₦airaland Forum

As we have all witnessed over the last few, the path of national development is not always smooth one.

On our journey to building our nation into all that God has blessed Nigeria to be, we will go through many rough patches but we must stay together, walk together and work together until we arrive at our desired glorious destination.

To build our beloved country Nigeria into a most desirable society to live in may be considered by some to be an improbable quest, a near mission impossible.

But the secret to all impossibility is revealed by God when He said,  "If these people as ONE people, speaking with ONE voice have begun to do this, then NOTHING that they imagine shall be IMPOSSIBLE for them."

We may differ in opinion on key issues affecting our nation but we must not let our differences divide us. We are ONE NATION and ONE PEOPLE with ONE GLORIOUS DESTINY.

Yet, as the debates/activities on the fuel subsidy removal ensue, I am compelled to bring to your immediate attention, a looming crisis of unimaginable consequences if not well-handled by our government, leadership and populace.

On Jan 3rd, a faceless terrorist group called the Boko Haram issued a 3-day ultimatum asking all Nigerians of Southern Nigerian origin and all Christians to "leave" the Northern Nigerian states.

The Boko Haram's threat was directed to all Southerners (regardless of whether they were Muslims or whether they were born and bred in the North) as well as all Christians (regardless of whether they are originally from a Northern state.)

So as to be taken seriously, the Boko Haram attacked and killed 20 NIGERIANS of South-Eastern origin whilst at having a town hall meeting in Mubi and on the same day killed another 10 NIGERIANS in Maiduguri, Adamawa State. 6 NIGERIANS were also killed when assailants stormed the Deeper Life church in Bogo, Gombe State.

Today, 4 NIGERIANS were killed by Boko Haram assailants who attacked a bus in Yobe state carrying Christian Igbo traders fleeing the northern Nigeria for their homeland.

Consequently, yesterday the 10th of January, a group known as the Niger-Delta Indigenous Movement for Radical Change (NDIMRC) issued reprisal ultimatums giving all Nigerians of Northern origin 21 days to leave the Niger-Delta or face attacks.

Today, another group - the Biafran Liberation Council (BLC) - has issued a similar 7-day ultimatum to northerners and Muslims in the Southern part of the nation to leave the area or be ready to become "victims".

Just like the Boko Haram, the NDIMRC and the BLC has issued this malicious threats to fellow Nigerians based on ethnicity and regardless of place of birth.

Somehow, in the heat of the debates and preparations for protest against the fuel subsidy removal, these abonimable acts of murder against unarmed and defenseless Nigerians and the subsequent ultimatums have been glossed over with a grossly-inadequate response by all and sundry.

These abominations just haven't received the adequate and appropriate reactions from leaders of thought and influence in government and society as it deserved. Through our silence, WE have ALL collectively failed our fellow countrymen who have lost their lives.

Left unchecked, Nigerians may over the next few days be 'surprised' by the most abominable acts of ETHNIC CLEANSING.
Just because the calculated misdeeds of a faceless terrorist group, Nigerians may soon label their fellow Nigerians as 'kinsman' or 'enemy' based on where their parents are from and not their contribution to the society or common thread of national unity that binds us together as Nigerians.

History is replete with stories of the unthinkable consequence of ethnic based attacks. In Nigeria, similar attacks ultimately led to the civil war in 1967. Remember that in 1994, about 800,000 Tutsis were massacred by extreme Hutu nationalists in the Rwandan genocide. The Czechoslovakia Serbs and Muslims.
Over 6million Jews were massacred by Adolf Hitler and his army in the worst ethnic cleansing in world history.

The question is "can we learn from lessons of the past and apply today to secure our future?"

The most amazing thing about every ethnic crises was that they were all triggered by seeming inconsequential threats and actions that many brushed aside as mere nonsense.

The immediate consequences of this overlooked atrocities include targeted attacks and killing of defenseless Nigerians. We've seen this happen already. So this is not fiction. What we are witnessing may inspire reprisal attacks and hatred of fellow Nigerians of another ethnicity.

