₦airaland Forum

Aro Diva:
[b]wats personal about my question[/[/color]b]

so sorry, i actualy meant Deejay,

PapaBrowne:
Let me start by acknowledging the fact that the Bakare pick by Buhari, has improved Buhari's fortunes desperately. In many online polls I've come across of recent, Buhari/ Bakare's popularity has skyrocted sometimes surpassing that of Jonathan. What I observed however, is that the biggest loser is Ribadu. All his fans seemed to drift enmass to the Buhari/Bakare ticket. Jonathan's popularity remains good, just a little less than the early days.
Given the fact that Buhari controls the North West with 19 Million Voters and has a pretty Good Showing in the South West, you would think Victory should be certain for CPC.
However, I'm 1000% sure that after a free and fair election come May 29th Buhari would not be anywhere near Aso rock for the simple reasons stated below

mama-gee:
[color=deeppink]There's absolutely nothing beautiful in those pictures.[/color]

Superbrain:
It's one of two things- either you're blind and need to see an optometrist or you need deliverance from the spirit of pessimism.

Aro Diva:
abeg make person hear word,  i have sent money twice to a friend leaving in uk. i agree its not easy over there but neither is it easy here in naija. i get to pay tax(trust me heavy tax), bills on generator, car repairs due to bad roads, kids sch fees, nannys salary, extended family etc.) some pple over there are simply paranoid and have this preconceived notion that people over here are lofers(sp, ?) and call to demand for money. pls get over urselves!

AjanleKoko:
Apologies if I sound sarcastic, but . . . opportunism?
This is opportunism Nigerian-style. Men like Adenuga and Dangote have access to exclusive government patronage plus stolen government funds through the people they proxy for. Funds to the tune of billions of dollars. People may not like to hear this, but the state-owned Nitel employed far more people, and invested in far more infrastructure than Adenuga has ever done with Glo, or can ever do. Why did NITEL, or now PHCN, fail to serve, and continue to fail to serve Nigerians? Are we the first or only nation to have state-run utilities? Why are ours cesspits of corruption and incompetence? Do we even think about those things?

Among businessmen, Dangote and a few other Northern entrepreneurs are forever villified as part of the crew that ensured Nigeria never had a functioning railway, just to boost their haulage trucking business. If not for twisted logic, how can we even begin to refer to such men as visionaries?

Don't you stop for a moment and think how many Dangotes and Adenugas would have been created in an environment where the basic human rights are guaranteed? Rights to life, security, education, healthcare, justice? It's just sad how Nigerians think the only problem they have is money, and once they get enough of it, they're good. Really said indeed.

Or you think the area boys, criminals, and destitutes wilfully chose to be such? Don't take this the wrong way, but if you were suddenly hit by a truck in Lagos and dumped in Igbobi orthopaedic hospital, you would have a quick rethink on this your 'patriotism' mindset. There are deep-rooted social problems in Nigeria created as a result of the lack of leadership and medieval style approach to governance, and it takes more than just individual will to correct it. We need a social revolution, and until that happens, people will continue to vote with their feet.

If you read BusinessDay, you'll probably know about Opeyemi Agbaje. He once wrote about how Fashola impressed him by being the only politician to come to a public gathering with powerpoint slides highlighting what exactly his agenda was for Lagos state. I found that highly amusing, as it tells you how disgustingly crass and self-serving the polity is in this country, such that a politician with an agenda is seen as an oddity. We don't even know what these people are supposed to do in office, so nobody bothers to ask. When they now proceed to loot public purse, everybody acts surprised. Like Fela said, 'na so African man life be, suffer don dabaru him sense'!

Just for your information, I live and work in Nigeria, and have never lived abroad, except for a very brief spell. So don't take this as another ranting from a 'frustrated Nigerian abroad'.

cap28:
Bro, thanks for posting that, i just watched the RT link  interesting, im suprised that the  british intelligence agent was willing to openly admit that britain has been responsible for subverting and in numerous cases overthrowing regimes that refuse to co-operate with the UK.

On the whole i think the intelligence agent in your clip was being very diplomatic, she didnt give away too much,  of course britain has been trying to get rid of Gadaffi for years, of course britain has been providing political asylum to individuals who have tried to oust Gadaffi, of course britain is stil invovled in covert activities in collusion with these traitors to try and remove Gaddaffi, these people are more than likely behind this current crisis in Libya.

cap28:
Deejay i thank God there are people like you on this forum.

