₦airaland Forum

Ijoh:
Wike will hear it in the hand of Ijaw.

Be specific Ijaw militants. That's who is concerned here. Outlaws and their sympathizers who have had a long holiday threatening the structures of the Nigerian state. Nothing will happen. The other militant Lords are with Wike.

When a SS person who knows the dynamics of everything handles u guys, it is easier. Not when it is a foreigner u would all start making noise as if u can burn Nigeria down.

Xerxes2088:
Like i said in my previous response, when boko haram started we all thought it was child's play and would eventually fade out because terrorism was alien to us then but how wrong were we all, now the very same scenario is playing out with the IPOB and you'll rather i keep quiet because i didn't talk for boko haram?
you might see my scolding if the Igbos as vain but i speak from a place of hurt and sincere love for the Igbos, I've done business towards the east all my life and have 70% of my friends being Igbos and i speak out just as if i was igbos myself.
Your statement is akin to saying i shouldn't talk when Igbos are killed because i didn't when the kanuris where killed, does that seem right to you?

First of all, you intended audience cannot possibly take you seriously. Who are you to scold anybody? Especially a group most used as the boogeyman/target for self righteous sermons.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/headlines/523567-insecurity-2968-killed-1484-abducted-in-three-months-niger-zamfara-kaduna-most-violent-states.html

SS saw 85 deaths from insecurity; SW 127 and the SE 185. The North took the bulk of the killings (2,575; 87%). So your melodrama should be directed at any region but the SS. And ofc this figure captures the violence by major non-state actors, so it leaves out criminal violence by cultists/gangs... Hence, the SS is not entirely as rosy.

If you really were concerned about anybody u would be directing ur rage, fury and disappointment at the real issue. Rapid loss of sovereignty in the NW and NE. Now ofc u will not do that. You love the Igbos so much that you castigate them from a good place. A caring man you are.

Definitely not patronizing in your tone. And you are of course not playing into the trope of the politically bumbling Igbo who need to be right ! They are going astray...

If you cant see the hypocrisy in your action, then no p. Enjoy your crusade.

Xerxes2088:
i understand the boko haram issue is much severe than this IPOB issue no doubt but do we fold our hands until the IPOB issue gets as much as the boko haram menace? i remember when i was serving for NYSC in borno state 2010/2011, it all started as a child's play with the occasional bombs here and there but look where they're at today, my plea was for the Igbos to come together to put a stop to terrorism before it totally consumes the region more than it has already done, not say afterall ours isn't as bad as the northerners'....why even give it any chance to become that monster?

Firstly, we aren't having a conversation about the dynamics of the issue. This trend can very well turn out to be the worst thing to befall the East after the Biafran war.

However, you came up with this thread to vainly scold Igbos. Your concern isn't that real. It's tied to a desire to freely castigate them. How many ppl scold Kanuris and others for worse events that HAVE ALREADY happened. Being that u served in Borno, u clearly know the severity of the issue , there, better than I do. So I will be waiting for a similar piece on them.

The ESN issue is clearly one of criminality. IPOB has given a window to unsavory elements to thrive. Now it is the fault of the brash rhetoric Kanu has been spewing (without tact). But what does it have to do with Igbo ppl ? The thing is now a political issue. And their elites are playing it up. Let us see how that plays out....

But we know very well that you aren't concerned. You were being melodramatic. Like I said, if you are really concerned or disappointed or saddened by this issue, then the herdsmen onslaught on innocent NC NW and SW communities, which trumps this issue in all dimensions, should have you on the verge of suicide.

BH, on the other hand, should have made you do yourself in or mounted a fence around Northern Borno. Alas.. this is not the case.

Igbos are perhaps not doing well politically due to bad decisions,but u gotta cut this act.

C'mon man. We can't just come out sermonizing when it suits a certain narrative. ESN is a potentially massive issue. But nowhere near the Fulani herdsmen menace and banditry issue that has claimed lives in more than five figures (10k plus). BH is possibly the greatest targeted killing debacle in the history of modern terror...

Nigeria has major conflagration spots of international notoriety/repute. So if you don't wake up criticizing the larger violent outbursts with such a melodramatic tone. Then u shouldn't be talking about this. The East is hotter than usual but nowhere near certain actors that are ravaging the NW NE NC and parts of Oyo.

To be taken serious, u have to keep the same energy. Esp for graver situations.

