₦airaland Forum

aproko247: Aproko247 can confirm that a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Tom Ikimi, has eventually left the opposition party.

The Edo State-born politician was among the aspirants for the National Chairmanship post of APC, but lost out to his kinsman, John Oyegun.

A top source in the APC informed our reporter on Tuesday afternoon that Ikimi is pulling out of the party because he is not happy with latest developments.

The party has been going through tough times recently, especially with the announcement of Oyegun as National Chairman of the party in June 2014.

More details soon.

Source: http://www.aproko247.com/2014/08/26/ikimi-finally-dumps-apc/

First it was Babangida Aliyu, then Ribadu and now Ikimi.
Only fanatics and murderers like Abubakau Shekau remain in APC.!
APC. Oooooooo ni baje ooooooo !

dekronik: Boko haram proudly shows video of mass murder. Killing defenceless civilians lying face down. I'm waiting for the hypocritical Amnesty Internation to make a statement.

Amnesty condemn what?
Broa wake up! They are only there to undermine the Nigerian state and to help Boko haram overwhelm the state into another Somalia. It's all about returning Africa to the Stone Age.

atlwireles: Absolutely rubbish, post data and links from government sources. I don't need to see unverified propaganda.

[b]
The thieves are busy posting fake IGR figures as their contribution to National coffers!!!
Now IGR for Kano, Katsina or Borno state goes to the government there and where it's used to sponsor sharia police against southerners or terror groups against the entire nation and not even 0ne kobo goes to the FG! Yet, they demand for the lion share of the FG money derived from other parts of the country paid into the federal coffers!!!

Dokpesi was refering to the amount PAID INTO THE FEDERAL COFFERS by northerners.
I am begging the them to publish how much they take from Nigeria and how much they pay into the federal coffers as taxes from all these tomatoes,millet and onions sales they continuously claim. The bas.terds will not do that because they know they have been immorally reaping where they did not sow.

It is beyond doubt that the day the north contributes a dime into the country's coffers to be used for the development of Nigeria, that is the day they will ask for a breakup of Nigeria.
Parasites![/b]

You Boko Haram jihadists should go and create your own jihad website.
I am sure you will not hesitate to kill Seun for being a product of western education, but you want to use his site for your propaganda!
Shameless hypocrites.

cronsberg: See another #Dokpemumu Dopes chai i like this term "dokpemumu dopes"
The only reason i will not contribute to this thread or list what the north contributes to nigeria is because i see this thread as talks full of noise and fury, signifying nothing. Basically, the whole thread is dokpemumu dopes

The only reason you will not contribute is that there is nothing to list!
Not one solid mineral or food stuff goes out from the north and taxes are paid to the FG.

So sharap there playing mumu, as if there is something to contribute!......... talking like we don't know lazy,greedy, thieving northerners again.

[size=20pt]My question is ;
How did El-rufai know that Boko Haram did not steal those Sisters regalia, if he isn't somehow in communication with them? [/size]

Babangida that ran away from Gideon Okar and even ran to Minna when the heat of his annulment of the June 12th election built up
It was funny when Babangida said he would put on his uniform as if that was supposed to scare Asari.

Those generals that fought the civil war often forget that it was Britain intent on making sure her new colony Nigeria survived that gave them the weapons advantage over Biafra. Without those weapons, Biafra could never have been defeated.

Unfortunately in the modern world, gone are the Mobutu daya when world powers simply supplied weapons openly for Africans to butcher themselves. In the absence of free unrestricted weapons supply to Babangida, Asari is a tested,cunning, masterful strategist and will definitely defeat Babangida in a war.

biafrandream: To my mind, what the next governor should concentrate on is keeping Enugu clean, creation of jobs through establishment of cottage industries and massive investment in agriculture and education. Also I don't like the idea of giving the contract of building roads to Arab contrators because it engenders capital flight. Even the Enugu lifestyle and golf city is being handled by a foreign firm. If the contracts were awarded to local contractors, we would have killed 2 birds with a stone, developing our land and creating of indigenous millionaires. I think that's an area Sullivan has not done well. Our local engineers should be used in doing those jobs even if the government decides to make use of direct labour. This was one area Chimaroke did a good job. I think that poverty multiplied under Sullivan because all juicy jobs were given to foreigners.