America and Britain did not become empires by playing by the rules - skullduggery, deceit, saying one thing while meaning the opposite are traits which are characteristic of the  british and american ruling elite who are determined to stop at nothing in order to ensure that they retain their grip on the world's wealth.  The powers that be in whitehall and washington are behind these revolutions, i am as certain of this as the fact that night follows day.

The point you raised about Saudi arabia is very important - will any uprising occur there? i think we both know the answer to that.  The Saudi Royal family have billions of dollars of investments in the US, they are close friends and business associates with the Bush family, the Clintons and many other senior members of the american political elite.

The idea that Gadaffi is worse than those sycopathic murdererers is ludicrous, I pray that Gadaffi continues to stand strong and defy their evil machinations.

They say that you reap what you sow, i hope i willl be alive to see the day when america and britain will pay for the trail of misery and destruction that they have left in their wake all over the world.

pro01:
I'm not so sure about the point Mr. Lastpage is trying to make with his indeterminate and incoherent argument(s). On the one hand you suggest that the uprising in Libya is promoted by foreign elements particularly the US and Western Europe, and on the other hand you rail against "turn coats" and 'opportunists' within the Libyan government who want to cash-in (according to your reasoning) on the present situation for their own selfish-interests.

POINT 1 -  You also suggested earlier that the uprising in Libya and Egypt were stage-managed (so to say), and that only Tunisia's revolt was spontaneous. I don't consider these arguments convincing in the least.

The arab world is very close-knit and homogenous in character, and as such it is susceptible to any sort of political or ideological contagion. And so, while the revolts in Egypt and Libya were definitely inspired by the Tunisian example, they are no less spontaneous!

POINT 2  In all three cases, the revolts did not have any clear leader-figures or definite organization by civil rights groups or such bodies; the masses rose in unison to effect changes in government.

POINT 3 - If you argue that the United States or the West are the ones funding/promoting/instigating the uprising in Libya, the question is HOW? Certainly the ordinary Libyans have no contact with western media or western agents; and

POINT 4 - since there are no go-betweens or leader-figures for the protests, through whom did the United States channel its material, ideological, or logistical support for the uprising? ? ? This argument is clearly unsustainable and betrays your anti-Western bias. And in all three cases (Tunisia, Egypt, and now Libya), the catalysts for the revolts are the same: poor living conditions, unemployment, and frustration among the masses. What has that got to do with foreign instigation?

POINT 5 - Again, you express your bitter vexation against what you called "turn-coats" - i.e. the regime officials who resigned from Ghaddafi's government and switched support to the protesters.

What exactly are you talking about? I find this outrageous. The so-called turn-coats all became "turn-coats" due to Ghaddafi's unmitigated o*r*gy of brutal violence against the defenceless protesters that has left hundreds dead. The Justices, Ambassadors, Army officers, and Airforce colonels that turned their backs to Ghaddafi did so in protest against his brutal methods of dealing with the uprising and the sheer number of innocent people that have been massacred by Ghaddafi's goons. This, to me, is the height of conscientiousness on the part of the honorable officials who chose to support the beleaguered masses. I wonder why any rational person would regard such heroes as  'opportunists' and 'turn coats'! Do you prefer that they remained with Ghaddafi's murderous regime and carry out orders to exterminate the defenceless masses?

For sure The United States would be happy to get rid of Ghaddafi, no doubt. In fact, for so many years the CIA must have strategized on ways to eliminate him - all to no avail. . .until recently when the Madman of Libya decided to end his long isolation and reach a rapproachment with US and Europe.

POINT 6 - The US wouldn't believe its luck that the pain in the a*r*s*e called Ghaddafi may be booted out of power by popular uprising, no doubt about that. [/b]But to suggest that the US has any direct or indirect influence on that process is an entirely baseless argument.

[b]POINT 7 - Ghaddafi has being in power for 42 years, (and he is not even a monarch!). Nothing lasts for ever. [/b]Unfortunately for him, an unexpected (albeit long overdue) gale of revolution started sweeping across the middle east. . .and he will merely be a casualty of that gale, not of any US or western conspiracy as some of you so irrationally argue.

Kobojunkie:
^^^  Let us try to think CRITICALLY in ALL THINGS rather than lifting up the insanity of a man

---   US was at WAR in IRAQ and so imposing a no-fly zone is senseless
---   The US could not have done that AT THE TIME. I believe the act was condemned
---   it was during WAR

How does a leader declare War on UNARMED members of his own constituency? How does a leader now turn the guns, which he swore to protect his people with, on his own people? [/b]Unless someone is going to explain to us how it makes sense for a man to declare WAR on his own people and deciding they deserve death simply for calling for him to step down, I don't see why anyone would try to give credence to the words of a lunatic.

