God bless that man for standing up for that poor woman.

At least there is a shred of humanity in some people in this world.

Even though I still want this nation to split, I have nothing but respect for this man. The same cannot be said of those rampaging youth who would did all kinds of things to that woman.

A. Chigozie,

You may hear bad things about Igbos on Nairaland, but most of it is due to jealousy. You can trace this hate back to colonialism.

The Igbos were favored by the British unfortunately, and that translated to economic and educational dominance. Igbos dominated every sphere until the civil war.

It was the Biafran war which was the Igbo watershed moment, where we lost our prominence and have been demonized every since.

Remember that we have illustrious Igbos who are respected world wide. The illustrious Chinua Achebe is one of them.

Igbos are a good people and we cherish our culture and heritage. The politics section can pollute your mind. I am so proud of you for reconnecting with your Igbo roots.

The wise Igbo sage, Chinua Achebe.

^^^

[img]http://3.bp..com/_Pqpmm2T6j4g/SI3dsGH3PMI/AAAAAAAADu4/-arIubhrXio/s400/shut+the+hell+up.gif[/img]

Rhino,

Why wouldn't Ijaws have a massive vote for Jonathan? The massive turnout in Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers is very true. Of course Ijaws would come out in record numbers to vote for one of their own for the FIRST TIME.

So I advise you to be quiet, because no one believes you.

This was when Abagworo was a true Igbo lion. I miss that old Abagworo.

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo

[img]http://niaonline.org/bride/wp-content/themes/parallelus-unite/includes/timthumb.php?src=/bride/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/nina_igbo.jpg&w=566&zc=1[/img]

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo Kwenu!

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo

Igbo

Yorubas definitely love fashion.

That is something that cannot be denied.

^^^

You must enjoy demonizing the Ndigbo.

We are not the enemy. Do you see us killing people in the name of religion, or because they are from a different ethnicity?

Thank God, I am Christian, I have to forgive you.

ekt_bear:

Lol, EzeUche aka Igbo Krushchev

[img]http://2.bp..com/_qV5eQTiOs2g/SLVf95a3FtI/AAAAAAAAAnw/9_BB5TlfyyQ/s400/Khrushchev_shoe.jpg[/img]

More like Mao Zedong.

I take no prisoners.

Nigerian Election Success Could Polish Country's Reputation


[img]http://media.voanews.com/images/480*319/APNigeriaElectionsCommission21Apr2011.jpg[/img]

Nigeria may be able to polish its reputation and assume a wider role on the global stage if its upcoming gubernatorial polls are as seemingly free and fair as last week's presidential election, analysts say.

This oil-exporting country of 154 million people has long enjoyed the money and manpower to dominate its continent, and some analysts expect it to top South Africa as the most economically and politically powerful country in Africa by 2030.

Yet throughout decades of unruly and often corrupt rule, the main obstacle between Nigeria and its potential for global stewardship has been its poor international reputation for vote rigging, for corruption, and for its government's lukewarm commitment to democracy.

The country should be a member of the influential G20 (Group of 20 nations) U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Nigerians during a 2009 visit. But the country's reputation for corruption, she said, is a problem.

Analysts say, however, that Nigeria's reputation for corrupt, un-democratic, and inhumane rule may be on the mend following its most free and fair elections in recent memory.

The April 16 presidential poll, won by President Goodluck Jonathan, was widely hailed as reasonably fair by international observers like the Commonwealth of former British colonies and the African Union. The outcome set off riots in the country's north, and Jonathan's opponent, Muhammadu Buhari, has said he will contest the results in court. But the vote was nonetheless seen as a vast improvement over the previous election, five years ago, that was roundly criticized as chaotic and rigged.

The country will vote again to elect state governors on April 26, and Jonathan has asked Nigerians to conduct themselves peacefully throughout the poll, lest they mar the goodwill the country earned by holding a free and fair presidential election. In his victory speech, Jonathan said the internationally-acclaimed vote has allowed Nigeria to take its rightful place in the community of nations.

"We have reiterated our faith in democracy which underscores our determination to join the free world where only the will of the people is the foundation of governance," said Jonathan. "We will not let you down."

African analyst for the London-based watchgroup Chatham House Drew Vines says the country's first seemingly legitimate election in recent history will only bolster the West African powerhouse's growing influence in Africa and abroad.