Kokaine:
No Arab is better than a non Arab, neither is a white better than a black, nor a free born better than a slave except in regards of his faith. Eeman is the defining feature of superiority in Islam. Whoever believes in Allah and the prophets, and the books, and the last day, and obeys him, enjoining good and preventing evil, is the better person irrespective of his descent, color, race, affluence, or strength

I don't think he is referring to the theological aspect of it. God's law is ultimately interpreted and administered by humans. So biases show.

Within the sociopolitical sphere of Islamic civilization, Arab-ness has always held a pride of place. Technically they aren't better than any other believer. But in reality features of that culture are regarded as proto Islamic and more favorable to copy or adopt. this is ofc tied to the language being the language of the Holy book. But it's been fetishized beyond faith.

For e.g. looking through history we see that in something like the hiring of qadis (judges), a super important function in most Islamicate societies, Arab-ness was considered perhaps unevenly against actual qualifications. And where they aren't Arab per se, they have been thoroughly Arabized (esp for North Africans, and Levantines).

Being "Arab" has been held as a badge of pride. You can read celebrated poetry from the likes of Al Mutannabi and see this same ethic.

A telling one is where Al Mutannabi berates Kafur Al Misk, the Nubian eunuch who ruled on behalf of the Ikhshidid sultans, for being a black gay in contrast with his supreme Arab-ness. Even though Kafur ruled Egypt and effectively fired him from his job. Kafur was his superior, but that didn't count to most of his celebrators.

During the Zanj revolt, the message thru out was rising against Arab oppression. Or even the same thing in the Zanzibar revolt of 64.

The issue is more to do with Islamicate societal structures. Not necessarily Islam itself I guess.

Sheyimann:
In the muslim hierarchy , arabs come first, every other person is a second class citizen in
that religion, but our black brothers will never learn.

For those that allow it. Remember that Arabs dominated only the first 3 centuries of islamic power. The Persians supplanted them in administration and arts. Most of Islamic academic and cultural achievement is actually Perso-Islamic

The Turks took over military affairs. So that all the important mamluks and sultans from India to Egypt in the 2nd millennium were Turkic or Turkish.

In either of these countries today their culture dominates over Arabic and their most recent contact with Arabs is one of their own domination.

In black Africa it's different. But Senegal is bold. They head their own tariqas there. Literally with direct chain to the Prophet. Even distort many tenets for their own version . Like Muridiyas who perform pilgrimage to Touba and pray towards Gabon where their saint Murid was held by the French.

I'd say u consider that widespread Islam in Naija is new (outside of Kanem Bornu) so expect all these sorta things to prevail.

Murphyenemuwe:
One of the agreement they made with Fans is that they won't join or push for super league. I'm scared but all my agitations were put to rest when the bidders agreed they'd retain and maintain Chelsea's present board. Can't afford to loose maria

Then even better. Chelsea can gain from that American eye for commercialization. Not the biggest soccer fan, but can't wait for the post 2026 explosion. Always admired Chelsea. Tbh This Abramovich saga is rather unfortunate.

Chelsea FC will be okay. Good buyer. LA Dodgers maintains a very high payroll and has seen significant revenue growth since the start of the 2010s. We can see the impact in their performances of late (3 WS appearances in 4 years) Most of these new buyers (esp US ones) understand what it means to invest in a club.

This is not taking anything away from the beloved Abramovich. Sucks that he fell on the wrong side of the game. But when you look at what they've done with the Dodgers and what ppl like Liberty Media have done with F1 u can see how Chelsea might benefit from this.

Expect them to buy more star players for the media angle. Explore new marketing opportunities and positioning for broadcast media. everything sellable will be commoditized. The MLB makes more money than the EPL as it is. And u should see what big market teams like NYY and LAD are doing to increase revenue. F1 is another example. The EPL has a case for serious growth as a league and for its major club franchises.

Going towards FIFA WC 2026, after which football will inevitably draw the big money from US viewers (given current trends), such owners might not be bad for Chelsea. Not at all.
Might end up creating brand equity that would yield more billions from an even wider market.

Only downside is that these are the types to push for a Super League. Because for them, nothing is sacred. It's about money money and growth. Then again, not qualitatively negative.

Chelsea is already doing good. Adding these ppl to the mix might even result in improvement. But let's see.

helinues:
Sorry to generalise about them but their confusion is just like mount everest. The highest position they have ever been in Ogun government is Deputy Governor. When it comes to governorship selection, they are just not united.

