And I'm in the same country with someone who reasons like this?
There is no compulsion to comment on every issue. Sometimes it's better to read and pass.
How do you reason? What's your thought process like? What forms the core of your mental decision process and what's your general world view like?
Can you read what you've written, this time slowly and with intent? Do you notice any anomalies?
I've saved this for posterity and will revisit in one of my future rantings.
To be a Nigerian is a JOB!

Ngasky:
Who is responsible for printing money?
Secondly, did they share the printed cash at the federal executive meeting where all the governors and ministers are present?
No single camera pic of the governors carrying sacks of printed money away from Aso rock venue?
I wish we have educated literates but unfortunately what we are having are educated illiterates roaming the streets with degree paper.
Printing money is always on regular basis to replace the mutilated ones, and nowadays more transactions were electronically based not cash based. So the issue of printing for sharing does not arise. Or can someone tell me a single state in Nigeria that is paying salary or state contractors with physical cash?
Sharing money from reserves is a normal tradition. In fact that is the main reason for creating those special accounts. To save for rainy days. Of what essence is the account if not to share when the state revenues goes down?
All the big taxes from companies are paid once in a year. As such that particular month the company paid. And will not pay again till next year. As such the government has to save the excess amount pending the months with lower revenue. So what is the deal here?

Sometime last year, my wife and I went shopping at Sainsbury’s and we passed a couple of homeless beggars looking for “a pound please”. I looked to my wife and told her pointedly – these guys all have British passports (or can have one in weeks) but yet are homeless and beggars. Citizenship has never conferred on anyone wealth or prosperity.”

I agree that Nigeria as a country can be tough, but so is everywhere. You have to be strategic about life otherwise you will end up with a lot of regrets – despite possessing multiple citizenships.

What have you been able to achieve in Nigeria all the time you have been here? What things have you wished having access to finance would have pushed you further along or given you a breakthrough? What businesses have you tried and failed in and what lessons have been learnt? What is your life goal – survival or impact?

It is painful to see Nigerians with potentials living abroad thinking that having access to internet, stable electricity, portable water, good roads and other services is just enough for them. What is worse is that these Nigerians haven’t even been able to turn these “so called” opportunities into any significant value – they still live averagely or below averagely. Don’t be deceived with the occasional dose of great Nigerians making great strides abroad, just a few Nigerians (I mean very few) can actually boast of living comfortable in “the abroad”, MOST are just managing (but shame no go fit allow us talk true or acknowledge).

I have a lot of reservations about Nigeria but that doesn’t detract from the fact that the country offers the best opportunities for growth and wealth generation. I can bicker over forex movement and liquidity issues simply because I’m over leveraged in forex and any significant devaluation in Naira will affect my position, but that’s me and my issues. Yes, I even recently suggested liquidation of assets if things get worse, but things are looking very promising for the country based on my recent observations and the multitude of problems the country has. In fact, my positions are looking very promising with opportunities presenting themselves without much thinking – there are PROBLEMS in Nigeria and that’s your cue for opportunities.

What plans do you have for staying in the UK? Can you sort out your accommodation, feeding, transportation, effects (internet, phone and Netflix/Prime subscriptions) by yourself? Do you have significant savings to burn through for 6 months before you can stabilise? Are you ready to work in Amazon (as a warehouse operative) or as a care worker or as a salesperson for some of the large marts? How long do you intend to do this?

You have a unique advantage. Your other citizenship offers you access to cheap finance which if carefully ploughed into Nigeria can offer you significant returns – hence my asking what lessons have you learned and what experiences have you gained.

Perhaps you may want to take a break and just visit the UK for a short time (the irony considering its usually the other way around). See and observe how people live their lives on a daily basis and question yourself deeply if that’s what you want. Look around and ask lots of questions. Try and situate yourself around people working professional jobs (even if they are not in London, it’s similar experiences) and be quite frank with them. Look at their living conditions, ask questions about their expenses and their growth plans. Inquire about their regrets (if any) and above all inquire about what makes them settle for the UK as against Nigeria. I don’t want to pre-empt your conclusions, but you will be shocked by what you discover. Above all, make sure you have money to spend on dinners and lunches during those interviews. This is a fact-finding mission for you, and it will open your eyes to a lot if you have an open mind.

Lastly, try keeping your return ticket to a max of 3 weeks and don’t resign from your job (if any) in Nigeria. Take the period as an unpaid leave if paid isn’t allowed. I wish you well on your next journey in life and may the good Lord guide you.

I’m reading comments here and just SMH.

Meghan was on TV and complained bitterly about facing racism from the royal family. We read (speculations) on how the UK through its spy agency may have “murdered” Diana because she was rumoured to be pregnant with child for Dodi. We are here in the UK – the world’s capital for “institutionalised racism” but guess what – it’s their damn country. They make the rules, and we have to follow. If we can’t, exits are on every floor.

You are shouting about rights in the UK – the owners of common law? You are kidding. The law is what they say is the law. Matter of fact she has no written constitution and that gives them leeway in bending justice. These guys are masters at being cunning and shifting the goalpost to suit their needs. These are the clowns justifying why they would still continue trading with China and Saudi Arabia despite acknowledging abundance of abuse and human rights violations in these places. These guys would practically kiss your ass if money would drop. They will sell their mothers in a heartbeat for $$$£££.

Irrespective of how you feel about the Begum case, she has no further recourse in law as every litigation must at some point terminate. Except the supreme court decides to overrule itself (don’t see the chance), Begum has to look for citizenship elsewhere. They played their cards very well and used the judiciary to create a precedence. Don’t forget that this Tory government has been very anti-judiciary especially since the courts overruled BoJo when he prorogued parliament.

RESPONSIBILITY – that’s one big lesson the abroad teaches us, how to take responsibility for our decisions. She took an action and has learnt the hard way that you can’t eat your cake and have it. You can’t justify her actions with age. She joined terrorists and became a terrorist. There is no easier way to look at it than that. She became the worst nightmare of a typical Brit.