Enugu roads are decent today and look like Abuja roads in some ways because reputable contractors such as Arab contractors were used.Also, look at the quality of work being done at the state secretariat. Let the truth be told, local contractors are simply not committed to delivering such extremely high quality job. Finishing is everything. making sure the roads are well designed, well marked, with drainage gutters whose curbs is lower than the road level so that rain run off can flow easily into the gutters instead of peculating as water poodles by the side of the road. These little common sense things sound so obvious, yet they are often over-looked by our local contractors which make their work appear shoddy all the time.

Even when they plaster buildings, it looks so rough as if someone had used his palm to gently make tiny depressions or indentations on the cement before it dried. Of course, people who do not have the eye for aesthetics or high taste will not see anything wrong with those walls as long as they do not have any obvious open cracks on them, but the poor standard of finishing makes the building look really rough and ugly.
I am proud that buildings which Spyder has showed he supervised always had great finishing, which makes me want to use him as a contractor for building construction. I support using local contractors for local government roads and streets in the city, so that they can learn, while foreign contractors will handle critical jobs as Federal and State roads.

The use of foreign contractors is not a bad thing for a developing country intent on quality. In Anambra, IDC did most of the contracts and the resulting roads leaves a lot to be desired.Inter Bau did a few bridges for Anambra and the quality of those bridges does not come near the Zik avenue bridges or the ones done along Enugu-Abakaliki expressway. Yet, they cost more and took longer to complete! I would definitely want us to use local contractors, but the ones amongst them committed to doing an excellent job. Unfortunately, most local contractors believe they are cheaper than foreign contractors and donot necessarily have to deliver a quality job, if they finish the project at all.

Innovator90: I don't think they are "very clannish", they are just as rational as any shrewd business man would. No sensible business man will like to set up a heavy capital investment in SE if the economic enablers or master plan of extended development is not there. These people would love to invest heavily in SE to the surprise of our people if something in the order of SE Regional Development blueprint is created. These people want to see a long term development plan before they can commit. Case study; when Abuja was just a forest, thick bush, inhabitable, guess who were there first besides the Hausas and local natives? The Igbos. Igbo business men left Lagos.... yes these business men deserted Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kaduna, Maiduguri for Abuja even when Abuja was practically empty. Why did they do that? Because the Government had a master plan for the development of the New Federal Capital Territory with prediction of what it would look like in 20+ yrs....today it looks exactly as predicted and the Igbos are the biggest beneficiaries of it. El Rufai wasn't joking when he said Igbos own 73% of land in Abuja...that's a very factual statement because these Igbo business men had the foresight to see what many others didn't see. Implementation of a SE Regional Development scheme will witness one of the greatest regional investment we have ever witnessed. SAB Miller in Onitsha is just a cake walk to what Igbo businessman will be setting up. These people have the money but waiting for a prospective, viable plan! My first post on page 210 of this thread illustrates this SRDC blueprint.

Already such a body exist to provide a framework for the SE to synergize resources and develop, but you know it is difficult for Igbos to cooperate without someone trying to bring the Nigerian factor of cheating into it. The bad blood that went into the assets and liabilities management of the Nkalagu cement company effectively ruined or at least made tenuous any talk of inter-state or even regional cooperation amongst Igbo states.

