₦airaland Forum

Ndiigbo are not clear yet. The issue is that come 2015 we need to produce the next President of Nigeria and the jinx would have been broken. Nothing more, Nothing less. Alternatively Jonathan does a second term for the south south region he is from.

At Knowall, TOO MUCH GARBAGE, NO RATIONAL. OIL DONE CURSE UNA. STAY IN THE SOUTH SOUTH REGION BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE THOUGH, RIVERS YOUR STATE IS SOUTH SOUTH, 

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

[Emeka Ihedioha] Christian Okeke, in this report, examines what has variously been described as the political fortunes of the South-East in the current dispensation and questions if the zone has really succeeded in breaking the jinx of the age-long marginalisation by successive governments.



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One of the geopoitical zones of the country which could count itself as fortunate in the present political dispensation is, unarguably, the South-East. The fortunes of the zone were magnified by the fact that one of the other zones, the South-West, lost in all the bids to come to the front row in the political equation in the current Republic.

The South-West, in an unexpected political change, lost out in its bid to clinch the seat of the Speaker of House of Representatives and any other topmost positions for that matter. This political misfortune, which is widely acknowledged as, perhaps, the first in recent times when the zone has lost out in the frontline positions, came when Honourable Mulikat Adeola-Akande from Oyo State lost the speakership position to Honourable Aminu Tambuwal, who is from Sokoto State.

In a conspicuous, and what has been variously regarded as prodigal, defiance of the zoning principle of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the House of Representatives members, in an open-secret voting arrangement, jettisoned the candidature of the 'anointed' Adeola and voted for Tambuwal from the North- West zone. That action, notably, dealt a blow to the zoning intrigues of the PDP, as the speakership seat went to the same zone which also produced the Vice-President, Architect Namadi Sambo, the North-West.

In the last National Assembly, the South-West had produced the Speaker of the House in the person of the embattled Dimeji Bankole. Arising from the loss this time, a lot of blame-games has been going on, with many pundits identifying the political elite and other gladiators from the region as being responsible for the woes of the zone through their alleged 'politics of excluded interest'. For now, no palliative has come to the zone.

The North-Central zone, on the other hand, has produced the Senate President, Senator David Mark. The Chief Justice of the Federation, Aloysius Katsina Alu, also comes from the zone, though his emergence, like that of any of his predecessors, were never known to have enjoyed any political consideration.

The South-South zone produced the president, Dr. Gooodluck Jonathan, while the South-East, the overall beneficiary in the present equation, produced the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator Anyim Pius Anyim; the deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremmadu and the deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Emeka Ihedioha.

[Ike Ekweremadu] From all indications, it is clear that the South-East smiled away with the three positions, almost within a twinkle of an eye. Prior to this, a section of the zone had, however, clamoured for either the post of the Senate President or the Speaker of House of Representatives, threatening that nothing short of the positions would be acceptable to it.

In fact, at a point, many Igbo groups alleged that plots were on to scheme the zone out of relevance. Notable among the groups was the South East Revival Group (SERG), led by Chief Willy Ezugwu. At a stage, the group said that it would do everything within its legal limit to defend the relevance of the zone. In separate statements issued by the body, it was clear that the region was very much committed, as never before, to speaking with a unified voice in defence of the common interest of the zone.

Prior to the rising of tempers in the region, apprehension had grown when the governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, disclosed, to the chagrin of the people of the zone that some representatives of the zone who had earlier met with President Goodluck Jonathan to negotiate what would accrue to the zone as a precondition to the South-Easterners voting for him in the last general election, never entered into any agreement with the president regarding securing appointive positions for the zone. He was quoted as saying that the issue did not even come up at all.

According to the governor, the leaders only extracted a commitment from the president to fix the decayed and evidently abandoned infrastructure in the zone. He said it was only such intervention that could benefit the generality of the people of the area, and not securing mere political offices, which he noted would not benefit the people in any way.

That, however, did not go down well with many in the area and, of course, explained why jubilations erupted in many quarters in the zone when the region clinched the three coveted positions.