As immigrants we should bother ourselves with what puts food on our table and also how to create opportunities that will enable us thrive outside of the system. This could be you or I tomorrow, what preparations are we making to be able to still live life to the fullest without access to the UK? If Begum had assets here in the UK, she could lose them.

If we didn’t learn anything, we have learnt one hard truth – if you are not an original British person, you can have your citizenship stripped away from you. There is now a precedent! If the SoS defines you as a threat to the country, you could be looking at the next flight to MMIA T1, Lagos, Nigeria. Preparing for this possibility eliminates shock when and if it should remotely occur.

Let’s leave the arguments about Begum and talk more about making money. Begum will be fine.

Hides my face

Yeah, you all said so. I had and still have some hope but now its glaring that some things have to give. I quite appreciate that I wasn’t “finished” here on Nairaland, but it’s obvious that Nigeria as it is cannot work. I can now resonate with the question – “to what end is RoI when you can’t spend it in peace?”

Nigeria as a country is untenable and unsustainable. It isn’t even a matter of restructuring – whatever that means, the system is BROKEN. All attempts aren’t at getting to the root of the problem, it’s all patch work and the decay continues to fester.

And yes, yesterday I started liquidating my position in the country. Had a long chat with my primary co-investor and expressed my fears. Told him my major worry was trying to catch the cliff (the turning point of no return). It is better to be out now than be unable to exit when the Naira enters free fall. I’m indeed grateful to have another conducive space to thrive – I shall henceforth not take it for granted.

@ Wallg123, our brother lost the fight.

@ Wonlasewonimi, I still remain optimistic but that’s after the crash. If Nigeria doesn’t crash, she can never go forward. The system as it is now has to collapse, government has to fail and people have to grapple with what it means to be in a failed country. If we don’t have the China experience (The Great Chinese Farming) of 1959-1961 – a benchmark or painful experience that scares the shi*t out of us, there can never be sustained growth.

@Lexusgs430, yeah, you told me so. At the end of the day, even (blind) optimism has its limits. We must never lose hope but yeah, I will never give my life for Nigeria – I believe our founding fathers have done that. While I did have my planning at 1000 Naira/£1, unfortunately 1000 Naira/£1 is now within reach far far earlier than I expected.

@Justwise, it isn’t too much reading, I sincerely believed that Nigeria’s problem was superficial. Now I know that it is systemic. The cancer has spread across all organs that chemo isn’t an option anymore. I still sleep with pains because it is the ordinary people’s lives and destinies that continue to get ruined.

@TheGuyFromHR, I had to bite the humble pie and make a quick U-turn. There was just no reprieve in sight. If tomorrow I lose my investments and go bankrupt, it won’t be a wise argument to say I had a dream or vision or was fully convinced – my bills will continue to pile up.

@Estroller, I agree as I’m barely afloat. In our local parlance, “las, las, they will be fine”

@Aphrodite007, you did say so. I will say no more.

I still have to maintain skeletal services in Nigeria considering that I have local needs to be met. Of course, we generate profits that in reality don’t exist due to hyperinflation. Also, I have staff that I can’t just lay off – the alternative won’t be great. However, I won’t be considering anything like further investments or expansion – I will just work on recovering all my investments and subsequently looking at scrapping off the rest (based on how quickly things evolve). It isn’t worth it in the Nigeria of today. Few weeks ago, we made a purchase of a machinery, 2 weeks later the cost had gone up by 50% - I’m still trying to understand what just happened. How does something add that amount in 2 weeks when £/$ exchange rate is still stable despite Brexit, covid and disrupted supply chains?

Indeed, There Was A Country!

A need for cautious divestment from Nigeria – we are just behind Venezuela

Dear diasporeans,

One beautiful aspect of life is foresight, and while history may not always repeat itself, people and events will always do.

I will briefly this early morning set out my thoughts, and while this should never be considered a financial advice, I will admonish that you begin taking stock of how you would want to structure your financial relationship with the country called Nigeria.

It was Robert A Heinlein who famously said that “A generation which ignores history has no past — and no future.”

December last year, the CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria) released a circular banning remittance of forex into the country with Naira as final deposit. This meant that diasporeans who usually utilised the international money transfer organisations (IMTOs) like Worldremit, Western Union, RadiantLife, MoneyFex, Transferwise (or is it wise now) and a host of others could no longer deposit Naira in Nigeria. All deposits were to be in dollars.

While this policy was very controversial considering the twin risks of insecurity and inconvenience it posed, I along with a few other Nigerians were cautiously excited. Our (now in hindsight) premature excitement bordered on the assumption that Naira was going to stabilise since the local economy was to be flooded with dollars.

Considering that the IMTOs were basically determining the exchange rate being used in depositing Naira, adopting dollar remittance was a way to reduce pressure on scare forex in the country and flood the market with dollars thus allowing importers and commercial banks access forex from alternative sources – we were wrong.

As is always the case with Nigeria and its mediocre leadership, ineptitude and poor policy implementation helped to destroy this initiative. First, the inability for CBN to float the Naira meant that bureau de change (BDC) operators continued to be the defacto choice for most people to change this forex. This had untold impact on most Nigerians who found it difficult funding/financing their aged parents or funding their personal Naira accounts or even sending small amounts of remittances back home. There were also reported cases of banks ripping off customers either by converting the dollars to Naira at the CBN’s official rate or charging exorbitant fees which were not supposed to be for end beneficiaries.

Beyond these cases was also the fact that Nigerians already burdened with eking out a living in Nigeria and contending with insecurity, terrorism, hunger and a failing economy now had to make out time to go to banks to collect dollars and start looking for places to convert these dollars to Naira – this was nothing short of stupidity and insensitivity from policy makers.

