold the government accountable to its responsibilities.

"All businesses in the state are benefiting from infrastructure and enabling environment provided by the state and it is improper to attempt to scandalize the state government through malacious ethnic protest, in an attempt to evade tax or shortchange government".

Hamzat explained that, tax underpayment amounts to shortchanging the government and by extension, the people of Kwara State and this will affect the pace of development in the state.

He admonished the traders to operate within the ambit of the state law to seek redress over any tax related dispute, rather than resort to unnecessary ethnic blackmail, saying group solidarity will not erase individual tax liabilities.

"Traders associations don't owe taxes, neither can they dictate tax liabilities of their members, individual businesses are taxed based on law and if the state authorities says certain businesses are owing taxes, those businesses should engage the authority inline with laid down rules and regulations, not create their own rule and attempt to coerce the authority into succumbing to their dictate through ethnic blackmail". He concluded.

End

IgbosCriminals:
Omo,

Even liquor?

This lady no get joy ooo.

Even Bible no say make we no drink alcohol at all.

Proverbs 23:20-21 (NIV)- Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

You can drink in your house in peace and in bear parlor na.

Showcasing drug abuse on media and in public places is a sure way to lead the Youths to ruin.

Selfish consumption cannot replace reason and responsibility

Paraman:
Dumb proposal. She can ask for the law in Kwara state.

Dumb post

Kwara Female Lawmaker Wants NDLEA Act Amended

A female and youngest member of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Hon Rukayyat Shittu, has urged the National Assembly to amend the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s (NDLEA) Act to include all other drugs and substances including liquor, in addition to tobacco as prohibited.

She also asked NASS to include the news and broadcast media as part of the public places where such illicit drugs and substances are prohibited.

Shittu, who represents Owode/ Onire constituency of Asa local government area is the chairperson, House Committee on Information, Youth, Sports and Tourism.

The lawmaker had sponsored a motion on the urgent need for safety regulations against content-promoting consumption of illicit drugs/substances in social media as well as the broadcast media on the floor of the state House of Assembly.

She noted that the abuse of drugs and other substances and associated crime have driven a considerable rise in the number of youths imprisoned in recent years.

“A report by the United Nations Office on Drug and Crime (UNODC) in Nigeria indicates that 14.4% (14.3 million) of persons aged between 15 and 64years abuse drugs. Drug and substance abuse is prevalent across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones,” she said.

https://leadership.ng/kwara-female-lawmaker-wants-ndlea-act-amended/

No, he's just like you

How

*Former Presidential Candidate, Olawepo Hashim list 10 criminal gangs controlling fx market in Nigeria*

_urges FG to exclude commerical bankers from CBN_

A former presidential candidate, Mr Gbenga Olawepo Hashim has listed 10 criminal forces controlling the foreign exchange market in Nigeria .

The global business man, who is also a veteran civil right activist explained that, until the federal government takes control of the market, the naira will continue its free fall, because Nigeria's foreign exchange market is controlled by criminal gangs, who will continue to take advantage of every genuine policy.

While speaking to selected media men in Abuja over his statement on the continuous devaluation of naira, Mr Hashim, who is an Oil and Gas executive listed 10 criminal gangs controlling the market, while urging federal government to intervene in the situation.

According to him, there are criminal gangs controlling Nigeria's foreign exchange market.

"Those gangs include criminal minded bank executives, money launderers, illegal miners of minerals, those involved in oil bunkering, corrupt politicians with large volumes of questionable funds in their custody, unpatriotic business men, agents of commercial banks at the Central Bank of Nigeria, corrupt public officials, kidnappers and bandits, terrorist organizations " he said.

Mr Hashim also advised federal government to dump the free float of naira in exchange to other currencies.

According to him, it would be delusional to manage Nigeria's exchange regime with expectations that the market will correct itself.

"It is time for real central bankers to assume control of the central bank of Nigeria, rather than commercial bankers and even elements at the fringes of commercial banking who have hijacked the management of our monetary policies in the past 2 decades". He said.

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*Kwara Hotel: From 5-star to 5-star*
By Abdulrazaq Hamzat

In 1975, Lt Col David Bamigboye, the military Governor of Kwara State, established Kwara Hotel to be a 5-star Hotel. He also facilitated the establishment of the University of Ilorin, before the Saraki dynasty happened to Kwara and the culture of draining began.

Just like other establishments of value that went bankrupt under excessive draining of the Saraki dynasty, Kwara Hotel also suffered consistent draining without reinvestment, thereby leading to a collapse of standards and infrastructure.