Despite the huge political gain by the zone this time, many pundits doubt if such has succeeded in breaking the jinx of marginalisation of the zone and if it would douse the tension created over the years by the blip. In fact, it was feared that the gains could trigger off unequivocal rivalry, rather than providing the area with the foundation for its emergence as a new political force. The fear was heightened, last week, as insinuations rose that pressures were already being mounted on Senator Anyim to resign his appointment in order to pave the way for a new SSG from the South-West zone to emerge, as a means of placating the region.

Though the speculations lacked concrete evidence, it is certain that many south-easterners no longer hold faith in the country, as the push for a separate sovereign State of Biafra continues to resonate. The clamour for separation, being championed by the Chief Ralph Uwazurike-led Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), has remained unabated, years after the group emerged.

[Anyim Pius Anyim] The hard stance of the members who were literally ready to lay down their lives in the face of the obviously clamp down by security forces, despite their maintaining a non-violent option, never waned.

Interestingly, the fearless Uwazurike did not give in to the countless threats, harassment and incarceration by the security agencies. Only last week, the MASSOB agitation took the centre stage once again when its leader, Uwazurike, was quoted as having alleged that the non-violent posture of his group, which was quite unlike that of the Boko Haram sect in the North, explained the constant mayhem unleashed on the loyalists of the group. From the outburst, it was obvious that the clamour for a sovereign State of Biafra was still rife and, by implication, it reinforced the belief that the zone was yet to be placated.

To many pundits, what will, in actual sense, give the people of the South-East a sense of belonging is not embedded in the array of political offices held by Igbo men, but rather how far the various levels of government in the country are ready to address the age-long dearth of infrastructure in the area.

It is argued that the region is yet to benefit from the previous high offices held by people from the region. Those who belonged to this school of thought, it was gathered, are yet to forget that not less than four Igbo men emerged Senate Presidents between 1999 and 2003, yet the fortunes of the zone did not change significantly. Many of those who spoke with the Nigerian Tribune expressed fears that the 'good luck' of the Igbos in this dispensation could expose them to increased animosity. To them, this could happen in spite the fact that the region had suffered relegation a number of times.

On the other hand, another school of thought believe that justice cannot be said to have been done to the quest for equity by the people of the South-East until an opportunity is created for an Igbo man to emerge president of the country.

In fact, pundits who belong to this school told the Nigerian Tribune that except the aspiration to be elected the nation's president in the nearest future, particularly in 2015, is actualized, all claims of justice to the South-East would amount to lip service and mere hypocrisy. According to them, it is atrocious that the South-East has never been given the opportunity to democratically rule the country since the days of the nationalist, Nnamdi Azikiwe.

Be that as it may, the question which has continued to linger is whether the push by the South- East for greater recognition in the nation's political landscape would attract support some day and be actualized.

Truly amazing. I hail ooooooooo!

^^^shaaaaaaaaraaaaaaap! Thief, without Igboland were will u be today.? Suicider)

We have already given the Ijaws their own state and some how Igboid still comes into it. I guess the Ijaws are not as much as they would have us believe. All those water front dwellers are just deceiving themselves to the territory they claim.

Look at Lagos beach how illegal settlement and villages were set up so quick, does that mean the land now belong to the squatters. They know were the Ijaw state is and should go their and leave our coastal front.

petaling:
SE stop all these Rivers this Rivers that! Be on your own, you have everything you need. You have oil in ABIA and Imo. You have large Gas reserve in Anambra and Enugu. You have large coal reserve in Enugu and part of Abia. You have PRODA in Enugu, the reserch institute that manufactured arms and ammunition and rocket during biafran war. Why cant you re-enact the technological feat attained in the 60"s. You have intellectual capacity, Your own daughter is MD world Bank, VP world bank. You have up 3000 medical doctors in Atlanta alone, busy now i will come back

Rivers is Igbo so talk wat u know and leave us to talk wat we know.

kalokalo:
Is Obasanjo Farms owned / run by the Federal Government? And what do you mean by the FG "investing" in agriculture? Is it to set up national farms? Trust me, it will fail like every other agricultural initiatives tried by federal and state governments!

Farming is a business that should only be ventured into by private companies.  Nothing stops you, Ezeuche or me from setting up farming ventures! The crude oil that we are all talking about, is it not the multinational companies that really produce the oil with the Fg being a lazy rent seeker / royalty collector. Withdraw the IOCs and our oil industry will collapse! How many barrels of oil is being produced by the NPDC?