Considering that government officials in Nigeria are always immune from the happenings on the street, it was not uncommon to see the CBN governor pontificating about his nonsensical ideas at stimulating the economy and arresting the downward trend of the Naira.
While the CBN governor was busy attempting to subject Nigerians to suffering and unimaginable pains, the federal government was busy complementing poor monetary policies from the CBN with fiscal irresponsibility. With falling demand for crude oil and countries world over still in one form of lockdown or the other, Nigeria’s main forex earner was looking hopeless. Considering that government had repeatedly failed to diversify the economy from crude, the government had to adopt perverse deficit financing to meet its obligations. It is now on record that the CBN has printed over 10 Trillion Naira to finance government’s needs. This is not only illegal but also dangerous as this amounts to about $25 billion (representing 70% of our foreign reserve).

As the country grappled with the irresponsibility and ineptitude from both the CBN and the federal government, chaos was breeding all over the country. Fulani herdsmen began a rampage across Nigeria; kidnapping, destroying farmlands, killing innocent citizens and disrupting livelihoods of millions. From Niger state to Katsina to Sokoto to Zamfara to Oyo to Ogun to Edo to Imo to Enugu etc, it was continuous destruction and carnage.

While we argued and glossed over these happenings, they were unknowingly coalescing to form a catalyst of some sorts. Farmers began to abandon their farmlands, ladies who are the majority labour in food processing began to feel unsafe in rural farms and migrate city-wards. With depleting harvest and a growing population to feed, food prices skyrocketed by over 100%. Hunger increased in the land and suffering worsened. The advent of coronavirus only helped consolidate the continued sufferings of Nigerians and further enlarged the poverty band in the country.

Here comes the disruptor.

Earlier in January 2017, the CBN had released a circular warning banks about dealing with cryptocurrencies. Awareness was already building in Nigeria and various crypto platforms were emerging and offering Nigerians the ability to participate in this new invention. As is common in Nigeria, the CBN led by a mediocre and staffed fully with mediocres and nonentities was oblivious of the consolidation of the crypto market in Nigeria and its potential as a possible disruptor to its role.

While the CBN continued to manipulate the currency and frustrate Nigerians from easily accessing forex, young Nigerians (making up 65% of the country’s population) were building capacity in utilising and operationalising cryptocurrencies. Like wildfire, awareness began to increase, and people began to engage in trading. Of course, there were scams not a few but the CBN decided to be busy funding Dangote’s refinery and petrochemical plant and making forex available for their girlfriends and minions to go on pilgrimage to the holy cities.

When forex began crumbling from crude oil, the CBN all of a sudden realised that diasporean remittance was also significant. Considering that the CBN is a useless private entity which adds no value to Nigeria, she turned her attention to overseas remittance and continued in herself induced slumber and wanton spending spree without attempting to facilitate diversification.

As awareness about crypto began increasing in Nigeria, remittance through the CBN from overseas began dropping. Furthermore, BDC’s began seeing a drop in patronage from buyers as peer-to-peer (P2P) trading of fiat and crypto meant that banks, the CBN and BDCs could be avoided in transatlantic transactions. All of a sudden, Ade in Nigeria could link up with Shade in London, get Shade to pay his fees at Imperial College and credit Shade with Naira at an agreed exchange rate. This method faced challenges of fraud and was improved using the escrow-system (Kyshi.co types). On the crypto side, Ladi in Oyo State could load his Binance account with Naira (NGN), buy USDT, convert it to GBP and deposit in his UK bank account. In all of these transactions, Naira moved within Nigeria while forex moved within its local environment.

Besides Binance, other platforms sprang up offering Nigerians the opportunity to bypass the CBN and BDC in sourcing for forex to meet their various needs. At a time, NGN was always among the top 3 traded currencies on Binance. Hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions were being conducted weekly in Nigeria without CBN or BDC. Young Nigerians began investing in crypto, currency trading and online brokerage. Banks, the CBN and BDC became useless and handicapped.

Rather than adopt a proactive way of understanding how she could benefit from this innovation, the CBN thinking we were still in 1984 (apologies to George Orwell) brought a blanket ban on the crypto market in Nigeria in February 2021. Instructing commercial banks to close the accounts of crypto platforms and traders in Nigeria, the CBN was once again attempting to stop a burst dam with sandbags – she got drowned.

The ongoing consolidation of the crypto market in Nigeria was already established most especially with P2P, and while it was no longer possible to load my Naira directly into my Binance account, I could get around it by using Binance and others as an escrow. This technique meant that CBN’s policy was not only irrelevant but also desperate.

Here comes the shocker

You can thus imagine my shock and amazement when I stumbled across a circular from the CBN yesterday (March 6, 2021) offering Nigerians abroad 5 Naira for every dollar remitted back home. The CBN as the lender of last resort is now desperately attempting to clutch at forex at any cost – even hyperinflation. The CBN has now stooped so low that she is running promo with Naira – buy 1 to get 5 free!

Ladies and gentlemen, this here is all the reason you need to know that Nigeria is heading fast for Venezuela. All the signs are visible.

My takeout

Considering this latest gambit from the CBN, I now admonish every Nigerian abroad to take note daily of the following important stats:

1. Keep your eye on Nigeria’s foreign reserve. The day it drops below $30 billion, liquidate at least 50% of your income generating assets in Nigeria and convert to $. There is no doubt that Naira will continue its slide and to prevent losses, be prepared to act fast.

2. Invest only what you are willing to lose in Nigeria. As things stand now, the economy isn’t fragile – its broken and only a major reset can get things back again. Nigeria unfortunately needs to collapse to rebuild itself, she is rotten in and out.

3. Watch out for loan repayment defaults, appeal for loan repayment extension or refusal of major funders (IMF, China, WB etc.) to give Nigeria more loans. Do not be deceived by the antelope called finance minister talking about debt to GDP ratio. Fam, the moment you read that Nigeria is asking for extension on any loan repayment or that Nigeria is unable to secure more loans easily, please start liquidating important assets to $.

4. Keep an eye on news relating to concessions of national assets. When you start reading that private individuals like you and I can now start developing federal roads, then you know that your investments in Nigeria aren’t safe anymore.