SENEC is a body of professionals to identify common infrastructural projects such as electricity plants, refineries, public transportation infrastructure such as a light railway line from Onitsha to Enugu, then fans out at Enugu to Abakaliki axis, Another line connects Owerri to Afikpo via Okigwe crossing the existing Enugu to PH line. Then they plan on harnessing electricity via coal powered plants and agricultural programs such as palm plantations in Imo and parts of Abia state,with allied factories to utilize the produce for export, strategic setting up of poultry farms around rice basins,piggeries to ensure the region becomes a net exporter of food again. In fact, Former Governor Sam Egwu of Ebonyi was encouraged to set up the Nkaliki poultry farms in Abakaliki as part of this regional economic strategy. Of course, the government mismanaged that poultry farm and it has folded up already!

[size=14pt]SENEC: South East Nigeria Economic Commission[/size]

http://www.senec.org.ng/senec/index.php/news/36-news-events/57-imperative-of-south-east-nigeria-economic-commission-senec

We should support this commission to act more than it's present endless talk-talk symposium, by identifying the critical projects and getting Igbo business men to buy into these projects. Which will also be easier said than done. But we should continue trying until the attitude of our people towards investing in the SE changes. Perhaps, one positive outcome of Boko Haram slaughter of our people is that it continuously reminds those of them that believe the lie called "one Nigeria" that it is the biggest 419 fraud told to Igbos. Even after Boko Haram is finally defeated, another northern group will soon be armed again by their politicians, and guess who their target for slaughter and maiming would be?

Ubomeze: Where are your capable Igbo investors? The world today is a global village investor can come in from anywhere in the world. Do you think that hotels in London or New York are built and owned by the British and Americans exclusively? No they are not. But since you have so much faith in Igbo investors let us wait for one to turn up be it from IMO, ABIA, EBONYI, ANAMBRA and ENUGU.quote author=tonychristopher]

You don't nee a foreign investor here. We have capable igbo sons who can buy that facility.

Look at modotel owerri it was sold now its the flag ship hotel in owerri rivaling Concord hotel.

Do


They can put it up for sale but while doing that we should remember the principle of group economics which igbos and Jews are noted for.

Udo diri unu

Let me begin by saying that I support selling it to a credible hotel chain such as Protea, since they already have operations in Nigeria.

The problem with getting foreign investors willing to invest their own money in Nigeria is that many western companies find Nigerian assets to be "toxic" and therefore will not pump in the amount of money required to turn the place around. The was the same problem that stalled the Anambra refinery at Otuocha for many years because they had partnered with the world's biggest refinery developers "The Shaw group" from Louisiana USA. Of course, this typical American company would not invest it's own money and will have so many laws to comply with back home. The fortunes of that project finally changed when Peter Obi authorized the switching of technical partners into a Chinese company, that has since brought their engineers to do the project.
From the looks of it, the best we can hope for in the hotels and tourism sector are South African companies that have seen that Nigeria inspite of all her troubles offer bigger returns than South Africa and many other countries.

There is also nothing wrong in selling this hotel to indigenous people who know the business very well. Although it is easier said than done, to select the right local buyer. Especially if one considers what became of ANAMMMCO after it was regretfully sold to Onitsha based transporter GUO motors,who neither had the expertise or funds to turn the company around.

Lets hope something positive is done to save the Presidential Hotel.

tonychristopher: You don't nee a foreign investor here. We have capable igbo sons who can buy that facility.

Look at modotel owerri it was sold now its the flag ship hotel in owerri rivaling Concord hotel.

Do


They can put it up for sale but while doing that we should remember the principle of group economics which igbos and Jews are noted for.

Udo diri unu

One billion likes for this comment.

But sieving through all the crappy opportunists who would apply to buy it in order to find the right folks to sell it to is like searching for a needle in a hay sack. Modotel was able to do it because it was a private enterprise, government is notoriously fond of selling to the wrong group who are able to bribe and influence due process.

Anyhow, one hopes the State government puts the hotel up for sale and ensure the right group that can manage a 5 star hotel is handed the edifice.

Since Nigeria has showed promise of dominating Africa and by extension the world economically, there has been a concerted covert effort to make sure it breaks up.

Personally, with the amount of hatred displayed by Nigerians towards other Nigerians, I have no incentive to pray the wishes of the super powers does not happen.