Again left unchecked, this may degenerate into wanton destruction of lives and property and consequently a mass exodus and forced relocation of Nigerians within their own country.

Let me make this clear,  All our debates and arguments about Fuel Subsidy removal will be inconsequential if we do NOTHING about this impending threat to our NATIONAL UNITY.

I therefore seize this moment to call on all Nigerians to condemn the attacks and threats by Boko Haram as well as the ultimatums issued by the NDIMRC and the BLC.

I call on all our elder statesmen and members of the Council of State to IMMEDIATELY arise and meet with all the key traditional rulers from all the geopolitical regions of our nation. They MUST condemn the attacks and threats with ONE VOICE.

I call on all religious leaders (Christian and Muslim) particularly the leaders of all the major religious associations to IMMEDIATELY meet and stand together to condemn all attacks and ensue for peace with ONE VOICE.

Let us all remember that Boko Haram does not represent the Northern Nigeria (otherwise they won't be killing their own kinsmen and destroying the land).

Boko Haram does not represent Islam (otherwise they shouldn't be killing our Muslim brothers and sisters as they have done indiscriminately).

As we have seen recently, the puppet masters behind these dastardly and cowardly acts of terrorism are highly placed power-seeking wealthy politicians who seek to divide us and weaken our resolve to build our nation.

But they shall not prevail. We WILL not be divided. We must be UNITED in bid to retrieve the soul of our nation, restore our faith and revive our hope in the future of a new Nigeria. We MUST rebuild our beloved country into a nation that we will all be proud to deliver to our children and future generations.

We must all act with ONE PURPOSE,  to keep Nigeria one is a task that must be done.

We must all stand together as ONE PEOPLE,  though tribe and tongue may differ in brotherhood we stand.

We must all speak with ONE VOICE and condemn every ethnic attack, threats and ultimatums.

Even in the midst of the on-going fuel subsidy removal impasse, it is time for you to speak out and let your voice be heard.

God bless you and God bless Nigeria.
FD

koruji:
Ah Kobojunkie, that language is unlike you now. Is it? I was just joking abou the jealous thing o.

You obviously have an axe to grind with me. If it is something I said, please don't take it personally. Seriously.

Get back at me if you must, but don't waste your time on behalf of that chameleon that calls himself Beaf.

In reality, this thread was not directed at Beaf but GEJ and all the NLers that Beaf personified (that is why I used Beafs). They are the only ones who have benefited from this mess created by GEJ. GEJ himself is losing on all sides, but these hanger-ons were having such a great time of their lifes even as policemen shot & killed Nigerians one after the other.

Emekamex:
It beats my imagination why northern Nigerians raise the issue of secession, when actually they are the one pulling Nigeria backward. Dont they know that:
1. They have the highest illiteracy of about 70% of their population not able to read or write.
2. They have the highest disease occurence due to the fact that they dont receive vaccines due to ignorance and illiteracy.
3. They have little natural resources available when compared to other parts of Nigeria.
4. Their climate and land cant support adequate food production since most of them are deserts.
5. They have the highest birth rate when most cant even cater for themselves.
The list goes on and on. If I were in their shoes I will be praying for peace because they will be worst hit if the country eventually divides.

Kobojunkie:
[b]That is a dumb comment, as far as I am concerned. Boko Haram does not speak for any other group in Nigeria except for the few hundred brainwashed nitwits that belong to the sect. [/b]The group does not even pretend to speak for any ethnic group in the north, let alone any people out there, apart from their own selves. Their agenda is simply along religious lines and any tom, di_ck and harry, could do just about the same, but that don't make 'em legit. jeezzzz!!

GboyegaD:
The increase is due to the monies with which he bribed those who supported him at the primaries and the monies distributed to the various states during the last year April election. Most of those billions PDP spent was added to subsidy expense and now, they are trying to fool Nigerians thinking we are like them who do not use their brain.