5. Keep an eye on foreign policies especially towards Nigeria. Understand how the geopolitics within the Africa region is playing at and observe how Nigeria’s sovereignty and lead continues to get undermined. When you see an increase in tempo towards a reorganisation of the balance of power within the region, please be rest assured that Venezuela is just metres away.

I haven’t lost hope in Nigeria, I am just being woke. It is better to be safe than sorry and with these few words of mine, I hope I have been able to provide you with sufficient information to further support your decision-making process with regards to divesting from Nigeria.

RalphJean:


You know the thing about making enquiries, and @‘ing some people?
There may be others with the knowledge to help, but will not. Since your question is/wasn’t directed at them.

Now to your question.

Look at your BRP carefully, you will see that the end date was made to coincide exactly with the Main Applicant’s end date.

If (God forbid) the sponsor had withdrawn their CoS, and the main applicant hasn’t got another job, it means both main applicant and dependants would have their BRPs curtailed.

As a dependant, your Permit is dependant on the main applicant whose permit is dependant on the Sponsor.

Short answer: Yes. You will ALL need to apply for new visas.

Does not hold again. As long as main applicant is in-status (valid employment with visa) old dependants visas remain valid till validity expires (then they can switch to whatever visa main applicant currently holds).

veegal:
Hello everyone, please i need a clarification on this; hubby has been on Tier 2 work Visa(3 years) since 2019.We joined him as dependents recently. He got another offer with another Employer and he's applying for another visa. The new employer provided COS that will cover us as well. Do we need to apply for visas together with him? Are our BRPs still valid despite him applying for a new Visa? Please help!!

@justwise
@Lexusgs430
@all the gurus

You (dependants) do not need to re-apply as long as your current visa is valid and main applicant continues to remain in-status (employed). No go dash Home Office money o.

Aphrodite007:


Shey we were telling you!

Like, I am hardcore patriotic yeah, but business-wise, Naija no be am. I mentioned how the UK govt understands the importance of SMEs and creates policies favouring them, while our motherland prefers to keep the youths unemployed.

Bastards. Sorry I’m angry.

No, it isn't really abt business per se. This was just an avenue where the average Joe was earning a living without actually interacting with Nigeria's financial system fully.

Closing it in one way is beneficial but then it becomes counterproductive because lack of competition means the aboki BDC operator wakes up everyday to determine what the exchange rate should be.

I thought CBN'S policy on forex remittance was going to boost the Naira. Alas, I was shocked when my colleague showed me that Nigeria's exchange rate is determined on WhatsApp. In hindsight I realise that our currency has no fundamentals so not surprising.

Nigeria is still bae because you can earn 100% of your income back to back if you have brilliant accountants.

DisGuy:
Chukwua16 couple of pages back lol


here i am trying to do that experiment David470 and finton did with binance> naira>Crpto> pounds

Our fintech was an outlet for young guys and companies. seems the old guards don't like anything they are not controlling

I am everyday confused by actions of the country leadership.

How can the NSE be working on blockchain technology and CBN is banning crypto - that is policy incongruence.

How can you be thinking of improving AI and IT savviness among Nigerian youths and banning crypto?

When the CBN came up with their useless policy on forex remittance, Binance among others provided the opportunity for Nigerians to make some money through arbitrage.

I agree that Nigerians aren't investing in the real sector thus job creation is difficult, but when you have perverse policies in place and an environment that doesn't encourage investments then people don't feel encouraged or incentivised to invest in the real economy.

Nigeria is a comedy anyway anytime.

The country called Nigeria is a comedy anytime. How can CBN wake up and do this?

https://www.nairaland.com/6400654/cbn-shuts-down-cryptocurrency-exchange

But then what do you expect from a country ruled by animals?

Young Nigerians for once have utilised crypto to empower themselves and finance initiatives like Endsars amongst others with minimal contact with the existing financial system and the leaders are feeling threatened? Is it a crime for young people to have money?

Does the govt understand what it means to have NGN on Binance and even have them currently organising training for Nigerians and other Africans? Even the US is adopting USDC to catch up with Iran and CBN is thinking like herders?

Make I go find food chop jare.

Aphrodite007:



I second you, however why people are upset/worried is because
(1) he asked for sensitive ID
(2) he is a student and people were worried.
(3) he flared up. It was unnecessary.

People transfer money

Yep, the response made the difference. He must have learnt something and hopefully will react better next time. It's all learning and adjustments and more learning.

Indeed, people and companies still transfer money!

RalphJean:




A company which can demand for my photo ID. BRP. Passport. Personal Identification documents etc... yet you will not advise an employee (or owner) of that company to come clean?

Bros Chukwuka, the second part of your post makes some sense. The first part? Nahhhhh

No he didn't request for BRP na. He actually requested for an ID showing name for consistency purposes. irrespective though 'any' ID would do if all details excepting name is blanked. Thats just for normal AML/KYC. If CBN's policy wasn't in play he could have made available the company's name here (I'm guessing).

I know business registered with the FCA still involved in GBP/Naira transactions but I can't put them up on this platform or even tell people about them because it's obvious that they were set up for 'other' purposes.

It's not like he has a 'consulting' firm and is putting up his dets for job requests. His feesback as alluded to by a poster may have pissed off people - Learning curves.

RalphJean:




Tobi:
Do you really think I would be so wise enough to send my docs to an email address that was open yesterday?
You have full KYC procedures?
What’s the name of your company please?
Let me use my remaining data MB to run a check on Companies House.

I wouldn't advise him telling you the name of his company on a public forum. CBN has banned Naira remittance and what stops me from doing one single transaction with him and getting his Naira remittance account and reporting same to CBN to flag that BVN? Even Transferwise got banned for late compliance!