As long as murderous groups such as Boko haram are supported to wreck havoc by northern elites who habor an islamist agenda for Nigeria, I will never again oppose the whiteman's design against Nigeria. For the first time in history, their design may coincide with the wishes of a majority of Africans.

spyder880: Rotting away quietly in the centre of the city, the Hotel Presidential Enugu.

This is so sad.
If this hotel cannot be revived to compete, it can be converted into a specialist hospital, perhaps a stroke or cancer treatment and rehab. center or a type of training institute or even elementary school.

So sad to watch this building waste away!

docsholz: I love threads like this

tori olorun!

spyder880: Spyder posting from Harrold, North England

Bia Spyder,
Jokes aside, this store beats the one in England o! Is this in the Enugu Mall?
Jirikwa nwayo n'eme enjoy!

Kostadinis,
Thank you for the beautiful, well expressed post and the correction, Ndoni not Andoni. Yes, i meant Ndoni the Igbos in the group.

RareDiamond: WHY WON'T MEN USE AND DUMP YORUBA WOMEN WHEN THEY ARE UGLY AND DIRTY WITH STRETCH MARKS !!! IGBO'S CONTRIBUTES ALOT TO NIGERIA WHILE YORUBA'S ARE PARASITES. BELOW ARE PICTURES OF YORUBA WOMEN.

Abeg, make una stop dat line on Yoruba gals.
I dey jump one now and she sweet pass my ex ! She dey even do waterworks for me!
Which my ex no fit do!

I may not like yoruba politics, but i no go lie, Ekiti gals sweet pass anything in this world!
I must marry a yoruba gal because i like their typical pungent sweaty arm pit body odor , which somehow strangely ends up turning me on!
Maybe dem don jazz me using ewedu soup, but i strangely like yoruba gals and their body odor.

spyder880: Emene old road, around Ekochin industrial hospitals. Another base for a new bus stop, You can see the road marking team in action in the distance.

Beautiful !!!
Our Papa and Mama can sit comfortably in a bus stop while waiting for a bus or taxi to come by! Splendid!!!
I thank the Peoples' governor for this great consideration of our older folks.

Because they were declared winner, it is suddenly the freest and fairest election in Nigeria. When they lose, it's a sham election conducted by Jega who had been bought over!
Useless corrupt men.

Because they were declared winner, it is suddenly the freest and fairest election in Nigeria. When they lose, it's a sham election conducted by Jega who had been bought over!
Useless men.

[size=15pt]The scientific definition of a Parasite![/size]
A parasite is an organism that lives in another organism, called the host, and often harms it. It is dependent on its host for survival - it has to be in the host to live, grow and multiply. A parasite cannot live independently. Although a parasite rarely kills the host, in some cases it can happen. The parasite benefits at the expense of the host - the parasite uses the host to gain strength, and the host loses some strength as a result.
- Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014.

Even though the statement above was made in reference to parasitic diseases and organisms, it sounded as though it was referring to northern Nigeria's relationship with the rest of the country. So how else can northern Nigeria truly define their relationship with the rest of the country than just sucking others dry under the false pretenses that we are all one?

abagoro: The factory is already in Imo State ate a town known as Akabo near Owerri. Last December the Governor ordered for 50 which he gave out to some youths in order to patronise the company "Eagle Motors".

http://www.eaglemotorsint.com/#

Excellent news! I'm happy to hear about this! It is really heartening to learn that our people are utilizing the business opportunity to produce what we use. In that way they can minimize the colossal foreign exchange wasted on importation of simple machines that we can make ourselves. Thus creating employment for the youths, while producing economically useful tools & machines.

Now this manufacturer must do the next phase of the work by ensuring easy access of his products across all the markets in Nigeria. He must find distributors for his products in all the major markets in order to compete with the Vietnam made foreign imported Keke which has already flooded the markets in Nigeria!