The issue is that most Nigerians are really not interested in farming!

I don't want to hear anybody use the term Private to refer to the likes of OBJ, IBB, Atiku or Buhari. ever. This gives the impression dat u don't know wat u talk about. These are individual dat have made once State owned enterprise to their family business via gaining political office.

When we talk private, the names that comes to mind are Bill Gates, Richard Bronson, Rupert Mordor, Sir Allen Sugar.
etc These are self made Billionaires that had a modest beginning and their investment and trade could be traced to the level it is today.

Not national treasury looters and national resources oligarchy. I take God beg una oooooooooo!

It is not too late for us to start to get it right. I tell u dat crude oil will soon be useless to the world mark my words. Renweable source of energy i.e bio fuel and the others will substitute crude oil. All this economy that are heavily reliant on crude oil will weep. All the communities like the Ijaws will begs us for employment and food.

Just look wat the hausas have done to their land and rivers, no good fish, drinking water and fertility of soil reduced. They will regret not fighting wen they had a better chance and died dan to start taking Igbo people property dat people built with their sweat. Ain't does properties old now and can they build new ones with their own sweat or they wait for the property to fall on their heads.

BAD IS BAD, which ever way u look at it.

We Igbo's have an eye for international business. EzeUche, we keep on talking about this all the time.(Friends) We even mention Kenya and how much revenue dey make from preserving their natural environment via tourism. Yes the original seed used in indonesia to start this industry was from Nigeria but look wat a billion dollar industry it has become and a major source of revenue adding to the GDP of that country.

Nigeria is run by a bunch of idiots.

[quote author=EzeUche! link=topic=700671.msg8610919#msg8610919 date=1309295092]I hate how the little subgroups like to claim they are a separate tribes.

I have never believe that there are 250 ethnic groups.

There are probably only 50 or less.[/quote]All the crap about little sub groups claiming dat they are a different tribe is not fooling anybody anymore, unless u want to be fooled. It is like people speaking pegin English and claiming uniqueness, wat is unique about not being able to speak original English.

No, Nigeria should wake up and rain in all this small mix up confused group to their mother tongue and move on.

Look south east state creation has gone beyond ethnicity, and should be about ancestry. If people are descended from the igbos and their present location is in the south east den dey should be amalgamated into the south east region.

Not all of Benue speak fluent Igbo but certain tribe have Igbo ancestry and language and culture hails from the south east, such people should be given a state along with the igbo parts and zoned to the south east region.

Don't mind the hypocrites. They always like to involve Nigeria in all manner of negativity. nonsense.

^^ and u are their chairman for joblessness.

[quote author=Musiwa,. link=topic=700671.msg8605019#msg8605019 date=1309242343]but they are igbo people. so to be fair to other nigerian, they should be in the south east.[/quote]Musiwa, so now dey are Igbo! I dey laugh ooooooooo! No they are not and will remain in the south south.

[quote author=Chyz. link=topic=700671.msg8604842#msg8604842 date=1309238671]North Central?? wtf![/quote]There are other interest we have to consider for the moment (short run). In the long run naturally States like Rivers and Delta will be brought into the fold but for now lets go after other interest in the North central. i.e Benue.  There are Igbo speaking parts that need to be brought into the fold urgently. Cross Rivers also have Igbo speaking parts and am sure the Efik could do with an additional state.

Army takes over security of Abuja , As COAS conference opens today
From MOLLY KILETE. Abuja

Monday, June 27, 2011

Soldiers from the Army Headquarters Garrison (AHQG), have been drafted to all the entry points into the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to curtail Boko Haram members, who have threatened to unleash terror on the nation’s capital.



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This is coming even as top echelons of the Nigerian Army are meeting today in Abuja under the auspices of the second quarterly Chief of Army Staff Conference (COAS) to discuss ways of curbing the menace of the religious group and the current security situation in the country.

Following intelligence report that members of the sect were planning to attack the FCT, the Presidency was said to have directed the Army Headquarters in Abuja to take charge of securityTo this end, soldiers were deployed last Saturday in all the entry points into the FCT namely, Abaji/Lokoja, Suleja/Kaduna and the Abuja/Keffii roads to mount checkpoints.