"I think this is a really important moment for West Africa, and highly significant for Nigeria," said Vines. "This is the best election in memory for Nigeria, and hopefully will provide a sound basis for Nigeria to reassert itself as one of the major countries of Africa."

In many respects, he said, Nigeria is already taking a more strident position in international affairs.

Jonathan, Vines says, has been unusually outspoken in favor of military reforms for the tiny, drug cartel-troubled state of Guinea-Bissau.

He also inserted himself into the center of last month's Ivory Coast conflict. Nigeria co-sponsored a United Nations resolution for a military intervention to remove the country's incumbent president, Laurent Gbagbo, when he refused to concede a November 28 election.

In contrast, Africa's wealthiest and most influential nation, South Africa, offered Gbagbo a power-sharing agreement that Ivorian and Nigerian leaders harshly criticized.

That geopolitical clash between South Africa and Nigeria, Vines says, may be the first in a long tilt of power on the continent.

"Many people have missed the long term, forward modeling of where the world will be in 2030," added Vines. "Nigeria could be a top 20 global economy - the only one in Africa, not South Africa. That's the potential for Nigeria if it gets its internal politics right."

However widely accepted its latest election, Nigeria still faces immense human rights crises that will compromise its ability to speak with authority on the world stage, according to Human Rights Watch researcher Eric Guttschuss.

Guttschuss says the country has yet to fully address brutality in its security forces, and corruption in its treasury.

"We have seen a significant improvement in these last polls, but [chief among] the steps going forward is to address these very deep seated issues of corruption, of political violence, of impunity for all classes, of human rights violations as well as abuses by the police and other security forces," noted Guttschuss.

If that can be accomplished, analysts say, Nigeria has a future as not only an African leader, but a world leader.

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/west/Nigerias-Latest-Election-Signals-Possible-Turnaround-120351419.html

Nigerian Election Success Could Polish Country's Reputation


[img]http://media.voanews.com/images/480*319/APNigeriaElectionsCommission21Apr2011.jpg[/img]

Nigeria may be able to polish its reputation and assume a wider role on the global stage if its upcoming gubernatorial polls are as seemingly free and fair as last week's presidential election, analysts say.

This oil-exporting country of 154 million people has long enjoyed the money and manpower to dominate its continent, and some analysts expect it to top South Africa as the most economically and politically powerful country in Africa by 2030.

Yet throughout decades of unruly and often corrupt rule, the main obstacle between Nigeria and its potential for global stewardship has been its poor international reputation for vote rigging, for corruption, and for its government's lukewarm commitment to democracy.

The country should be a member of the influential G20 (Group of 20 nations) U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Nigerians during a 2009 visit. But the country's reputation for corruption, she said, is a problem.

Analysts say, however, that Nigeria's reputation for corrupt, un-democratic, and inhumane rule may be on the mend following its most free and fair elections in recent memory.

The April 16 presidential poll, won by President Goodluck Jonathan, was widely hailed as reasonably fair by international observers like the Commonwealth of former British colonies and the African Union. The outcome set off riots in the country's north, and Jonathan's opponent, Muhammadu Buhari, has said he will contest the results in court. But the vote was nonetheless seen as a vast improvement over the previous election, five years ago, that was roundly criticized as chaotic and rigged.

The country will vote again to elect state governors on April 26, and Jonathan has asked Nigerians to conduct themselves peacefully throughout the poll, lest they mar the goodwill the country earned by holding a free and fair presidential election. In his victory speech, Jonathan said the internationally-acclaimed vote has allowed Nigeria to take its rightful place in the community of nations.

"We have reiterated our faith in democracy which underscores our determination to join the free world where only the will of the people is the foundation of governance," said Jonathan. "We will not let you down."

African analyst for the London-based watchgroup Chatham House Drew Vines says the country's first seemingly legitimate election in recent history will only bolster the West African powerhouse's growing influence in Africa and abroad.

"I think this is a really important moment for West Africa, and highly significant for Nigeria," said Vines. "This is the best election in memory for Nigeria, and hopefully will provide a sound basis for Nigeria to reassert itself as one of the major countries of Africa."

In many respects, he said, Nigeria is already taking a more strident position in international affairs.

Jonathan, Vines says, has been unusually outspoken in favor of military reforms for the tiny, drug cartel-troubled state of Guinea-Bissau.