______________________________________________
@Tobexin I also think coming here on this platform to advertise your trade isn't ideal (it's not primarily a business driven forum with business minded people so abundance of caution is the default response and besides, your business is in the 'grey' area). If simple currency 'barter' like is done here, then no qualms (you may want to consider having multiple bank accounts). While I appreciate your business ideals on KYC/AML, unfortunately, you need to be registered with the iCO as an organisation to process peoples records (exemptions apply). Now you can't register with the iCO as you can't legally be a director under new Tier-4 policy. If you work for an 'establishment' then you need to be certain of the ffg:
- How are clients/ monies received – personal or business account?
- Is my organisation registered with the iCO?
- Is your business registered with the FCA (not authorised assuming turnover monthly is </= €2 million)?
- Do I work 20 hours max each week (reflected on your payslip)?

My definition of an establishment is a registered entity on companies house (with 66110 or 66190 as one of its objects).

Lastly, with regards to rate, c'mon 638! That's not fair na. As at yesterday, bulk sellers were asking for 652! Even with that, arbitrage will still give you 5-6 Naira differential. You want to chop a whopping 19-25 Naira per £. Guy, fear God o.
__________________________________________________________________

I have a problem with our people – Nigerians, we talk too much and think we know anything – WE KNOW NOTHING. You begin to realise how USELESS we are to the world when you consider that it is GAVI that is organising freebies for us in terms of vaccines etc. You begin to see how USELESS we are to the world when governors – leaders of territories can gather themselves and travel abroad to go and beg Bill Gates (a private citizen of another country) for aid. Lord, you begin to see how USELESS we are when it takes UK overseas Aid (FCDO) and USAID to roll out development projects across the country. We are very USELSSS people to humanity. The only thing we keep contributing are gigantic worship centres and stupidity.

There is a reason why foreigners think we are stupid, we act presumptuously and are very opinionated and that is always our undoing.

Whether you know someone who took out a BBL or some other govt largesse flying everywhere, what you know is nothing compared to the £billions lost through Furlough, government contracts, Eat Out to Help Out and of course the cheap loans (BBLS, CBILS, CLBILS).

Look at these characters calling out a govt official in Nigeria on something that doesn’t concern her. Look at them calling out the tax collector over issues that do not concern them. The evidence out there shows that more organised units especially from within the UK and Eastern Europe have led the trail. We do not top the charts even in cybercrime and online fraud, yet we are the most notorious. Huspuppi and co are just jokers in the game compared to low key masters who will never be known! Why can’t we shut up? How many whites have you seen calling out other whites on these issues (we briefly had the issue of increase in luxury cars and then everything went silent)? You are even telling the tax collector that you can identify a fraudulent person – what if it’s decided that no fraud was involved, and the fellow decides to sue for defamation or wrongful accusations?

Let’s be calming down and minding our own business – we would live longer. A loan only becomes an issue when repayments begin and there is ongoing support for business directors for wrongful trading and loan repayment. What’s painful is that many of these folks have never run a company and do not even know what it entails. Let the govt decide what will be. I get the feeling that there is more behind the facade for this online display of immaturity.

I’m not supporting fraud but advocating we mind our own business. Information/knowledge demands responsibility.

icon8:

These are words on marble, and I’ve got nothing but respect for you.
With cautious optimism, having a solid plan, and of course God’s favour, I believe most will make a success of the opportunity. Nigeria is already hard for the common man, I trust they will survive here, if they keep their eyes on the ball.
Thanks for sharing. Cheers

Ah, baba, mo wa ni very humble.

Indeed, we can only hope and be optimistic that we continue to make great choices whenever opportunities should arise.

Enjoy the day!

icon8:


Listen, I’m not of the opinion that Brexit is a bed of roses. Neither have I attempted to paint it as such. I’ve only sought to highlight a few points I consider are its pros, from a non-EU immigrant point of view.
If it makes any difference, the post I quoted arrogantly declared “there are no advantages whatsoever”. Hence my attempt to repudiate that claim.
Finally, I voted Remain and I still believe that Brexit is a bad idea, but to claim it has no single benefit whatsoever is ridiculous, even if the cons far outweigh the pros.

See, I get you. Weeks ago, I passionately wrote about the need not to discourage young folks back home from exploring or migrating to the UK through the study route – based on the new PSW visa scheme. I still hold this view for young folks but for others, I suggest caution.

However, we have to be objective here. Coming to the UK from next year for older folks needs strategy and tact on their part. You don’t want to get into a system at some certain age and just watch life roll by simply because you feel tied up – we have many immigrants in that trap and it’s only going to get worse. They have become locked-in to the system and have committed themselves to ‘gbese’ like mortgage and car finance that they have now become slaves to employment.

The majority of jobs that will open up will be low-level jobs. Highly specialised and managerial roles will still mostly remain with the whites then Asians (because they own a lot of businesses here in the UK). The majority of non-EU jobs will be middle-class roles. So much work and average remuneration.

I don’t hold fort for EU citizens, but I know that English Language will work against many of them.

Getting a job in the UK from Nigeria won’t be uhuru from next year. You have cost for visa fees and HIS surcharge now becoming too much. How much do you earn yearly that can support you and your family’s visa application fees and IHS for 5 years and then pay for ILR and then pay for passports? Next is living expenses and rent and sundry other charges – all on top of how much?

Spread the news about the PBS and let people know of the opportunities but also let them know that in the long run things may most likely not pan out well. As I write this, I just remember a discussion between me and my friend a year ago. We were returning from work when he jokingly told me that we were only 2 salaries away from being homeless. His argument was that in the event one’s salary was stopped for whatever reason, we could get away with the first month’s rent by arguing for grace/extension but by second month, we were sure going to be ejected. That was a sobering moment for me. Ask yourself truthfully if you can with your monthly expenses running your family comfortably save 6 months of your salary within a year (or 2 at most) as emergency spend in the event of an emergency (considering all the bills and sundry charges)?

icon8:


You just may have inadvertently made a case for a benefit of Brexit for non-EU immigrants. All you mentioned above only lend credence to the thinking that EU citizens will leave the UK for other EU countries (27 of them), when the UK becomes unattractive to them, due to the reasons you stated in your post. They are spoilt with choice (27 other countries, some better than the UK), why would they stay in a country where you’ve boldly claimed EMPLOYEES DON’T MATTER? That was exactly what I alluded to in my earlier posts, and would open doors for other non-EU immigrants (Nigerians inclusive) who wouldn’t mind the ridiculous wages on offer, just to get a foot through the door and work their way up.
For the umpteenth time, I believe Brexit will open doors of opportunities to immigrants from outside the EU. However, the overall health of the UK economy is another matter entirely, and only time would tell if Brexit is a blessing or a curse.