Beaf:
And if the country splits, will you be coming for offsore oil from Kano and Ibadan? I can't fit laf!

digidamage:
Back to the main issue. WHy the hullabaloo about the fuel subsidy and the subsequent decision to remove it? simple, because it suddenly went up to N1.6trillion naira. In 2009 & 2010 it averaged N270billion, or thereabout. So why the 500% increase in a year?
First, a few facts.
[b]Between January 2011 and March 2011, FG paid an average of N22billion monthly as subsidy. At that rate, we would have paid around N264billion (which was close to the N240billion budget signed by the National Assembly). However, something happened afterwards. From April 2011, subsidy increased to over N100billion monthly and stayed that way until the end of the year. Don't forget, April was the mont of the elections. [/b]This is what we need to look into.
The funny thing, and i shudder as i think of this, is that there might be no cabal afterall. And even if they exist, they are not the ones who submitted the 2012 budget proposal to the National Assembly last December. The didn't propose a billion naira for feeding in the presidency. The didnt propose N300k for desktop computers etc.
In any case, Nigerians didn't vote for the so called CABALS. These blame-game by the Jonathan regime must stop

Gbawe:
When focus moves onto the senators, to the point they are now targets of raw anger, they will impeach GEJ. At least they can live to eat another day under Sambo than drown with a ship that will surely sink if GEJ continues to think he can subdue the majority in a throwback to days when 'strongmen' got away with bullying Nigerians. Self-preservation will make the Senators act. Impossible to deploy all the Policemen in Nigeria to Abuja. If anger swells enough, then no one can really protect these guys better than themselves via giving Nigerians what they are demanding.

ifyalways:
Oh,so there are still unarmed Igbos in the North?Serves them blooody right!

Seems some people are willingly offering themselves as sacrificial lambs,i can't afford to lose sleep or shed a tear or two for such folks.

Even after BH sounded their warning,the Northerns left enmasse from the east wow,Ukpana Ogboko gburu,owughi nani nti chiri ya,onwu na-agu ya.

fork adict:
Was this not the same GEJ that couldnt step up to Turai and a few of Yaradua's cabinet members when he was supposed to assume office as acting President? It took the National assembly to help him out.

Is this not the same GEJ that has said time and again that Boko haram has high-up ties in the government but doesnt have the guts to bring both boko haram and their sponsors to book despite the mayhem and anarchy the goons unleash on the land?

Is this not the same GEJ that admits the existence of a cabal in the oil sector but doesnt have the guts to tackle them head on?

Suddenly he has the guts to tackle 150 million nigerians at once (excluding the direct and indirect beneficiaries of the corruption in the oil sector?!

Jona.  Na who give you liver? E too sure say God go punish you. You no go die better!!!

Abagworo:
This is exactly what happened after the elections. I pray PDP comes to an end through this subsidy drama. I also know that the next action to be taken by PDP is to hire thugs to go and kill Youth corpers or Christians and blame anti-PDP protesters just like they did after the elections.

Nigerians are wiser now and will not fall for that devilish bait again

A group, Coalition of Niger Delta Youths, yesterday, threatened to shut down oil facilities belonging to various multi-national oil companies in the region if government fails to revert to N65 per litre in line with the yearnings of the majority of the Nigerian masses.



The Coalition comprising of the Ijaws of the Niger-Delta, the Itsekiris, Urhobos, Isokos and the Igbo speaking part of Delta State, gathered in their thousands in Warri to stage the peaceful protest, as they marched round some major streets in the area obstructing traffic while chanting anti- Jonathan songs.



Some of the placards carried by the youths have inscriptions such as, ‘Jonathan, don’t impoverish Nigerians,’ ‘Nigeria’s major problem is corruption not subsidy,’ ‘Niger- Delta Youths reject subsidy removal,’ ‘Federal Government tackle insecurity, poverty, hunger,’ ‘Federal Government rehabilitate Nigeria’s refineries now,’ among others.



The leader of the Niger-Delta Youth Coalition, Chief Michael Johnny, said they are against the removal of fuel subsidy because the president left some teething issues that bother on security to be pursuing policies that would bring hardship upon the citizenry of this country.