However, in the year 2002 under the leadership of late Governor Muhammad Alabi Lawal, the Hotel experienced a facelift, when Omoladerin invested about N2 billion to reposition the hotel back to standard.

The N2 billion used to renovate Kwara Hotel about 22 years ago was over $15 million at the time and If we consider the value of $ 15 million today, that's over N20 billion.

This means that, if 2002 is 2024, we can simply say that Governor Alabi Lawal renovated the Kwara Hotel with a current value of over N20 billion, which is more than the N17.8 billion that the state government awarded the contract to upgrade it to 5 star, but we will get into that later.

After the renovation of Kwara Hotel in 2002, Saraki dynasty took over the mantle of leadership again for 16 years, where the culture of draining continued until 2019, when the Otoge political revolution came to the rescue and as of 2019, Kwara Hotel standard has been brought down to zero, with about 20% functionality.

Just like Governor Lawal, who values growth and development, the current government of Mallam Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq has made the commitment to upgrade the historic hotel back to its original 5-star standard, and a huge debate has ensured in the state of harmony over this decision.

While those who disagreed with the decision have a right to disagree, it is important to say that upgrading Kwara Hotel to a 5-star Hotel is not a new achievement, or something extraordinary, it is just returning the hotel to its original standard, a standard that leaders of the state almost 50 years ago achieved without much ado.

To start with, what is the average cost of a 100 rooms and above 5-star Hotel in Africa today?

According to an hospitality website, hotel and discount, a hotel with 115 rooms can cost an average of $22 million in 2020, which is over N30 billion.

According to data in 2021, the average cost of building a room at a 4-star hotel is $318,200, so a 100-room hotel will cost $31.82 million on average, which is over N40billion.

The average cost to construct a 100-room 5-star hotel is $604,200, implying that a five-star hotel costs $60 million (N80billion) to build.

If Kwara is upgrading the Hotel at the rate of N17.8 billion, that's like a price we can never get anywhere in the world, except if the proposal is not for a 5 star Hotel.

Actually, upgrading Kwara Hotel with N17.8 billion would make the hotel one of the cheapest 5-star Hotels in Africa.

To now imagine that we have people in the state, who think that returning to a standard we already attained almost 50 years earlier at a meager cost of N17.8 billion is an unreasonable dream, is to say the least, unfortunate.

Kwara Hotel was established as a 5-star Hotel to provide an enabling environment for trade, tourism, and international businesses.

It has a very large Parking space (you can even feel the warmth just from the parking area).

It is strategically located in the Administrative center of the state. It has good security, and very lovely rooms most of which are quite spacious and not as expensive as they seem.

The staff are very welcoming and courteous, they receive your luggage, wait for you to clear with the very warm receptionists and cashiers, and then carry your luggage and lead you to your well-prepared room.

It has Five (5) standard, very neat floors powered by an elevator and a rooftop that gives you a breathtaking view of the entire city.

The hotel has a fantastic restaurant, a gym, a lawn tennis court, a swimming pool, and other recreational facilities. It also has conference rooms, laundry service, and a lovely bar.

Music is sometimes played at the recreational center but this is just barely heard in the hotel and thus the serenity is maintained.

Kwara Hotel is just 3 km away from the International Airport and a 1-minute drive from Ilorin Golf Club. Its location away from the hustle and bustle of urban cities like Lagos and Abuja makes it a perfect abode for relaxation, retreats, vacations, and much more.

All 172 bedrooms of Kwara Hotels categorized into: Standard Single, Executive, Kwara Club Superior, Kwara Club Executive, Kwara Club Suite, Suite, Triple Suite, and Presidential Suite are fully equipped with satellite television, tea/coffee making facilities, private bathrooms, air conditioning, mini-bar fridges, and digital safes. The rooms are also furnished with soft furnishings, computers with full internet connections, and king-sized beds.

This was the standard of Kwara Hotel 48 years ago, which demonstrated the seriousness of the state as a major destination for business and tourism.

The government of Kwara, which is working towards making the state capital a smart city, with standard business facilities to contain the new status of the city along with several other supporting establishments such as the virtual art center, technology hub, ict center, garment factory, industrial processing zone, etc believes that the standardization of Kwara Hotel to its original form will provide the needed hospitality support needed to accommodate the influx of opportunities that would be attracted to the state and all people of wisdom in the state should support such development.

What we should advocate for, is a system that will sustain the development and not return to the culture of resource draining.

*Abdulrazaq Hamzat is the Convener of Kwara Must Change*