Bishop42: Can someone pls tell Innocent Motors to start fabricating beautiful Kekes of this nature for Enugu,Anambra or Imo. We really need to get innovative rather than importing all manner of nonsense in the name of keke into South East

Bros,
You are absolutely right! We often focus on producing the big machines and truck which many cannot afford, yet the everyday machines used to run our economies such as decent Keke Napep is continuously imported from Vietnam and China!

Another simple machine i agonize about is the simple lawn mower. Any lawn mower in Nigeria is ridiculously expensive and of course imported! So it is hard for people to buy one and you hardly see any well maintained lawn anywhere in Nigeria, except the big 5 star hotels! In Kenya and many East African countries, the use of lawn mowers to maintain public parks, university play grounds and private homes is common and wide spread.
Abroad, lawn mowers cost between $100 to $300 dollars. Which is about N17,000 - N50,000 naira! Yet i can tell you no state government environmental crew has lawn mowers! The way to maintain grass lawns is to excavate the grass with hoes and machetes! Sometimes one asks if our behavior is out of ignorance of standard practices around the world or we just don't care about anything.

I wish INNOSON will popularize the manufacturing of lawn mowers in Nigeria in order to have the right tools for landscaping and beautification of Nigeria to be easily available and affordable here in Nigeria.

jpphilips: Lovely portharcourt roads

I went to PH today, same condition of roads above in Wogi and Elelenwo! What did people of PH do to deserve this type of neglect?
I can only say that We get the type of government we tolerate.
How can poor states as Enugu be able to keep hundreds of kilometers of roads good, while Rivers with a budget bigger than 50 % of African countries cannot maintain just PH?
That is really so unfortunate.

yarnings: 
Tambuwal’s comment
unsettles Presidency
House Speaker Aminu Tambuwal’s political hazy
future has unsettled the Presidency and the Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).
There were fears yesterday in the PDP that Tambuwal
is likely to defect to the All Progressives Congress
(APC).
It was also learnt that the ruling party has not
foreclosed “plans” to sack Tambuwal if he switches
over to APC, after making a “code statement”.
The PDP has used the ongoing vacation of the
National Assembly to woo Senators and members of
the House of Representatives to secure a comfortable
majority in the two chambers.
But it was learnt last night that Tambuwal has kept
his game plan to his chest. His decision on 2015 may
come be in the last minute.
There are rumours that he may either vie for a
presidential ticket or return to Sokoto State for the
governorship poll.
Investigation by our correspondent revealed that the
Speaker created unease in the Presidency and PDP
when he declared that “Nigeria deserves good
leadership in 2015”.
Also, when responding to a question on whether he
would defect to APC or not, he simply said: “Kowa ni
tsuntsu kukan gidan su yake yi”, which means “birds
of a feather flock together”.
Some Presidency and PDP chiefs, it was said
yesterday, regard Tambuwal’s comments as
“disloyal, lack of faith in the ruling party and a tacit
opposition to the re-election bid of President
Goodluck Jonathan”.
A highly-placed source said: “The comments of the
Speaker have caused some disquiet in the
government and at the party level.
“Some forces in the Presidency and PDP considered
Tambuwal’s comments as “anti-party” and lack of
support for Jonathan’s re-election bid.
“They are also claiming that the Speaker has
confirmed the suspicion that he has always had
sympathy for the opposition.
“These forces believe it would be a slight on the
ruling party for the number four to defect to APC.”
Asked of the next line of action, the source said: “I
think the PDP may not allow Tambuwal to beat it to
the game. Once he moves to APC, he may need to
vacate the office. This is why the party is already
consolidating its hold on the National Assembly.”
The PDP is wooing more lawmakers in the National
Assembly, especially members of the House of
Representatives.
The party is determined to have “a comfortable
majority” in the House of Representatives to take
charge.
“PDP has realised that it is a bit legally difficult to
sack some of its members who defected to APC from
the National Assembly. The process will have to go
from the lower court to the Supreme Court.
“The alternative is to ‘hijack’ the National Assembly,
especially the House, and dictate its pace.”
A source in Tambuwal’s camp said: “We know the
Presidency and the PDP have been uncomfortable
since the Speaker delivered his coded message.
“Their attack dogs have been abusing us in some
online media since Sunday. But they have forgotten
that democracy is about people and what they want
at any particular time.
“At the appropriate time, the Speaker will make his
plans for 2015 known to his constituents and
associates.”
Pressed to know the office the Speaker might seek in
2015, the source added: “Tambuwal has kept his
joker to himself. Not even his confidants can say his
mindset.
“He has some options which I think he won’t disclose
until the last minutes to the primaries for 2015 poll.
At best, you can say he is consulting.”. thenationonlineng.net/new/tambuwals-comment-unsettles-presidency/