Funnily instead of them to lobby their candidates to at least get the ticket of one of the major political party, na them go still play the saboteur role when it comes to primary selection

Ok fair enough. I understand what you mean. And tbh all this political talk is really about the political elites, less so about the everyday man. I understand you perfectly.

helinues:
Interesting. You just described the Yewa people in Ogun state. There Politics seems to be same

Ah as the dominant group or are they fighting for their turn the wrong way ?

Wike them understand this. That's why he's not scared. And even Abuja hasn't cared so much about Amaechi losing Rivers.

Comically, Wike harvested only half of rivers potential for Atiku in 2019. Only to almost double it for his own results a few weeks after. Lol. Something I think Abuja ppl were well pleased at.

It's these small details that make ppl like Wike seem Too much etc. This is what the hype is based on.

garfield1:
If the riverine combine with ogoni,they will seize power

It remains to be seen. "If" such an alliance is workable is the first question. Especially among two presently opposing groups. Ogoni interest is not Riverine interest.

And let's assume that both groups combine. All of those votes, which will be mainly Ogoni and Andoni will not cross 350,000(at premium rigging). You're fully aware of what is possible from different PHALGA alone without Obalga. Combined they can more than double those figures by evening. Closer to between 2.5* and 3*

The issue with these hopes is the emotional and antagonistic posture. Your job in politics is to sell yourself. Not dig a trench and set up a barrier. You can do this when you are a majority in need of just "spread." But when you need actual votes to win. Not possible if you go that way.

helinues:
But the question is can Wike's preferred candidate win the Rivers state governorship election?

Problem with rivers politics is literally the lack of strategy from the riverine parts. They should have been governor since 2007, but because of an obstinate attitude towards the new balance of power in the state, their guber hopes have remained just that, hopeful.

When Bayelsa was part of the state, southern Ijaw used to produce the mammoth votes at elections. That's what put Okilo there and Ada George. You could easily manufacture 400k votes and report after the other areas have been announced. Gbam you have the election.

However, in the state creation race of then, they miscalculated the effect of Bayelsa on their intra state stature. Robbing them of a vote bank that was clearly contrived (southern Ijaw doesn't put up such numbers in the present day). Another thing their elites kicked against was the separation on obio and akpor which was interpreted as giving ikwerre an extra local govt. You have to remember they enjoyed close relations with the military FGs more than anyone in the area and had more men of stature then.

Fast forward to today. Election day starts and u have the various LGs submitting results. Total votes from any riverine area except andoni is always below 50,000 and in fact more so around 10 to 15 000 at max. Andoni can do 100,000 plus so that's fair. But when u look at all the LGs of the boisterous politicians from Opobo OguBolo etc. It is sometimes less than 10k.

But at the same time,Obio /Akpor (now with a singular consolidated identity) and Port Harcourt as the main urban centers do more than a million. Now this is where ppl get it confused. "but PH is a multicultural center. Everyone lives there ." There is the impression that urban centers like PH and Lagos are not owned by anybody. Confusing economic reality for political reality. Even when Lagos reaches 30 million ppl it's local politicians will always battle at the booths and win. Same for PH, Ikwerre dwellers native to the urban center have seized control of their political structures for themselves.

This is something that hasn't been properly studied. The community, the local people might not be the richest but the one thing they have is their polling booth and that they keep. They're pretty much appropriating the register for their area like it is done anywhere else in Naija. So Ikwerre elites control far more votes than they really have.

So how do you become Governor ? Shouting that it's your turn ? When mathematically you cannot do anything ? To highlight the issue; the Jonathans in their fight against Amaechi literally went with another Ikwerre man to counter him. To them, that their fellow Ijaws would be cut out wasn't an issue. Showing you the pragmatism at play.

Rivers governor can be anybody. But someone who can convince the voter heavy areas in the upland (esp Ikwerre areas) of their candidature. At this stage even the pipeline bombers have been converted by Nyesom. Theyre all in political office, holding traditional stools or literally making mega bucks in legal and illegal oil related ventures. As partners of the prevailing order. The intelligentsia of the riverine have lost their muscle so to speak.

Amaechi who could've helped fix things from the APC end had isolated himself from the major voting banks with his lousy mouth. He seems genuine about letting a riverine take his party ticket. Like he did with Tonye Cole and co. But he forgets something. He was a product of the same upland-focused structure inaugurated by Odili. Not the structure himself.

It's all about playing politics. Doing it well without too much emotion.

Btw Nyesom can easily give a riverine candidate. But there will be an upland (Ikwerre heavy) Mafia behind the scenes.

Hope this helped.