Dont be Ignorant, dont you live in the USA

Dont you know [b]"the pledge" [/b]that that those in the

"Intelligence Servie"

"Military Service"

"Politcal Service"

"Bureau Service"

take when the are sworn/contracted into office

Have you not heared them Quote the following Statement

[b]"I SWEAR TO DEFEND THE CONSTITUION OF THE UNITED STATES AGAINT
ALL ENEMIES BOTH FOREIGN & DOMESTIC",

lastpage:
Once again, l am appalled by the level of reasoning of many people on NL!
CAN WE JUST LOOK BEYOND THE SURFACE?
We should not risk coming across as being daft and gullible that we will just swallow ANYTHING, hook, line and sinker!

I apologize if l come across as "rude" (which is generally not my demeanor) but l hope anyone will understand that right now, I AM ANGRY!

WHY?
First: Lets put these whole "REVOLUTION" into context.
1.) It started in Tunisia, got copied in Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Lebanon, (cooking in Syria, Iran) then Libya.
2.) These are ALL Arabic/Muslim countries and we cant pretend we dont know their traditional/cultural/moral collisions with the West.
3.)Apart from Tunisia which was "spontaneous", all other ones are "instigated, propagated, support and even financed" from outside (The U.S announced 2weeks ago or so, it is increasing the amount of money it sets aside to support "activist" (another word for dissidents, saboteurs and foreign agents used to internally destabilize a country) by $30Million. ASK YOURSELF, HOW AND WHAT EXACTLY DO THEY DO WITH THESE MONEY?

4.) if there is "DISCONTENT" with a government in the West (just like we have with Obama V.s the Tea Party recently) do the people "violently overthrow" the government? Do other people finance (or have the right to) finance citizens who are against the current government OR do they wait till the next election to VOTE THEM OUT?
Recent Tuition fee increase in the U.K caused a lot of massive demonstration (and we say it all on T.V), did Nigerian or Egyptian or Russian government "comment, incite or encourage" the protesters? (even some of them were arrested and charged to court for criminal offenses). Why is it different when it comes to "Africans or Muslim countries"? Is it one law for them and another for the Western countries?

5.) Does anyone not know that there have been recent issues between U.K/U.S and Libya, especially with the Libyan, Lockerbie Bomber who was freed so U.K can exploit Libya's oil and then turn around to demand he be returned? What do you think this kind of people will do, at the slightest sign of a "crack" in the polity?
6.)On the issue "BLACK MERCENARIES"; Before now, we are aware that "White/fair-skinned North Africans (including Sudanese in central Africa, reason they recently voted to divide the country!) have a very deep dislike for Black/dark skinned citizens of their countries? Are we not aware that they have these "misplaced superiority complex" and think the darker ones are "lesser humans"? Do we not "experience" the same thing even in Nigeria, with our North-South dichotomy? How much more in North Africa? So, who best to blame for "inhumanity" than the same "black people"?

6.) There have been "stories" of massive human rights violation in Libya. We've heard that "Fighter Jets and Helicopter Gunships" have been used to attack the population. Is this a fact, propaganda or fiction?
Anyone who watched the "Shock and Awe" bombing of Iraq during the invasion will easily see the deceit in all these stories.
These "machines" dont kill in twos or threes, they kill in hundreds and to imagine that they are used on a "street with thousands of Protesters", then the death toll will equally be in the thousands! but so far, we have a tally of just over 200+, after about 3days of "bombing"! LKWMD

The Libyan authority has said it only "bombed/destroyed/neutralized" military depots [b]that were ransacked by looters so that the arms and ammunition there-in, would not be put to use against their own security agents.[/b] They did not target civilians or any human! But inorder to garner public sympathy, they chose to manipulate the truth, and we all swallow it too?!

7.) Ask yourself, where is all these "news" coming from? Are these sources credible? How come we did not see any VIDEO FOOTAGE of a Jet fighter "IN THE ACT" of bombing people (even if its from a mobile phone). How come its ONLY DEFECTORS that are telling us these "unsubstantiated stories"?

8.) Again, why did the U.K foreign Secretary "set up rumors" that the Libyan Gadafi has ran away from Libya, to Venezeula? Is it not to give a feeling of "fait accompli", that the revolution has succeeded? But The Man himself came out to tell us, l dey kampe   Even the Venezeulan govt has denied that farce! What was his interest and that of Britain in this matter, that he had to go that far?