Similarly, stiffer security measures are in place in all Army, Navy and Air Force barracks across the country as well as the Defence and Services Headquarters in Abuja, to forestall a recurrence of the bomb blast that took place at Mogadishu and Shadawaka mammy markets by the Boko Haram. The COAS conference, which would take place at the Command Officer’s Mess, Asokoro, was expected to be attended by Principal Staff Officers (PSOs), General Officers Commanding (GOCs), Corps Commanders, among others.

The two-day conference would review the post-elections violence and the role of soldiers. It would also review the activities of the Army in the last six months and brainstorm on the current security situation in the country with the aim of finding lasting solution. Meanwhile, as part of the security measures to keep Abuja free and safe, authorities of the Ministry of the FCT over the weekend, demolished all illegal shanties at strategic centres in Abuja, perceived to be homes of hoodlums.

The joint task force made up of members of the various security services and the military as well as some parastals under the MFCT, successfully demolished the hideouts of criminals at Bakassi, near the old abbatoir in Abuja, Area one village and a similar village around the Apo roundabout.

No River State should remain in the south south region. There are other opportunity to create an additional state in the south east region with out river state. Definantely, we need at least two more south east states cut out from the North Central. Delta and Rivers should be left for now.

ROFLMAO

They are doing a good job but they need to take out all infrastructure in Kaduna and all the main Northern cities dat dey use our oil money to build. 

Why should we have a rail? Have we finished killing of the rest of our brother's and sisters that were not captive of the slave trade or was Africa the only continent visited by European and Arabs. Please as OP says Nigeria and Africa is really Sick.

This is a very wise move, just wish such decision had been taken to halt the suicide bomber. Oh well tank God not a lot of people died and security measures are at worst, better late than never. These cannibals are determined to drink blood and eat human flesh.

No Gov should negotiate with murderers that kill innocent civilians and cause the state damage. 

ZnO:
Neither should you be, for other minorities in the East, most of whom worked against you in the time of need

lollz! U still don't understand even in the 21st Century my brother and  honestly I don't think u will ever understand. The Biafra War was not a Igbo in need War, but a war we fought for Progress, Self Determination and Success of ourselves and future generations yet unborn (posterity)

U did not work against the Igbos but u foolishly worked against yourself and today many of your youths, women and elders wallow away in abject poverty without hope and die.

When your sons that sold their birth right for a piece of meal complain about not benefiting from the oil in their land, dey are hanged like chicken,(i.e Ken Saro Wiwa) your children and youth shot by the Nigerian army like criminals.  Oil executives both foreign and national Robb your young women and girls of their virtue.

No, u did not let us down in our time of need but u let urself down in your time of need.  lmao

bk. babe97y

Wat has the drug trade got to do with linguistics and dialect? Dis ur Ibo man issues ehn!!

News    Sunday, June 26, 2011

By KINGSLEY OMONOBI, Abuja -

Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Onyeabor Ihejirika disclosed yesterday that the huge number of the deployment of heavily armed troops in and around Abuja was not occasioned by fears of another bomb attack akin to the one witnessed at the Police Force headquarters, but a necessary security measure aimed at protecting lives and property.


More Military Presence In Fct – Ihejirika
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Speaking during the Pulling Out Parade in honour of the first 3-star General of Igbo extraction from the Nigeria Army, Lt. General Isaac Chikadibia Obiakor, the immediate past Military Adviser/Assistant Secretary General to the United Nations, Gen. Ihejirika said; "henceforth, their would be increased military presence in the FCT particularly as it concerned protection of federal government assets, national institutions and the citizenry. The army have to ensure the protection of lives and property and this will be seen from time to time".

Saturday Vanguard observed the presence of heavy troops in places like NNPC headquarters, the Central Bank head-quarters', ministries, Eagle Square , the 3 -Arms zone, including the office of the Secretary to the Federation, National Assembly, the Millennium Park , big hotels, major road junctions and other important monuments.

Explaining the pulling out parade for Obiakor, the COAS said, "Pulling out of this nature is a kind of send off to mark the exit of a general in the armed forces and this particular parade is a significant one because it is that of an officer who attained the rank of a Lt. General and who has been an ambassador not only to the Nigerian army but to the nation at large, having risen to the post of the highest decision making body as far as peace support operations are concerned.