Three years ago, heck, infact early this year, I would have agreed with you that indeed the UK leaving the EU was going to be beneficial to employees and non-EU citizens. Today I know better.

When the UK resided within the EU, they needed to maintain a minimum standard of workers’ right and we had the European Court of Arbitration to arbitrate on issues relating to workers’ rights etc. That was a way through which workers in the UK could leverage equivalence among EU member states as an argument for improved wages. You saw a lot of such comparisons across UBI, wages, hours worked, job precarity etc. EU member states provided a basis for comparison. In fact, BoJo used to compare deaths in the UK with Italy, France and Spain and only stopped when the UK started blazing the trail.

With the introduction of the PBS, what we have is exploitation. We had it prior to Jan 1, 2021, but it’s going to be more pronounced going forward. Economics tells us that when supply exceeds demand, price will fall. That is what is going to happen from Jan 1, 2021. It isn’t just about uniform access but quality of wages.

Getting a job isn’t going to be the crux of the matter but remuneration and job security. There will be a lot of precarious jobs and different kinds of contracts to ensure that employers can extract maximum utility from them. The existing and about to be extinguished system of job recruitment made it a lot easier for job holders here in the UK to move around (despite the travails a Tier 2 visa causes).

You’ve got to look at this holistically to see the overall big picture. This is a return to pure capitalism in its entirety. With the EU, we had a mix of capitalism and socialism. With this, we are back to an economic system that favours only the employers.

Think of how much has been spent by the government and on whom – businesses. What have employees gotten aside furlough (reduced wages in some instances)? Businesses have gotten BBLS, CBILS, CLBILS, Future Funds, Grants, Contracts, etc.

I’m only concerned that years from now, folks don’t look back regretting what they thought was going to be a golden opportunity which only ended up causing them a lifetime of regrets/frustrations.

With regards to the benefits of the UK leaving the EU, there is only one side that matters – the business side. I’m both an employee and a business person and I can say with all confidence that EMPLOYEES DON’T MATTER. Labour unfortunately has never been more readily available and cheaper.

When the UK brought up the new PBS of immigration for immigrants, they introduced 2 new things that should signal to any person what is going to be the norm. First, they removed the resident labour market test (RLMT) and secondly, they reduced the salary threshold (remember this was what sent many immigrants home after 2015 when it was jacked up to 30K and employers couldn’t afford it).

The new PBS system has signified that cheap labour will be the norm from next year. Imagine a PhD holder on £23K on Tier 2 from next year (people go suffer gan). Imagine how businesses will skew job titles just to fit with SoC titles so that they can offer very low and ridiculous salaries. Also remember that talent is now in excess supply and employers with Tier 2/5 sponsor licences can hire anyone from anywhere without justifying WHY.

The UK by design has a unique place in history and has worked hard to establish major institutions that anyone would want to be affiliated with. More so, they colonised a lot of countries and by default will enjoy patronage from them (inferiority complex). Their yearly spending on overseas aid (ODA) of ~£10 billion for 2021 is still a significant war chest.

Unfortunately, the EU cannot experiment with low wages like the UK and that was why state aid was a major divergent point during discussions on the deal. There is fear within the EU that the UK will deploy and indirectly subsidise its businesses to get unfair advantages over their competitors within the EU – think US/Boeing and EU/Airbus wahala.

Unfortunately, employees will suffer more from this deal. The idea of skills (professionalisation) and job security has just been lost. When your lawmakers can freeze pay for public servants and still receive salary increment without shame, you begin to get the picture of how relevant employees are. Remember all the Thursday clapping for NHS workers and what it has resulted in monetarily – nothing for them.

If your income is Employer – HMRC – Employee route, well, prepare to experience an increase in PIT to pay back the loans and government spending on BUSINESSES. This life seriously is not balance. Also for the contractors, IR35 is just smiling at you very broadly. Welcome to the new UK.

Kingp91:
Please can yiu shed more light on this. I mean the benefitsfor you guys there and us way just come or still dey road

Oh for me it's purely business. Now the UK can set up free trade zones across the UK which I'm eagerly awaiting and building capital for. I'm going to be hitting my DIT and FCDO contacts and hiring a consultant in the new year to advise me on the best step.

The beauty of the break up is that the UK will need to build its market outside of the US, EU and China. This market is found in Africa and South America (and few across South East Asia) which in the next decade will emerge as the dominant markets (China is predicted to supercede The US economy by 2038).

To encourage export, the whole export is great campaign will be ramped up and foreign aid will be used as a carrot mainly for trade purposes. As an entrepreneur this is great for me as I can explore potential free trade agreements between both regions and potential tax incentives for both exporting and importing.

Also, the FTZ can offer me the opportunity to ship products from FTZ in Nigeria and rebrand here in the UK FTZ as UK products (after some considerable input) and re-export. This will help me beat existing bans on certain exports from Nigeria and avoid taxes.

Opportunities like this last presented themselves after the breakdown of the soviet regime.

Congratulations All

The UK and the EU have a deal!

While we await the implications of the fine prints, we can also be glad that alot of opportunities will be created in the coming days.

Cheers to better days.

Igbosmoker:
maybe.

It seems it's only doctors, law and IT related courses that's profitable outside nigeria.

I don't want to be carrying a useless degree

I wish we could go to a quiet place by the sea side and have some nice wine and I'll tell you how comical life is. It would be a perfect time to condemn my last bottle of the Grand Constance (Groot Constantia). I'll go down memory lane to show you how the pursuit of a course of study has trapped many friends and acquaintances.