‘What we are saying is no to fuel subsidy removal. The reason why we are saying no to fuel subsidy is that Nigerians were not part of this decision. The economy is bad. We were paying N1,000.00 for transportation from Warri to our villages in the creek but now we are paying N10,000.00. You cannot say removal of fuel subsidy is to help the poor and it is the poor people that are suffering it.’



‘We are giving President Jonathan 24 hours ultimatum to reverse the pump price to N65 and failure to do so, we will go back to our communities and when we go back to our communities, we will ensure that all the oil installations in the creek is made not to work.



The president said he has come up with alternative to cushion the effect of the removal on the masses. The alternative did not go down well with Nigerians. Our oil accounts for over 90 per cent of the financial resources of this country and yet there is nothing to show for it here.



Let the president know that if he fails to reverse the pump price we are going to shut down oil production in this part of the country,’ Chief Michael Johnny warned.



Also speaking, the Secretary of Unemployed Graduates in Delta State, Comrade Agbefa Ogoloyiyo, said the removal of fuel subsidy was repugnant to natural justice because it was going to bring great pains and suffering to the people of Nigeria.



He added that President Jonathan has betrayed the trust the people of the Niger-Delta had on him that made them to vote for him during the last elections. ‘Our stand is that the subsidy should not be removed’.

koruji:
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itSn4E6djnQ?version=3&feature=player_popout" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="500" height="300"></object>[/flash][/center]

Beaf:
[size=14pt]How N50bn intended bribe forced Jonathan to ignore the advice by PDP[/size]
FRESH facts emerged yesterday that the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to remove fuel subsidy on January 1 was to forestall bribe plans by some petroleum products marketers and smugglers to bribe the National Assembly members to the tune of N50 billion naira ($312.5 million).

Posted at 11/01/2012 01:07 AM | Updated at 11/01/2012 01:07 AM
By Simon Imobo-Tswam, Henry Omunu, Emma Johnson, Abuja

FRESH facts emerged yesterday that the decision of President Goodluck Jonathan to remove fuel subsidy on January 1 was to forestall plans by some petroleum products marketers and smugglers to bribe the National Assembly members to the tune of N50 billion naira ($312.5 million).


According to the PDP’s chieftain, who pleaded anonymity, the president, however, learnt, at the last minute, of a plan by petroleum marketers and smugglers to bribe federal lawmakers with N50 billion to include allocation for subsidy in the budget.

Said he: ‘At some point towards the close of 2011, the president got information about a gang up by petroleum importers and cross-border smugglers against his planned subsidy removal, which is the kernel of the deregulation project in the downstream sector.

‘He learnt that they had voted a whooping $312 million which is about N50 billion to lobby or bribe the National Assembly members, and thus, make them to insist on the retention of subsidy in the budget by making a provision for it.

‘Once this was done, the president would have been helpless as expunging the clause or provision would have triggered an executive-legislative fight. And mind you, even if he refused to assent to it, the House and the Senate would easily pass it with an overwhelming majority; thus, making themselves champions of the masses’.

He went on: ‘So to pre-empt the scenario, especially with his memory of how the National Assembly killed the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) after alleged inducement from the major oil companies, including sponsored foreign junkets, Jonathan had to act fast.

‘This is why he broke his promise to labour and seemingly rejected the advice of his party and representations from well-meaning statesmen like Chief Obasanjo, Gen. Babangida and Gen. Yakubu Gowon’.


http://www.momentng.com/en/news/5936/how-n50bn-intended-bribe-forced-jonathan-to-ignore-the-advice-by.html

DRANOEL:
what makes people one is affirnity with each other. most of the so called MB tribes have nothing (absolutely nothing) in common! for instance theres nothing in common btw the igala and the berom man,neither is there anything in common btw the bachama and mada man.the tivs are so distinct from the others! MB is just an idea of forming a front of minorities against the hausa/fulani. most of these MB tribes have an affirnity with the hausa through years of intermingling the exception being the eastern central ones i.e igala,tiv,idoma!