9.) Looking at the picture of the "captured mercenary", do they look like YOU AND ME (being black Africans) or is this just another attempt to "colour me bad", since l am black?
Why are they "emphasizing" the "blackness" of that mercenary? Does Ghadafi have a history of likeness for dark-skinned Africans? NO!
How then can it now be the same set of people that are his mercenaries? Do we not know that Ghadafi has all sorts of trained, private security force (some are even Israelis, female, e.t.c , and can anyone recall the retinue of security men/women, that he brought to Nigeria, just a while ago?).

10.) The government has been accused of severing ALL COMMUNICATION LINKS yet "foreign-based commentators" keep telling us of how they called their family members in Libya, from the U.S and elsewhere, using normal phone-lines? Very contradictory and indicative of a massive propaganda!
Why was the U.S and E.U countries "first, more concerned with whether the new government after the revolution in Egypt, will be friendly towards Israel or not"? Does it not show us that its all about "selfish interest" and not "democracy and freedom" as the West claim?


11)Again, can we not see that "opportunist and traitors" are at work in these North African Revolutions? How on earth can you explain Ambassadors who are selected and posted to foreign countries by Ghadafi, to foreign lands, for years, without complain, suddenly turning against him from such foreign posts YET refusing to RESIGN!
Why did they not "speak-out" before now or when Tunisia was boiling?
Why is it now that they sense an opportunity, that Ghadafi's regime is gasping for breath?
Are these the kind of people that will now call themselves "revolutionist" so they can benefit from whats going on?(and they are all just posturing to grab political offices!)
I detest cowards, traitors, opportunist and turn-coats!
How do you explain all these "foreign-based government officials suddenly stabbing their own government in the back?
Just because they now see where the "wind is blowing"?
You cannot criticize a government that you're a part of (at least until the "People" took to the street). You should resign first and then tackle the government. This is what "fair-play and equity" demands

11.) Why did we not hear of "BLACK SECURITY" people in Libya, all these years, where did they suddenly spring from?
Did Ghadafi ferry them from Nigeria all of a sudden or are they Boko Harram

12.) Again, has anyone noticed the "difference in rhetoric" from countries in the E.U and U.S, when they speak about the "protest" in Libya and then in Bahrain! How come the tone is "subtle and reconciliatory" when it concerns Bahrain but very inflammatory, provocative and inciting when it comes to Libya?  (Both are ruled by dictators and sit-tights BUT one contains a U.S Naval strategic base (sixth fleet) and the other has no visible U.S interest!).
In fact, it was Bahrain that sent armed forces to attack protesters, while they were sleeping at the Square, in the night, using live ammunitions but THEY PLAYED IT DOWN IN THE MEDIA, no wonder Ghadafi referred to these media as "Dog Media"!

13.)Again, let us not forget that Libya itself is NOT a homogeneous entity like Egypt. They are just like Nigeria (with a seething undercurrent of civil war between Northern Libya (Tripoli) and Southern Libya (Benghazi areas). Some are taking these "protest" as an opportunity to "divide and secede" from the country. Some of them are very light-skinned while others are of a darker shade BUT THEY ARE ALL LIBYANS!
Some are just trying to 'inject' the ethnic/race/color angle into these protest, so as to gain more momentum.

14.) What happened in Tunisia and even right now in Libya is no different from what happened (is happening now in Belarus), the sit-tight President has rigged elections, killed oppositions and jailed others BUT the E.U or U.S is NOT promoting "chaos/revolution" over there!
They know better, that one is Europe naah!

While l do not favor dictatorship, while l am 100% for freedom, democracy and rule of law, l think there is a "deeper design" than what goes on in the surface. The common man has been used as a "canon-fodder" for too long!
This is the current focus of this rejoinder.

In summary,
*Let us not jump to conclusions.
*Let us "see the big picture" and put hings in perspective.
*Let us not fall for any manipulation by vested interests.
*Let us be 'hasty' to listen but very 'reluctant/slow' to speak/comment!
*Let us be wary of "Western Media" and be able to sift through some of the propaganda they sometime feed us. Remember, you 're only as informed as what you hear or read about!
*Let us be wary of those who promote "chaos" in our country (to resolve legitimate problems) but who themselves will never use such method but will  rather resort to democratic and legal means. At the end of the day, we would have o live and pay for whatever damage we cause to ourselves!
*Let us educate people from the West that "Africa" is a "continent" (not one country), made up of as many as 54 countries and counting. They should stop referring to one

BTW: I am neither Muslim, anti-West or a Libyan
I just choose to  look at issues from a dispassionate point of view.