I'll show you real life examples of the so called professionals even those working in the multinationals and how incomparable they are to the 'riff raffs' who read language courses and those odd courses in Arts that universities introduced to give some people that had been Jambed hope in life and who have now made immense sense of their lives.

Infact many of these 'riff raffs' have done well for themselves and are creating value across the country especially in job creation and poverty eradication. Many of the perfect graduates are today working for these 'riff raffs'.

Please note these:
1. There is no useless course in life. The essence of education is to stimulate your creative thinking.

2. Don't come to the abroad with the mindset to work. It's good to come over for exposure and to observe what sanity and serenity looks like but please don't come here to work with a qualification as your main and only goal. You would end up very frustrated in life. Coming here with a prepared mindset enables you to explore the infinite hidden opportunities and maximise them fully. When your eye is single, your whole body will be full of light!

3. Don't hop around looking for the best courses to study. Courses and skillsets are getting obsolete very fast. While you are in Nigeria why not make the best of that education degree and experience and finish with a 2.1. Use your spare time to build side skills and side hustle. Try out different things - business and ideas and learn. When you come here for whatever purpose, you will be able to leverage this environment to give meaning and life to your skill and business ideas.

Yesterday, it was OK to just learn something and you'd be fine for life. Today if you have a limited scope about life you would suffer. Try out different things and keep tabs of the UK and other exciting countries of interest and routes to coming in. I have acquaintances who are coming around for MSc programmes now simply because of the post study work visa. They do not need the degree but are leveraging the extra years to bring their families here, open up businesses across import/export, trading, crypto etc., accessing cheap credits, venturing into other markets across Africa, Europe, North America using the UK as their base and are doing OK for themselves.

Rather than wasting time pursuing that perfect course, use the knowledge and skills you acquire along the way to create wealth for yourself when you get to a sane environment.

Lastly, you'd be fine. No rush in life. Take it one step at a time and enjoy every stage in life. Do your best at each stage but overall be very optimistic and ambitious about life.

Goodluck.

valcorp:
Compound people Una good evening ( including the ones wey dey fight I wan hask kweshon fes, Una fit kwantinu Lara). Please does anyone here use an Amazon Firestick TV. Made a mess by buying a Large TV at a reasonably small price ( 50 inch Samsung at £80) and after unpacking I saw noticed it wasn't a 4k TV and can't return(long story). I need something that will allow son of man watch football weekends (I have missed the disgrace of Arse-anal, d confusion of shelshit, every the horrifying displays of VARunited). I go dey read with phoney abi diction...

You just made my day with the boldened.

Go for a smart TV and connect to your broadband or hotspot and get registered for amazon prime and you are set. All those stick and brushes and physical addons are burdensome. Beauty is that you can watch on your pc and TV and even share login details with folks back home. In time you can add Netflix and enjoy life!

You can even split the bill for monthly subscription and share login details among friends and nice if you have a student around who can help you get a discount - free for 6 months then discounted monthly cost. You even get to enjoy free next day deliveries on amazon!

I see live matches on prime video but scroll by. Usually more interested in their movies.

Just thinking out loud - 50 inches TV for £80 and Samsung! This is serious budgeting.

Mimzyy:
So Barclays decided to be unfortunate today and blocked my account. I didn’t even realise until I went grocery shopping and wanted to pay. Thank God for alternative bank accounts!!!

I called the number and was told it will take 7 working days for them to unblock it. The rep couldn’t give a plausible explanation as regards why it happened. He asked me silly questions like did I receive a lump sum recently and I told him I did and I have proof of its legitimacy so kiwani problem yin

Is that a reason for my account to be flagged

He however, gave me an alternative to go over the counter tomorrow to withdraw my money. God knows I’m withdrawing every penny there. Rubbish bank.

May we not be unfortunate in life by experiencing some useless attitudes from these UK banks. Only God can quantify how much losses businesses have incurred from these clowns due to their accounts being closed and funds withheld in some cases all based on computer programs classifying one as risk. I don tire for UK banks. Their madness and robotic set up is now appalling. Sincerely, them be one chance.

As you don enter their red book, it's better to avoid them and have more bank accounts open. What is funny though is that the real maye's who are known criminals would be allowed to continue banking with them and receiving their funds all because of what the bank gets from them (serious commissions). IF HSBC weren't fined billions years ago by the US, we for dey think say them be saints - awon werey.

peterveo:
Hello everyone, please I need advice on how to handle this situation.
I got into UK in October through student Tier 4 visa. After completing visa verification from school, they sent a mail that my brp was not produced due to home office technical issues.
I have sent mails and called for help till this morning, school keeps saying they can't fast track home office process.

What can I do in this distress?
Is it wise to contact the home office by my self?(school advised I let them handle the situation).
Has body experienced this before?
Your experience and advice will be of great help. Thanks

Hiya,

Raise hell! Call Home Office and send emails and copy your school. Mine was delayed when I came in as a Tier 2 worker. I sent emails and emails and called and called. I may have looked and sounded stupid but hey when push comes to shove tomorrow, everyone will clean up their acts and ask what you did. As long as your visa (vignette) was issued, please follow up AGGRESSIVELY with these guys (International Office and Home Office) with formal emails and copy everyone necessary. Let them also know the mental and health impact the delay is having on you. It is not your fault that they gave you visa and are overwhelmed with backlogs or have technical issues. You paid and you demand services be rendered (abi you never complete your visa payment?).

Your guiding rule when dealing with the international office of your HEI is that they are mostly British and Europeans who don't need a visa and don't understand the implications of a delayed BRP. They will follow their guidelines religiously like robots - it is your responsibility to follow up carefully and persistently.

LagosismyHome:


Strangely enough if you read about the vaccine, it almost pointless ,

Do the vaccines prevent transmission of SARS-CoV-2?
In addition to the Pfizer vaccine, regulators are poring over data from a similar vaccine made by Moderna of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and a third produced by AstraZeneca of Cambridge, UK, and the University of Oxford, UK. All three have been tested in large clinical trials, and have shown promise in preventing disease symptoms.