Wetin concern agbero with overload? If he defects, remove him as speaker and crown somebody else from his sub-region. Life is all about adjusting to changes.

Jets are useless against fast moving insurgent groups like Boko Haram, just like tanks are useless in mountainous terrain. What you need is a flying tank. They are called [size=16pt]Attack Helicopters![/size]
They can hover, seek out the well hidden terrorists especially at night if you equip them with infra-red night vision equipment and can concentrate devastating firepower on the insurgents when they are found. Jets will continue to fly over Sambiba at great speeds and will not observe anything!

The intelligence you are referring to may be special forces tracking the Boko haram movements in Sambisa and calling in devastating helicopter gunship attacks when they are spotted.

kostadinis: Part of being a developed mind is the ability to examine issues from different perspectives. A little SWOT analysis on an issue like this is quite normal There is nothing 'primitive' in discussing the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats to the two promising airports in Igboland. We can learn one or two things by confronting ourselves with the issues we don't like or want to talk about. Such is the essence of here. At the end, the beautiful thing is that a future international operations at Asaba airport visavis Enugu is being discussed. All to the benefit of the greater Igbo nation.

Bros ' primitive' in my post did not mean one is primitive. Read it again. It means man's natural or primordial fears or instincts. Sort of our reflex response. My apologies if you thought I referred to you as being 'primitive'

By the way, I was just teaching a bunch of fellas how to evaluate their system and I found myself using this your okpotokpo oyibo SWOT analysis( strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats).

Anyhow, my point was that we should not believe in the principle of cut off my one leg in order to help the other leg to grow bigger. The body was created together as a UNIT for a reason. Any part that is disfigured or neglected in order to help another part will cause the individual or the entire unit problems. The same reason Asaba was created to remain as a UNIT in Igboland either as part of Nigeria or Biafra.

I know two Igbo brothers that agonize so much about which of them was considered richer . They sometimes publicly did and said horrible things about each other and seriously agonized about which of them their community considered to be the richer man! Imagine how satan had used this family's supposed blessing to become their greatest curse!
They were a happy family when they were poor and lived in a one room apartment in Ketu as kids! So, why was it so difficult for these blood brothers to realize they could be greater if them teamed up and complimented each other rather than fighting to destroy each other? I happened to have attended school with the younger one and I would always ask him why the negative focus on making sure his own brother isn't richer instead of focusing on Dangote or Abiola who are truly the rich men you should focus on to surpass?

The point here being that we seem to be locked in an unfortunate mentality or negative focus on ourselves that if Onitsha is developed, it somehow robs Owerri, Aba or Enugu. We must grow past that negative mentality and focus on greater things, such as the fact that Dubai and Abu Dhabi being only a few kilometers apart in a tiny country of less than 2 million people, yet have both thrived to become world class business cities !

atlwireles: By Abiodun Alade,@biodunpen
Former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory and chieftain of the All Progressive Congress, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, has said that he will consider the option of defection to the People Democratic Party, PDP when satan repents and converts to Islam.
He made the assertion in reply to a question by one of his followers on twitter, stressing that he will hardly take the option. This is coming in the wake of the defection of his friend and former Presidential candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
El-Rufai is a former stalwart of the PDP and served the government during the Olusegun Obasanjo tenure.




- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/08/will-join-pdp-satan-converts-islam/#sthash.IquDtWLU.dpuf

Funny that El rufai said that.....
Satan has not only since converted, but has also since been made the 'god' of Islam.
Ask ISIS or Boko haram!

jazzydee: There is a seaport in onne rivers state that is close to igbo land and portharcout is linked by rail to Aba, Enugu all the way to maidugri. the rail is being rehabilitated at the moment, I think the part from PH to enugu is completed.

By the way the deep sea port At Ibaka Akwa Ibom, is what everyone from the former eastern region and all other parts of Nigeria farther away from lagos should support. because it will change the economy of the eastern part of Nigeria. Besides its strategic importance, it will serve as a transshipment point because of its Natural draught and access to the Open ocean which will allow the largest ships in the world to berth without any need for constant port maintenance ie dredging which has been the bane of most ports in Nigeria. the trans shipment points will now make all other ports in Nigeria which are accessible by smaller ships/barges functional.

onitisha, calabar, warri, onne, and even the proposed port in Abia state will all become viable in cluding all the surrounding african countries around that flank as they will simply get their goods from ibaka and transport it with smaller ships/barges to the respective ports.
A deep seaport is what Nigeria needs.

The port in Obiaku, Abia state holds the ace. If you have ever closely looked at the Nigerian map, that river in question is about 500 to 600 meters wide and flows directly into the ocean via the Onne port, without the usual bends and dissipation as small tributaries other rivers have as they approach the ocean. A little dredging will do the wonders.
The other one that holds promise is the Ibeno Beach in Afikpo on the Cross river. That may require a lot of dredging though to have it functional.
The Onitsha port has the advantage of being situated in a commercial city. Thus whatever it costs to bring goods there may be absorbed by business men. But the disadvantage is that the numerous tributaries to the ocean are narrow and full of bends.
Either way, do not believe the manipulators that lie to you that the SE has no access to the sea. They exactly know these routes and have been working silently to use state creations to close them completely.

Imagine that they want to create an 'oil rivers state' yet they want Igboland oil areas as Andoni to be included ! It's not just about a desire to seize all the Igbo oil producing communities along the southern River Niger, it is also about their desire to completely remove Igbo control from parts of our land leading to the sea. So that their lie that Igboland has no access to the sea can finally be achieved.

kostadinis: The AIIA is certainly the major facility that is expected to transform Enugu into a vibrant city. This said, the potential strategic threat to the AIIA by the Onitsha/Nnewi/Asaba industrial triangle is often neglected. The triangle is the fastest growing commercial/industrial axis in the SE/SS after the Trans Amadi ind. Layout in PH. This is so much so that the number of airlines flying into Asaba airport has surpassed Enugu in less than two years of the airport's operation. Overland, Arik and Aero are currently locked in a tight competition at Asaba as against two airlines to Enugu.

It wasn't long the Delta state government revealed the state's plan to start scheduled Asaba-Far East flights, especially to Singapore. This was instructive. It got many AIIA enthusiasts worried, but not everyone as the Onitsha and Nnewi chambers of commerce have had a good working relationship with current business savvy Delta state governor. On the other hand, Enugu and Asaba are two native Igbo cities. And so makes it tricky to say much on the subject.....reminiscent of the relocation of Nollywood to Asaba.

However, the fate of AIIA if an international flight was to take off from Asaba is better not imagined. Some form of agreement must have to be reached in this regard. But this can be quite difficult in view of the fact that Anioma state is yet to be created. It will be difficult to discuss such an issue with a non Igbo governor at the Asaba government house.

As the political capital city of Ndigbo, it is our collective responsibility to make the city of Enugu work. While banking on the AIIA, current and future governments of Enugu should strive to do more in the areas of FDI and industrialisation. Like you said, real investments.