ADELL:
hope mikel obi is listening? a word is enuf for the wise.

thameamead:
Its very easy for some daft footballers to earn millions of pounds and lose it, Kanu had money trouble yrs ago, his three cars were seized by baliffs and he had over £2.8M overdraft with the Royal Bank of Scotland, his house was nearly repossessed.

Jason Euell a former Chalton Athetic footballer filled for bankrupycy,according to The Daily Mail, he earned approximately £6M during his 16yr playing career but his signature was apparently forged in a failed property business, trust sport stars to never take the blame for anything and let someone else take the blame.

John Terry has had money woes, he's had to sell one of his million pound mansions in Oxshott to pay off his gambling debts, even Mr Roooney (who loves sleeping with love-peddlers) had to clear his huge gambling debts as well as Micheal Owen, don't think they are ever going to file for bankrupcy but they have lost millions gambling.

eku_bear:
Sounds interesting. Of course, the terms and details of the offer are critical.

fstranger3:
^^^

[size=18pt]ROFLMAO[/size]

You are incredible. Chop knuckle

cap28:
Bro Gadaffi is not one of the most evil dictators in the world,  as a matter of fact i would never use the adjective "evil" to describe him, you might want to try the Saudi Royal Family that carry out public beheadings, amputations and stonings and  are involved in extraordinary rendition with US approval (torturing of political prisoners deported from the US).

He is merely a scapegoat.  

America has been cosying up to some of the most brutal dictators and mass murderers  for as long as i can remember As long as those dictators  implemented neo liberal economic policies which favoured american multinationals then everythign was okay, however, the minute these dictators moved away from this and began to implement policies which favoured the poor ie land redistribution, imposition of a minimum wage, increased public spending on public services like schools, health care facilities etc they became a problem.  

Here are just a few of america's dictator pals: Pinochet of Chile, mass murderer and kleptocrat
Pol Pot of Cambodia - mass murderer  (who slaughtered millions of his own people including women and children)
Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire - mass murderer and kleptocrat
Sadam Hussein - mass murderer was a close ally to the US until he invaded Kuwait and  tried to start exporting  oil using euros instead of the reserve currency of dollars
Suharto of Indonesia - mass murderer and kleptocrat

Kobojunkie:
Quote from: EzeUche_ on February 18, 2011, 08:18 PM
Devaluation was a MAJOR part of the SAPs was it not? Coupled with opening up our economies to free trade.

U - SAID: Devaluing a currency has little or nothing to do with SAP . . . Our SAP package included that.

I wonder about your understanding of Basic Issues  sometimes 

Kobojunkie:
Quote from: GenBuhari on February 18, 2011, 07:04 PM
Buhari resisted devaluation and IBB came and devalued and ever since 90% Nigerians have been plunged into abject poverty.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
That is what we are on about

EzeUche_:
We need to protect our local industries. Aba should be the manufacturer capital of West Africa, so why open this flood gates?

rebranded:
“Despite world oil prices well in excess of the budget benchmark price, the government spent all current oil revenues and drew on savings in the Excess Crude Account, at a time when stabilisation called for a rebuilding of buffers. [/b]Despite high inflation, the CBN reduced the rate on its standing deposit facility. In response to pressure on the currency, the CBN sold reserves rather than raise interest rate or let the exchange rate depreciate. The CBN recently raised interest rates, but short-term real interest rates remain negative,” the IMF noted in the statement.

Source: http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/imf-proposes-devaluation-of-naira/86434/

Kobojunkie:
I will say they were right on that one. We have, over the years, embraced banning as a solution to our problems leading to us having so many things on our banned list. But as we have all learnt, that has not helped any. So, definitely reducing the items on the banned list was not a banned idea. Only it was supposed to go with line with development in other areas. We have been registering an average growth of 7% for straight 2 years, according to the books, so it makes sense with that to suggest removing some items from the list.

On Devaluation, why has it worked for China, and why can't we make it work for us in similar fashion?

1st of what is on the Banned List Industrial/Capital Goods or
Consumption/Perishable goods

notjustok:
Oga am sure your speaking from experience how ever you travelled or naturalized either by your mama giving birth to you out side naija there was an Or.ga.sm involved i dont mean to be disrespectful am only quoting you,  Nice and true quote anyway

Kilode?!:
^^ sir, there is very little difference between most African leaders and those foreign exploiters.

They were born, raised, schooled, cultured, to disrespect most things authentically African, name it: our religion, culture, language, philosophy, color. They don't see any of those as valuable. That is the core issue.

They don't value their own people, they look down on us as much as the white man does. I repeat;  You can't invest in or empower what you don't believe in. Except you are a drooling fo.ol.