But

1. none has demonstrated that it prevents infection altogether, or
2. reduces the spread of the virus in a population.
3. This leaves open the chance that those who are vaccinated could remain susceptible to asymptomatic infection — and could transmit that infection to others who remain vulnerable.


So the only benefit is shown promise in preventing disease symptoms.

Humanity has never had it this bad - irresponsible leadership across board.

Imagine how the UK (MHRA) shamelessly rushed approval for first position. They had to use diplomatic channels to force Fauci to recant his earlier bashing of the MHRA. Nonsense.

Imagine the nonsense surrounding the AstraZeneca and Oxford vaccine and how they attempted to use optics to lie about the efficiency. They got 62% for general trial (over 20k and across all age groups) and 90% for 3k people under 65 and did an averaging to get 70%.

If they weren't called out we would think they were as efficient as the others. I even read that BoJo was requesting that the union jack be put on the bottles, what nonsense.

Its quite a pitiable state. Confusion everywhere. Rudderless leadership and a cornucopia of inept leaders is what the UK has been blessed with.

20 years from now we would look back and weep when we observe how bad decisions resulted in mass damage of humans all in the name of science. Unfortunately, the govt is owning more of its citizens - increasing population on benefits/support and rising household debts. These give the govt some leeway in forcing through mandatory policies while using the fear of joblessness or homelessness to coerce compliance.

Unfortunately, 20 years from now many of the culprits will be resting in their graves as celebrated heros. Nonsense.

omopapa:
Pfizer got indemnity from the govt, meaning no patient can sue them for any side effect

Data for the last stage of the clinical trial have not been published

The effect of the vaccine on fertility have been quarried, no data result to counter it

Lastly, rumour has it that, employers could force employees to take them and people might be refused by airlines to board if they can’t provide evidence that they have taken the vaccine

That was a red flag and a reason for caution by anyone who still remembers what Pfizer did in Northern Nigeria when they used kids as guinea pigs for drug trials.

Even Switzerland says they would wait months to both conduct extensive reviews and observe effects from countries around the world - thats another red flag.

Since lataro we have been waiting for the peer review publication of the Pfizer vaccine but alas no show yet - Nature or Lancet or Science will gladly publish pronto.

With regards to work I really feel for immigrants. My worse case scenario planning is that I'll resign but for taking that vaccine - Never! I'm expected to begin field work from Q1 next year outside the UK but will be discussing with my line manager why I wouldn't be taking the vaccine and exploring if interviews can be conducted remotely. I won't be another statistics for any irresponsible government or drug manufacturer. God helped me survive thus far, I won't use my hands and scatter His work.

Imagine the nonsense - £120K as indemnity if permanent damage occurs. Rubbish! Money that can't even buy decent accommodation in the UK is what you will pay out when CEOs are taking £ms as hush money. This govt is vile, greedy and heartless. Using residents as lab rats for what - first position.

Tinkulala:
So a family member abroad sent me 3m and I am to return it to her next year November without any interest (interest-free loan).

I need an investment that RETURNS CAPITAL after earning monthly interests for a specific tenor.

I need the CAPITAL back,your suggestions are most welcome.

You posted a video on Dec 1 on 5 businesses anyone can do. In your own words you said even a mumu can do.

Don't you want to put your money where your mouth is?

Chumachu:


True but this will be worse if left in the bank which gives 1.25%.

The better option is to save in dollars with a 5% interest rate. God help us. We are all looking for a way to preserve our wealth.

Do you get to handle the actual dollars (can you transfer it to your dom account)?

If yes, do you actually spend dollars (import or travels)?

If No to Q1, you stand a risk (like you highlighted) of losing on reconversion to Naira.

Investments in the real sector while risky is a more viable option of turning capital and making profit off it. You get to affect a whole lot in the value chain, indirectly create jobs and boost inflation which boosts your selling price and profit (mind you your interest rate remains the same).

Piggyvest and ors all invest your money in other businesses like agropartnership that give them up to 30% or even more per annum - why can't you take that risk yourself?

Ugmama:


People vote wetin?

Election that wasn't free and fare is that one election?

Despite the electoral malpractices Buhari still had massive support. There is a limit to rigging and the support they had meant little effort was needed to get reelected.

We have a pandemic of uneducated and unenlightened Nigerians who constitute a significant mass of the voting population and are in a position to elect our leaders.

If this group vows that Patience Jonathan will be Nigeria's next president, they are almost certain to achieve it.

Olalekank:
Thanks for the insight Chukwuka16

It has only gotten worse. I was in support of Buhari in 2015 and it's a shame to think I believed these 'promises'. Reading them now, it's a f*cking joke. Stabilise oil prices? LMAO


What pains me more is the fact that people still went ahead to vote the same people into power come 2019. I must agree that we are really stupid in this country.

Sincerely speaking you can't really fault Nigerians. What options did they have? Also, MOST Nigerians are unenlightened and do not even know what governance entails or what to demand of elected officials.

It's painful to watch millions of Nigerians get thrown into the poverty cycle monthly and yet we can't demand answers. Hard times unfortunately are coming and I fear for millions more of Nigerians.

If Piggyvest gives you 10% on 100K and inflation is 14%, invariably your 100K is worth 96K by year end in terms of real pricing power.

Investment trumps savings in an economy like Nigeria where interest rates now underperforms inflation by significant margins.

nihilistjnr:


This is where you're grossly mistaken.

The IT market right now is generally in a state for great depression.

The guy that is just coming from Naija is probably looking at the job offer and mentally converting the sum to Naira and thinking "wow this is great"

I would like to get a sense for is whether the salary was actually market rate for the region.

Sincerely speaking I like your reasoning and this shows you are quite experienced in the job market.

Salary matters and your starting salary really affects how quickly you rise in the job market.

I remember someone back home rejected a 40K job last year and decided to remain in Nigeria as a senior lecturer. When I told my former boss that this guy wasn't interested he was aghast - but I'm paying him 40K. I was like sir he is married with 3 children!

Anyways, for a start you sometimes have to start somewhere.