Conjectures and primitive fears are the problem we face in Igboland which were unfortunately inherited from our mentality of dealing with the cheating going on in Nigeria. I remember when some transporters rallied together to frustrate an airport in Oba or anywhere in Anambra claiming it will ruin their business and take ALL their passengers!
Since Asaba airport, we know how false that conjecture was! Same way Yorubas screamed that an International route in Enugu will kill Lagos airport! I am waiting for the day that there would be no passengers in Lagos because of Enugu! The funny thing is that a second intl. airport is bring built in Lekki, yet nobody is complaining that it would take Lagos airport passengers!

Ask yourself why does the International airport in Cotonou and Lome survive since there is a bigger intl. airport in Lagos less than 100 miles away? The truth is that international airlines don't conduct business like motor parks. They look at the routes versus the passenger traffic.

So eventually, Asaba will be a busier intl. airport than Enugu, but will not stop Enugu from operating. Just as Asaba will evetually be busier than Kano, PH and Abuja, but won't stop people from using those airports.
It may have Emirates and Many Eastern sirlines which may be preferable for traders going to Dubai or China, while other Igbos in the Western Hemisphere may prefer Enugu via KLM, Air France etc. remember that 90% of Igbos in the Western Hemisphere prefer connecting from Lagos, because Addis Ababa is way too far.

So there is room for every city to grow. The unfortunate mentality that we have inherited from Nigeria that I can only make it by killing you is indeed an unfortunate conjecture.

abagoro: Knowledge is very important for any one to make useful contribution. Based on old census from the 60s Ogbomosho was then one of the largest cities in Nigeria but it has dropped today as evidenced from the last 2006 census. This is the NPC ranking of Nigerian cities and urban areas by population. Onitsha for example has a much smaller city population when compared with urban population which if included pushes it up to the 7th position.

City Population Urban Area Population
1.Lagos. 8029200. 9123200
2.Kano. 3248700. 3519500
3.Ibadan. 3078400. 3670400
4.Kaduna. 1458900. 1458900
5.Port Harcourt. 1053900. 1190600
6.Benin. 1051600. 1051600
7.Maiduguri. 971700. 971700
8.Zaria. 898900. 898900
9.Aba. 784500. 899100
10.Ilorin. 756400. 756400
11.Jos. 742100. 742100
12.Ogbomosho. 726300. 985600
13.Oyo. 620400. 620400
14.Enugu. 593300. 662800
15.Abeokuta. 529700. 698100
16.Onitsha. 509500. 1001000
17.Warri. 500900. 500900
18.Sokoto. 500500. 500500

Knowledge indeed! The same figures none of the regional governments accepted is now basis for your 'knowledge'. Just a glance on the map of west and central Africa showing the location of the dense population in comparison to the abnormality in Nigeria's distribution bares the population lie open for all to see
If Sahara desert were part of northern Nigeria, it will have 100 million people officially living there, but since it is not Nigerian territory, it has less than 10,000 people living in it!

The world knows Nigerian statistics cannot be trusted because they are heavily influenced by the country's politics and revenue distribution. That is why until the present day, the UN use "estimates" to describe Nigeria!

Nigeria is the ONLY West African country with the abnormal population distribution of more people living in the arid north than the south! If the artificial borders were not enforced by the colonialists, what is the difference between northern Nigeria to northern Cameroon, Togo, Benin republic, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire or even Guinea?

With the crap census distribution Nigeria displays, Niger republic, Mali or Burkina Faso should all be more populated than Nigeria since in Nigeria's case, the population increases towards the Sahara desert than the well documented phenomenon of towards the coast!

If true federalism were practiced and no region needs to inflate its numbers in order to steal from others, then you will see how hilarious your numbers are. But until that day comes , you can continue to pluck out figured from your arsse as population census.

Even though intimidation and violence are used to perpetuate and force the hilarious blatant lie into books as "official" we all know it is a lie. So quit trying here to post those figures which have globally been certified to be fictional.