"Aside that, General Obiakor as described by many, is a very calm, intelligent and an astute trainer and a commander of men. At GOC 2 Division, I had opportunity to work under him in several committees and his leadership qualities were quite exemplary. So his sojourn in the army is worthy of emulation. For the young officers, they should just keep working hard. They do not need to lobby, let your job speak for you".

Asked if UN has come up with new rules of engagement to prevent Nigerian soldiers deployed for peacekeeping suffering attacks from rebels, the COAS said, "The rules of engagement in any peace support operation is determined by the security council.

''It is not for individual countries to decide but what happens is that in every operation, we have to take part and obtain the rules of engagement. If it is different from what exists, we train our men to ensure compliance with it and Nigeria has always done that".

In his address, Lt. General Obiakor said, "It is a thing of pride for the opportunity to serve meritoriously in one of the most organized armies in the world, the Nigerian Army. I am happy and nostalgic to state that this journey of 40 years as an officer and indeed 48 years since my first attestation to serve our country has been very eventful".

"When I joined the Nigerian Army, as a young officer in the early 1970s, I had no inkling of what destiny had for me as I rose through the ranks and appointments to reach the pinnacle of my chosen career as a Lt. General and my last appointment as Military adviser/Assistant Secretary General, United nations. I thank the almighty God for seeing me through all these challenging times".

Regarding Nigeria Army's participation in world peacekeeping operations, Obiakor said, "It is a clear attestation of our collective contributions to mankind. This chosen course by Nigeria is not only humane but divine. It is my wish and prayer that God continues to bestow on our leaders the political will to stay the course. I know that I am leaving a Nigeria Army that is committed to its constitutional responsibilities and will continue to contribute meaningfully to the entrenchment of our nascent democracy".

Present at the parade were Senator Ben Obi, General Martin Luther Agwai, General Andrew Azazi, former IGP, Ogbona Onovo, Major General Abdurahman, Chief of Staff , Liberia Armed forces, Engr. Emeka Eze, DG, Bureau of Public Procurement, Prince Arthur Eze, Prof. ABC Nwosu, Major General Anwali Kazir (rtd), AVM Chris Marizu (rtd) among others.

The Punch

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Nigerians control $3.2bn drug market in Africa - UN report

Agency Reporter

The United Nations has accused Nigerians of largely being behind drug trafficking business in Africa.



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In its 2009 report released on Friday in New York, Empowered Newswire quoted the world body as saying that Nigerians controlled the hub of the over $3.2bn illicit business on the continent.

"In 2009, Africa's drug trafficking market was worth an estimated US$3.2 billion - most of which went to Nigerian organised crime groups," the report added.

In a report compiled by the UN Office of Drugs and Crime, UNODC, it said, "Nigerian groups dominate the African drug trade and are active in many countries around the world, including destination countries in Europe."

However, the report, which formed the basis of a UN Security Council briefing on Friday, also noted that, "drug trafficking in Africa involves both African networks, including Nigerians and Tanzanians, as well as foreign networks, including Chinese and Pakistanis."

Besides, it revealed that, "The heroin trade in Indonesia is predominantly controlled and directed by West Africans, particularly Nigerians."

The report added that in 2009, Oceania's heroin market was worth US$3.5bn with Australia and New Zealand having the highest heroin prices in the world, even as "both South-East Asian and African, mainly Nigerians, were involved in shipping heroin to Australia."

Another highlight of the report was that The United States cocaine market witnessed a decline in recent years, though it remained the world's largest cocaine market.

On China, the report noted its 2.3 million opiate users consumed US$7.3 billion worth of drug, while other South-East Asian countries, the total heroin market was worth US$2.4 billion.

Chinese and other local organised crime groups control the South-East Asian heroin market at both retail and wholesale levels.

As for the seizures of cannabis herb in Africa, the UN said such seizures had fluctuated considerably in recent years, but noted that this had followed a generally decreasing trend since 2004.

Speaking at the launch of the report, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon noted that the account painted a sobering picture of the threat posed by illegal drugs.

He said, "Traffickers break more than the law. They break the human spirit. They fuel terrorism and insurgency.They rob societies of peace."