He also inserted himself into the center of last month's Ivory Coast conflict. Nigeria co-sponsored a United Nations resolution for a military intervention to remove the country's incumbent president, Laurent Gbagbo, when he refused to concede a November 28 election.

In contrast, Africa's wealthiest and most influential nation, South Africa, offered Gbagbo a power-sharing agreement that Ivorian and Nigerian leaders harshly criticized.

That geopolitical clash between South Africa and Nigeria, Vines says, may be the first in a long tilt of power on the continent.

"Many people have missed the long term, forward modeling of where the world will be in 2030," added Vines. "Nigeria could be a top 20 global economy - the only one in Africa, not South Africa. That's the potential for Nigeria if it gets its internal politics right."

However widely accepted its latest election, Nigeria still faces immense human rights crises that will compromise its ability to speak with authority on the world stage, according to Human Rights Watch researcher Eric Guttschuss.

Guttschuss says the country has yet to fully address brutality in its security forces, and corruption in its treasury.

"We have seen a significant improvement in these last polls, but [chief among] the steps going forward is to address these very deep seated issues of corruption, of political violence, of impunity for all classes, of human rights violations as well as abuses by the police and other security forces," noted Guttschuss.

If that can be accomplished, analysts say, Nigeria has a future as not only an African leader, but a world leader.

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/west/Nigerias-Latest-Election-Signals-Possible-Turnaround-120351419.html

Nigeria elections credible and creditable - COG

Tuesday, 19 April 2011, 9:38 am
Press Release: Commonwealth Observer Group
Nigeria elections credible and creditable - Commonwealth Observers

The April 2011 National Assembly and Presidential elections in Nigeria have 'discarded the notion that the country can only hold flawed elections' Commonwealth Observers in the country have said.

Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja, the Nigerian capital, while giving the interim findings of the team on 18 April 2011, the chair of the Commonwealth Observer Group, former Botswana President Festus Mogae said:

"The April 2011 elections marked a genuine celebration of democracy in Africa’s most populous country and a key member of the Commonwealth.

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO1104/S00460/nigeria-elections-credible-and-creditable-cog.htm

Sorry but I am going to go with the international observers who stated this election was credible. Plus, it was free and fair.

You would not know, because you were not on the ground.

Thank God the rest of the world understood that this was the freest election in Nigeria history!

Even the opposition gained some ground.

ekt_bear:

Yes, I doubt the turnout. I doubt that Imo had nearly 3X the turnout of the SW.

I wonder why no media reporters commented on the deluge of voters on the Imo streets. Instead, they and other public officials complained of low turnout. So either the people on the ground who reported "low turnout" are m.orons. . . or somehow the actual # of votes got inflated dramatically.

You can be a doubting Thomas all you want. The fact remains the East was more excited about the election than the SW.

That is faulty methods you are using. Just because the SW did not have a high turnout means the SE/SS is not suppose to have high turnout?

That is some really FAULTING REASONING. I expect better from you.

Ekt_bear, do you understand what FAULTY REASONING means?

There is more evidence of rigging up North where children were allowed to vote.

Why is no one complaining about that?

[img]http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTzCgaSPM0Jg-tAVKOimF_vIfr_DFVxCd57hbBpCommSp9AHBoo&t=1[/img]

There is photographic evidence as well. And a young Corper who died last message was how CPC supporters forced young voters on him.

ekt_bear:

How would your typical voter on the ground know that is was not rigged?

How would they know?

Why are they able to say definitively that it was NOT rigged?

Do you doubt the massive turnout in the East?

Why wouldn't there be massive turnout for Jonathan? The first time someone from the Old Eastern Region was running from president.

There is something I do not understand about you people who continue to cry out rigging in the East. Even Ebonyi state proves that there was no rigging even though the state is PDP dominated.

Sorry but most international observers, they believe it was one of the freest and fairest elections.

Buhari was not going to win if he did not receive a larger amount of the vote from 2 out of the Big 3 as in Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba.

ekt_bear:

I don't see how your second sentence implies the first one.

What are you reasons for saying that the election was rigged in the SE/SS, when the people of the SE/SS do not think it was rigged?

There has been no allegation of rigging from people who participated in the electoral process in the SE/SS. All the allegations are coming from people outside the region.

How do you explain that?